Ant-Proofing Your Roseville Home: Tips for An Ant-Free Household
When it comes to widespread pest problems, ants are as widespread as they come. They are the most numerous insects on the planet and are on every continent except Antarctica. Their colonies contain anywhere from a few thousand to several hundred thousand individual ants. Their extensive numbers are why ants can seem nearly impossible to get rid of once they invade your residential property. Ants are known as the most common, home-invading pests. Despite their small size, these irritating insects cause huge problems for Roseville homeowners.
Come with us today to discover how understanding ant behavior can help you identify these pests on your property and prevent them from taking over your home. You’ll learn how and why ants invade and the key to successful ant control. Or, for more immediate intervention of your ant problems, turn to Neighborly Pest Management for effective ant removal services. It’s our mission to give you the pest-free home you deserve.
Understanding Ant Behavior
The first step in eliminating a problem is learning what is causing it in the first place. The more you understand about the habits and behaviors of the ants getting into your Roseville home, the better you will be able to identify what could be the root cause of the ant infestation. Let’s start with how they operate.
Ants are social insects that work together as a part of an organized system. Some ants in a colony are responsible for caring for the young and the queen, while others must locate food sources or protect the colony from potential threats.
The most common ant colony members you’ll find crawling around on your kitchen countertops are scout ants. The purpose of a scout ant is to venture away from the nest and find food sources to bring back to the colony. These ants lay down a pheromone trail, creating an invisible pathway that extends from the nest to the food source. Once a scout ant finds a sticky spot of juice or food crumbs in your dining room, it’s only a matter of time before it leads many more ants right into your home.
After invading your home a few times for food, ants may begin to see your property as an ideal nesting spot, which creates a whole host of new problems. Some ant species won’t hesitate to build their nests within your walls. So, even if you don’t have an active infestation in your home at the moment, these tiny pests could move in without notice. This is why it’s important to learn how to identify the signs of ants on your property. It will allow you to take action and get rid of ants as soon as possible, hopefully before an ant colony can become fully established.
Some ant colonies have multiple queens. Others have just one. Nests with multiple queens are harder to control, as they have more options for survival. If one queen is under attack, others can run for safety and start new nests nearby. We will talk more about this later as we discuss your options for ant control.
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Visible Signs Of Ant Presence
How do you identify the presence of ants on your Roseville property? It is quite simple. Just look for live ants. These pests are not secretive. They will not hide during the day and only come out at night, like rodents, cockroaches, or bed bugs. No. They are more than happy to crawl through your kitchen, bathroom, and other living areas in broad daylight. If you see one ant crawling over your kitchen table, it is probably not alone. If that ant finds food, there will be dozens, if not hundreds more, in just a few hours.
Carpenter ants are not like other ants. Although they can scavenge for food inside homes, that is not the main reason they come indoors. These pests invade to build their nests inside structural wood. As these insects tunnel through floors, walls, and ceilings, they leave subtle signs of their presence behind. These signs include pin-sized holes and piles of fine sawdust. If your home has a moisture problem, it will be more susceptible to a carpenter ant infestation.
Identifying an ant infestation is usually easy. Identifying what types of ants are indoors and what problems they might cause is much more challenging. Neighborly Pest Management is here if you need help assessing your risk. We will inspect your home and property, identify entry points, and discover what ant species you are dealing with. If you would like your ant infestation gone, we have options for that as well. Just ask your technician about our advanced ant pest control plans.
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The Drawbacks Of DIY Ant Control Methods
How easy is it to control ants on your own? Some would have you believe that it is incredibly simple. All you have to do is lay down a trap, right? Unfortunately, this is usually not enough. You have to know several things before attempting to combat an ant infestation.
You must know whether the ants inside your home are protein or sugar ants, which will affect what traps you will have to use. You also have to know if a colony has multiple queens. Certain types of ants have dozens of queens. If your control methods do not eliminate the entire colony, queens will spread out and start new nests nearby. This can cause your problem to grow rather than shrink.
