Pharaoh Ant Control
Peder Hoyum
Identification
Pharaoh ants are very small, measuring in at only 1/16 of an inch. They are yellow to brown in color and usually have a darker abdomen. A tropical species that's been introduced all over the world, pharaoh ants have adapted to live indoors in more temperate climates.
Pharaoh Ant
Pharaoh Ants Eating
In the world of indoor ant control, there are a number of very small ants that all get kind of lumped together. The pharaoh ant (Monomorium pharaonis) is often confused with the Argentine ant (Linepithema humile) and the pavement ant (Tetramorium caespitum), as they are all minuscule and can be a nuisance inside of our homes and businesses. They are quite different in appearance and habit, but who has the time (or ability) to make a real scientific identification of such a tiny little ant? Thankfully, you don't need to know which ant is which; the control methods are pretty similar for all indoor nuisance ants. You just need to follow these few basic steps to put an end to your pharaoh ant problem.
Controlling Pharaoh Ants
Clean your house, especially your kitchen. The first step is figuring out why the ants are invading your house to begin with. In almost every case, that is going to be a readily available source of food. It doesn't take much to attract them. Their scouts will leave a scent trail to a food source for others to follow; that's why you see them walking all in a row. Keeping your kitchen and the rest of your house clean will do a lot to deter an ant invasion. Don't leave dishes in the sink, wipe off your counters, clean under the microwave, knock the crumbs out of your toaster. Keep your floors clean and your garbage cans empty.
Use ant-proof containers. If properly motivated, ants can chew their way into all sorts of paper and cardboard food containers. If you aren't already storing your staples like flour, sugar, grains, cereals, and rice in pest-proof containers, you are risking an infestation from many annoying pantry pests. Besides ants, there are mice, rats, roaches, weevils, flour beetles, and pantry moths, none of which you want getting into your food stores. Tin containers are nice because they can keep even the sharpest teeth out, but hard plastic bins with sealable lids are another viable option. As important as the containers are, keep the areas around the containers clean, too. Wipe out cupboards and wash bottles that may have sticky spills, like honey or jam.
Ant baits are the most effective ant control. Pharaoh ants are somewhat unique in that they are polygynous, which means they can have many egg-laying individuals (queens) in one colony. This makes them difficult to control because one of the queens and her workers can easily be overlooked and the problem will continue. They are also known for their ability to spread over a wide area very quickly because of this fact. That means that direct targeting is impractical. Baiting, in which a worker ant brings a slow-acting poison back to their colony to spread around, is the best method for eradication. There are several commercial examples available. Making your own from the directions in the sidebar is another cheaper option.
You can use ant sprays, but it's not the best. It's ridiculous and dangerous to use insecticidal sprays on a single ant or small group of ants in your living space. If you go around spraying ants willy-nilly, you are just going to make the problem worse. They will divide up and spread out, and you'll have to find two nests. It is possible to follow a trail of ants back to their colony, but remember pharaoh ants are tiny, fitting in the smallest of places. Voids in walls, cracks in foundation, the area under a garbage can. Due to their tropical origins, pharaoh ants require a warm and moist place to reproduce. Check around hot water pipes and furnace vents.
Clean outside your house too. During the warmer months of the year, pharaoh ants can move beyond the warm confines of your home and spread out to other locations. If you have gotten rid of them in your house and want to prevent them from making a reappearance, there are a lot of things you can do along with the steps mentioned above. Remove decomposing debris from the foundation of your house and seal up any cracks or open areas in the concrete or siding of your home. You can make a temporary boundary around your house with a product like diatomaceous earth. You can also use some of the commercially available insecticides to poison the earth, if you're into that sort of thing.
Professional Ant Control
Getting rid of pharaoh ants is notoriously difficult. As pest species go, they have the benefit of being very small in size. Also, their population is very flexible due to their propensity for multiple queens. Cleaning your house and using baits should take care of a small problem. If you're faced with an enormous infestation, you just can't risk potential contamination, especially if you own a business that prepares food or if you are in a health care setting.You may need to call in a professional exterminator. That being said, sometimes the solutions offered by a spray and pay exterminator might not fit your needs. If at all possible, it is good to talk to a neighbor or get a recommendation from someone who has faced a similar problem. Talking with the exterminator about your concerns and asking questions about the products they use will help you make an informed choice, as well.
Natural Ant Control
Sweet ant bait. Mix a teaspoon of boric acid (borax) with a ¼ cup of a sugar syrup or something sweet like jam, honey, or corn syrup. Divide the mixture amongst several disposable plastic container lids and place them in areas where you have seen ants, such as counter tops, behind stoves, and under the sink. Just be careful to keep it away from your pets.
Protein ant bait. Depending on the time of the year (or maybe their mood), ants are attracted to proteins and grease rather than carbohydrates. Several recipes call for using ground liver mixed with boric acid, but I question what this will smell like after a day or two. Try mixing a tablespoon of peanut butter and a teaspoon of boric acid and dispense the same as the sweet baits.
Diatomaceous earth. This oft-recommended natural control product is cool because it isn't poisonous and uses fossilized plankton that has been ground up into sand to prevent small pests from invading our homes. You can make a border around your home or place it strategically in areas where you think ants will walk. The small fossils are very sharp and can cut the soft underbelly of an invading insect.