Best Outdoor Ant Killer

Ants are some of the most remarkable creatures on the planet. They contribute to the natural process of decomposition of organic matter such as dead bugs and dead animals. Burrowing ants also help to keep the soil turned, providing nutrient-rich topsoil. They also offer other creatures a sustainable food source.

When ants encroach on your property and in your home, they quickly become a nuisance and a health risk for your family and pets. They also cause cosmetic and structural damage to your house. Dealing with ants and preventing them from entering your home starts with outdoor ant control. Learning about the best outdoor ant killers and how to use them will help you protect your family, pets, and home from an ant invasion

Where Do Ants Build Nests?

Image via Flickr by bgv23

There are many different species of ants in the United States alone, and though they all have similar traits, they can build remarkably different nests in the most peculiar places. Ants such as fire ants are burrowing ants that create elaborate tunnels and chambers underground, building up a mound over the nest with the displaced soil. Carpenter ants build their nests in the rotting wood of decaying logs, firewood, or water-damaged wood inside of your home.

Pavement ants are burrowing ants as well, but they will create their intricate network of tunnels and chambers underneath slabs of concrete or under your home’s foundation. And then there are army ants, which build temporary nests with their bodies, complete with tunnels and chambers to house their young and protect their queen.

The best defense is often taking preventative actions when it comes to ants. Keeping ants out of your home typically starts with outdoor ant control, but if not done correctly, you could encourage ants to enter your home as a means of escaping from your efforts to eliminate them. For severe ant infestations, you may want to contact a professional pest control agency for help.

Preventative Methods

Determining the answer to this question all depends on the type of ants you are dealing with and where they build their nests. Preventative methods should be implemented before using ant killers such as ant baits, repellent or non-repellent insecticides, chemical or powdered insecticides, and granular insecticides. A few of the methods you can take to prevent ants from being enticed onto your property are as follows:

• Keep all deadfall and leaves cleared from your property.
• Remove debris such as logs, firewood, large rocks, and anything that provides ground cover.
• Keep your lawn and landscaping plants well-manicured.
• Keep the mulch at least 1 foot from the foundation of your home.

If you have taken these steps to deter ants from infringing on your property and in your home but are still plagued with ants, you will need to consider using outdoor ant killers. Ant killing insecticides come in many forms and work in different ways. Choosing which ant killer is best for your situation can be a daunting task, so let’s look at some different ant killers and how they work.

What is the Best Outdoor Ant Killer?

Powdered and Granular Insecticides

Powdered and granular insecticides can be used to treat your lawn, garden, and perimeter of your property. These ant killers provide lethal doses of pesticides combined with enticing ingredients that the ants mistake for food. Foraging ants take these forms of bait back to their nests and distribute them throughout the colony, eventually killing off the nest.

One downside to these forms of insecticides is that ants won’t take the time to consume the ant killer on the spot, opting to carry it back to the nest instead, which takes more time. It is also susceptible to elements such as rain or sprinklers and can be washed away before being productive. If you use sprinklers or live in a region with lots of rain, granular and powdered forms of insecticides may not be the best option.

Ant Killing Insecticide Sprays

Ant killing insecticide sprays are available and consist of repellent and non-repellent insecticides. Repellent sprays have earned a bad reputation due to misuse of the product. This product works best when used as a perimeter spray or to create a barrier around the exterior of your home to keep ants from entering your property or your house. Using a repellent insecticide directly on an ant nest is where people can go wrong with this product.

When applied to an ant nest, repellent sprays disrupt the nest, causing the ants to split to create new colonies as a protective reaction to the insecticide. This behavioral trait is called budding and could even cause ants to seek refuge inside your house.

Non-repellent Sprays

Non-repellent sprays are more useful for killing ants because the ants can’t detect the insecticide as it is being applied. These types of sprays can be used directly on foraging ant trails or ant nests, but are limited to killing the ants that the insecticide comes in contact with. A non-repellent ant spray is excellent for spot treating in your home, on patios or porches, and in gardens.

Chemical Insecticides

Chemical insecticides can be applied directly to an ant nest and work best when treating the nests of burrowing ants such as fire ants. This product is most effective when an ant nest is thoroughly saturated, and depending on the size of the ant colony, several applications may be needed to eradicate the nest. There is also a risk of the colony budding as an effort to conserve and rebuild in another location.

Ant Baits

Ant baits, especially slow-acting ant baits, come in solid or liquid forms and are by far the best indoor and outdoor ant killers. Though solid ant baits are effective, they suffer in the same way as granular and powered insecticides do by taking longer to work. Liquid ant bait is the best choice as ants can drink as much of the bait as they can and carry the metabolized insecticide back to the colony and disperse it directly to the queen, workers, and young without delay.

Indoor and outdoor bait stations allow you to place the bait where it will be most effective in controlling the ants in your home or on your property. Dealing with ants comes along with the responsibilities of being a homeowner. Learning how to deter ants and deal with ant infestations with outdoor ant killers will help you protect your family, pets, and your home.