LifestyleEco-friendly tips for a pest-free home

Eco‑friendly tips for a pest-free home

How to get rid of ants from the house?

Images source: © Adobe Stock | Cherkas

5:16 PM EDT, April 24, 2024

Although ants are beneficial insects, their presence inside the house is often unwelcome. How can you eliminate them from your apartment effectively and humanely? We've got some tips.

Seeing ants in the garden is common, but it's a different story when these tiny insects invade our homes. Despite their size, ants can climb high parts of the facade and enter apartments on higher floors, squeezing through the smallest cracks.

Ants are primarily attracted to the smell of food. To deter them, it's crucial to immediately wipe up spills from sweet drinks, regularly take out the garbage, and vacuum up crumbs and leftover food.

However, it's important to remember that ants play a vital role in the ecosystem. They transport seeds, aerate the soil, and help control other pests. So, how can we discourage them from venturing into our kitchens, bathrooms, or children's rooms? Here's a highly effective solution.

How to get rid of ants in your apartment?

The first instinct might be to use chemical agents when spotting ants in your apartment. However, these can pose risks to the ants and household members, including children, pets, and sensitive individuals. It's advisable to try ecological and homemade remedies that focus on preventing ants from entering in the first place.

A useful preventive measure is to take advantage of ants' sensitivity to certain scents. Ants are repelled by specific aromas such as coffee, cinnamon, cloves, citrus, and rosewood.

Sprinkling aromatic spices or dried coffee grounds around entrance doors or patios can effectively repel ants, encouraging them to move elsewhere.

Secure the door and window frames

Creating a special spray from a mixture of water and selected essential oils, like citrus or rosewood, is also effective. This mixture should be sprayed on window and door frames. Alternatively, saturating cotton swabs with the chosen oil and thoroughly rubbing it into the frames can be just as effective. This task should be performed about once a week, especially during spring and summer.

The method involving oil and cotton swabs serves a dual purpose: Besides keeping ants away, it spreads a pleasant scent throughout the house when windows are open and a breeze passes through, enhancing the atmosphere.