Another big concern is that you might use ant control methods improperly. Many products are harmful when ingested. If you apply a treatment in an area that is accessible to children or pets, you could get them sick. The best way to avoid these challenges is to turn to a pest control professional.
Although we do not recommend DIY ant control, we are not against DIY ant prevention. You can implement DIY ant prevention strategies without using tricky pest control products. If you would like to take action to protect your home from ants, here are some great steps to take:
- Ants love a dirty home because it usually offers many food options. Do your best to clean your house by wiping down shelves, vacuuming, doing dishes, and cleaning floors.
- A muffin on your counter is a bountiful meal for ants. Pack away all leftovers inside airtight containers and make sure that the treats you leave out are properly covered.
- If an ant can crawl into a box of food, it will. Consider repackaging all of your pantry items inside airtight containers after you bring them home from the store. This will keep pesky ants out.
- Some ants crawl into trash cans to get food. Make sure your trash bins are clean and that they have tight-fitting lids.
- Ants need moisture to survive. Repair leaky faucets and fixtures around your home, address damage to pipes, use a dehumidifier, and wipe up moisture spills to limit their access to drinks.
- An open soda can or juice container will quickly attract ants. Make sure all sweet beverages have tight-fitting lids, especially if they are not in your refrigerator.
- All an ant needs to get into your home is a small gap or crack. Seal weak spots in your home’s foundation, address gaps around pipes, wires, and fixtures that enter your home, and make sure all of your doors and windows are in good condition and properly sealed.
- Clutter around your home’s exterior may attract ants. Cut grass, remove weeds, and clear out leaf litter and other organic clutter to create a dry, clear barrier around your home.
For extra protection to keep ants away from your property, turn to your Neighborly Pest Management professionals. We would love to pay you a visit and will find a quick option to help you deal with and prevent ants and all sorts of other problematic pests.
The Key To Successful Ant Control: Contact Us Today!
Now that you are an ant expert let’s talk about professional control. At Neighborly Pest Management, we target the source of ant troubles by applying bait to target the ant colonies. In addition, we will use liquid treatments around the exterior of your home to prevent these pests from getting indoors. If we notice ant mounds around your property, we will use targeted treatments to eliminate colonies after identifying the ant species and deciding on the best bait for the job. After the initial service visit, we will schedule further appointments for your property to check up on treatments and make sure they remain effective.
You do not have to live with ants inside your home. Reach out to Neighborly Pest Management today to learn about our unique approach to ant control in Roseville and schedule an appointment for your property. We look forward to finding a pest treatment option to help you avoid the insects that want to live inside your home.
Hear From Our Happy Customers
At Neighborly Pest Management, your satisfaction is our priority! See for yourself what our customers have to say about working with us.
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“I've never had a bug problem since I switched to Neighborly. Danny is an awesome technician! He has a great personality and explains things thoroughly and gives me clear and detailed answers to any questions I might have.”- Joe B.
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“We’ve used Neighborly for a couple of years and have had outstanding service consistently throughout. Doug is mindful of our pets and kid's safety as well, making sure that our home is a safe environment for everyone except the pests!”- Greg
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“We can't share enough positive feedback about Doug and Neighborly Pest. Doug has always gone above and beyond to make sure our house stays bug-free!! He's considerate and always follows up to see how things are going after his visit.”- Sabrina C.
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“Nate is an excellent technician. He is a big reason we’re so happy with the service! Overall a great company and fair pricing.”- M.D.
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“We have been using Neighborly Pest for many years. While we have had many competitors come to our door, we have no interest in changing. Doug has been our technician during our entire service, and he is absolutely the best, always friendly!”- Brittany A.
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“My technician Doug Stone is amazing!! To say he goes above and beyond to maintain my property is an understatement! He took care of the issue and took the initiative to repair the garage door where my unwanted friends were getting in. Problem solved!!”- Jill M.