How to Prepare for Ant Exterminator

Preparation Steps for Different Types of Ants

In Canada, ant extermination preparation is almost as important as handling the invasion itself. It involves understanding the behavioral patterns of different ant species and identifying your approach accordingly.

Carpenter Ants

Before Carpenter Ant Treatment

Primarily, keep the kitchen area clean, wipe any food and water spills, and seal food containers securely. Regularly vacuum areas where you have noticed ant trails.

This practice helps remove the pheromone trail ants follow, disorienting their colonies and making it more difficult for the ants to find their way back.

Exterior Barrier Method

Carry out an exterior barrier method by restricting the movement of ants from the outside into the house. Apply a continuous band of insecticide around the foundation of the home, the base of the vegetation, near nests, and anywhere the ants might attempt entry.

It also helps to keep the area around the building free of organic waste, such as wood, plant debris, and wet mulch.

What to Expect?

It's not uncommon to see increased ant activity immediately after the treatment. But, with an effective solution, the colonies should be eradicated quickly within a few days. Carpenter ants, specifically, are drawn out of their nests by certain chemicals and will become more visible before they die off, typically within a few hours.

After Carpenter Ant Treatment

Post extermination, ensure to maintain a clean environment. Seal up cracks, keep the food locked away, and make it harder for a new ant colony to take residence.

Yellow carpenter ant nests can often be found behind walls, in wood, or under insulation, while black carpenter ants prefer nesting outside.

Non-Wood Destroying Ants (Pavement Ants, Odorous House Ants, Sugar Ants)

Before Treatment

Like preparing for wood-destroying ants, sanitation is key when expecting ant control service for these species as well.

Pay close attention to food sources that may attract these pests and any moisture sources need special attention. The goal is always to make your home less inviting to these ants, helping you manage ant pest issues effectively.

Exterior Barrier Method

Similar to the carpenter ants, these species of ants can also be managed with pesticide application around the exterior of the house. It deprives the ants of food, disrupting their nesting patterns, and making them easier to control.

What to Expect

The ant control treatments have a rapid impact. Some methods involve spraying highly attractive baits around the nests, which the worker ants carry back to their colonies.

Initial escalation in ant activity indicates a successful effect and the ants' numbers should diminish shortly.

After Treatment

Continuing with your sanitation activities after the external ant control company has completed the treatment is crucial in preventing a potential ant come back.

Make sure to be vigilant about food or moisture sources if you want to deter a future infestation. The species listed under this category do not damage property like their wood-eating counterparts, but they can still be a significant nuisance, justifying the ant extermination service prices.

How to Prepare Your Home Before Ant Control?

Ideally positioned as your go-to guide, let's investigate into precise measures inside and outside the home to get ready for ant eradication.

Inside the Home

In order to get an ant-free home, it's essential to prepare the kitchen, bathroom, and living spaces.

Kitchen Preparation

Undeniably, kitchens serve as an inviting oasis for ants, lured by food and water. To support your extermination strategy, adhere to these steps:

1. Manage Food Items: Store all food in ant-proof containers. This includes pet food, which often attracts ants.
2. Clean Surfaces: Crumbs and spills can attract an ant colony. Maintain neat and clean kitchen surfaces to eliminate these attractions.
3. Address Moisture: Pay attention to leaking taps and pipes. Ants seek out moisture, making these spots potential nesting sites.

Bathroom and Living Areas

Scaling up your preparation to the bathroom and living areas, imposes another layer of fortification against ant infestations. Here's how:

1. Moisture Control: Ants can find moisture in less-obvious places - under sinks, around showers, even within damp towels or mats, which may seem small but significant for ant survival.. Mitigate moisture to curtail nesting.
2. Seal Cracks: Entry points like window seals, floorboard gaps, or wall cracks should be sealed. This restricts ant ingress, boosting the effectiveness of the process.

Outside the Home

Expanding your ant control strategy to the outside, you must inspect and prepare the yard and its perimeter.

Yard and Perimeter

The external environment calls for different considerations to foil would-be ant invasions:

1. Eliminate Nesting Sites: Wooden piles often serve as potential nests for carpenter ants, reconsider their placement to distance them from your property much more effectively
2. Address Water Sources: Curbing access to water reduces the feasibility of establishing colonies. Regularly drain standing water and keep exterior faucets leak-free.

This practical guide aids in getting rid of any appeal your home may have to invading ants. A pest-free environment asserts the expertise of professional ant-killing methods while providing maximum treatment effectiveness.

Conclusion

Swinging into action now will certainly yield positive results down the line. With a comprehensive understanding of the various ant species, their behavior patterns, and proper house preparation methods, achieving a pest-free environment becomes a distinctly attainable goal.

Implementing safety precautions during the extermination process safeguards not only you, but also pets and other people in the household. Wearing protective clothing and ensuring that pets are secured in a safe location during the treatment can avoid potential hazards.