For many people, summer means preparing for an invasion. Armies of troops come in lines barreling for their houses, ready to attack. No, these people aren't oppressed people in third world countries; they're regular people like you facing the smallest of invaders: ants. Ants are great creatures to have outdoors. They are good for the environment and help break down old, smelly rotting stuff so you don't worry about it, but inside, it's a different story. Inside they contaminate your food, and can harm you and your children. But don't fear, there are lots of simple ways to send these tiny invaders back outside and keep them there.



If you find a few ants in your house, you should actually take this as a good sign. This means that these are just scout ants and you can stop them before they can go back to the colony and start the full invasion. These ants go out and find food, leaving a scent trail as they go. They then follow the scent trail back to the colony and tell others to follow and come get food. The best way to stop this from happening is to destroy the scent trail. This way, these ants won't be able to make it back to the colony to tell others of their find. There are lots of products you can sprinkle on the trail to make it impossible to find. Some suggestions are black pepper, talcum powder, cinnamon, or vinegar (just put it in a spray bottle). Just sprinkle or spray one of these substances on the ants and their track. You can watch them for a minute before you apply while they walk so you know their previous path. Make sure to get the path they have come from.

While it is important to get them out of the house, it's just as important to keep the ants from coming back into the house. If you can find where they got into the house, apply whatever you're using (pepper, talcum, etc) on their entrances as well. This will keep other ants from following the trail into your house. When they panic and try to get away, watch where they go; you may be able to find where they got in the house. There are other products you can apply at the entrances to keep the ants from coming in again, including the crushed bay leaves and cayenne pepper. You can also sprinkle these products, or the ones mentioned earlier, in cabinets and near food. This will keep the ants away from the food. Another idea to keep them out is to draw a line along the inside barrier of the house where ants come in. Ants generally won't want to cross the line. These tactics will keep the ants from coming into the house or at least finding the food. If they don't think food is available, they will stop looking there.

Along with these tactics you should try to seal your food as well as you can. Ants can sometimes get them into closed jars, so keep those in the fridge if need be. If these tactics don't get rid of your ants, you can always buy ant poison. Just be sure to buy the right kind for the ants you have. If the correct taste isn't used, the ants won't eat it.