Do you have a pesky ant nest on your hands? From ants in walls to an ant colony in the house, there are over 12,000 ant species around the globe.
Wondering where all the ants you’ve been finding in your home actually come from? Read our article and learn some of the most common places where ants hide!
1. The Kitchen
Curious about how to find an ant nest? If you really want to nip your ant problem in the bud, then you might want to start looking for them in the kitchen. This is the most likely place in your house where an ant problem will begin.
Let’s face facts here. Ants live for feeding on our spare food and drinking up our stagnant water. So, what better place to find ample water and food supplies than your kitchen?
The kitchen is a fave hangout for ant colonies everywhere. Want to prevent them from slipping into your pantry? Make sure that you clean up any spills or crowns immediately.
Once crumbs are scattered and food storage containers are left exposed and open, ants see this as an invitation inside of your home. Another word of advice is to carefully store sweet items such as syrup and honey. Be sure to remove any leftover, sticky mess from the exterior of the containers as well.
2. The Bathroom
As often as your bathroom gets used, chances are that there’s a buildup of excess water and moisture in your washroom. Naturally, ants are attracted to water.
In case you didn’t know, that means ants will be racing to lap up the pooled water and accidental leaks in your restroom. For those of you who want to stop and colonies in their tracks, be sure to clean up any spilled water after taking a shower or a bath.
Want another word of advice? Grab a disinfectant to mop down the floor. These chemicals will keep the ants from coming back.
Pro tip: ants are also attracted to leaking or spilled body wash and shampoo. All that you have to do is clean up your mess after bathtub time to make your ant problem go away for good.
3. Pet Food and Water Bowls
Attention: your pet food and water bowls are no longer safe from ant invasions. Since ant colonies are so intelligent, they’ll be able to find any leftover food that you have around your house, including pet food. Whenever your cat or dog leaves their chow in their bowl, you can add a bit of petroleum jelly to it.
Surprisingly enough, this should deter your ant problem like no other. Still feeling clueless? Be sure to rub petroleum jelly on the rim of the bowl.
Start by flipping your pet’s food or water bowl upside down, dabbing petroleum jelly around its base to make an extremely slippery barrier. Not only will ants be unable to climb into the bowl, but the petroleum jelly won’t get into your dog or cat food supply either!
4. Inside Walls
Can ants live in walls? The answer is yes. When it comes to ant control, inspecting the inside of your walls for ant invasions should be one of your first priorities.
You might be surprised to find out that damaged or cracked walls provide the perfect crawlspace for ant colonies to populate and nest. Although certain ant species prefer to build outside colonies, inside walls give them the chance to find more sources of food while still remaining inside of your home.
5. The Bedroom
Are common household pests giving you a headache-and-a-half? We’re here to help. Similar to other forms of house pests, ants can thrive both indoors and outdoors.
This is especially true in houses that have efficient sources of food for them. Of course, the bedroom is the most ideal place for ants to find crumbs from movie nights and bedside morning breakfasts.
To defeat your ant invasion, the first thing that you should do is find out where and how your ants are coming from. Next, remove their reproductive source or colony from your bedroom. Lastly, call a pest control professional to do the rest!
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6. The Living Room
Admit it: many people host social events in their living room, right? So, it’s no surprise that excess crumbs or spills that have developed on the floor will gather ants immediately.
Can’t stand your ant invasion anymore? No worries – there are tons of poison boxes, sprays, and powder that you can use to obliterate your ant problem. For those of you who see more than 50 ants in your living room, chances are that their nest is located nearby.
7. Air Conditioning and Heating Units
Strangely enough, air conditioning and heating units are a great hiding place for ants in your home. If you spot any ants around are on your air conditioning unit, be sure to treat their mound with an ant killer product from the store.
Has your ant problem disappeared yet? Take this opportunity to thoroughly clean out the exterior of your air conditioning unit with water and soap. Since ants are attracted to scents, wiping down this area can remove the smell permanently.
8. Under Concrete Slabs
Have you noticed ants eating dead insects, nuts, pet food, and meat in your home recently? If that’s the case, then looking for them beneath the floor’s foundation might be a smart idea. That’s because they could be living and nesting under the concrete slabs of your house.
To combat this, try baiting them out from beneath the concrete slabs with ant bombs or traps.
9. The Trashcan
Okay, so you might not be too shocked that the trashcan is a common place for ants to hideout. However, just because it’s an easy place for them to access doesn’t mean you should let them live there.
Make sure that you take out the garbage on a regular basis, relocating it to trash bins outside. And if you have rotten fruit inside of your house, remove it immediately – ants love that stuff.
10. Small Holes or Cracks
Seal any small holes or cracks inside your home—these cracks invite in ants and other annoying pests. By sealing doors and windows with special weather stripping materials, ants won’t even be able to enter your home in the first place.
As we mentioned above, answer more than likely to make a home for themselves inside of your walls if they do get it. So, sealing holes and cracks inside of your floors or walls will keep them from getting inside of them. For extra protection, use silicone caulk.
On top of this, calling a professional pest expert will help you prevent future and infestations. Since certain species of ants are extremely hard to find, like carpenter ants, contacting a pest management company will be the smartest decision you’ve made yet!
11. In Your Home’s Insulation
Dealing with carpenter ants inside of your home’s insulation? Have no fear – we’ve got your back. In spite of the fact that carpenter ants love to live inside of the cavities of your wall, you shouldn’t allow them to chew sawdust and lumber until their nests have taken over your household.
Instead, remove them from the foam inside of your walls. Obviously, this will prevent them from Reusing and shooting up foam insulation. If you allow this to continue, then they’ll degrade both the insulation and the wood as time goes on.
To avoid this, finding their nests and spraying an insecticide directly inside of it is your best solution.
Need a Hand With Getting Rid of Ants?
Need a hand with your ant nest?
If you’re wondering how to find ant colony invasions, then you’ve definitely come to the right place. We all know the ants like to live in the kitchen and the bathroom, but did you know that you could find them inside your home’s insulation too?
That’s not all. From poison boxes and sprays to powders and bug bombs, we’ve got everything you need to eliminate your ant invasion permanently.
Having a hard time figuring out where ants are coming from?
We can emphasize this enough: by calling a professional pest control expert, you’ll never have to worry about ants crawling up your sleeves or in your pants again.
Looking for commercial and residential pest control in Memphis, Tennessee? Don’t be afraid to contact us today for a free estimate!
