Naturally, ants are some of the most industrious insects you will find. They spend their entire lives searching for food to feed their ever-expanding colonies. Foraging ants will, therefore, go everywhere, including your home to search for food, and they are quite persistent.
An ant problem can drive you mad, pushing you to grab the easily available quick solution, in the form of potent insecticides, completely forgetting the safety of your entire household. So, are ant killing pesticides safe? Check out these GardeningLeave ideas.
The Challenge and Safe Measures
The main challenge with ants is their persistence when they find a food source. They can sting to protect what they believe to be rightfully theirs. But the sting should be the least of your worries. The solution you consider the most effective may also be harmful to other members of the household. Particularly, small children are fond of throwing everything they find on the floor in their mouth and are at high risk of ingesting the pesticides.
But pesticides should be a last resort solution. That means there are other ways of getting rid of ants such as the use of natural killers and repellents. For example, cayenne pepper, citric acid, and cinnamon do a decent job of killing and repelling the bugs. Others like perfume, salt, and cream of tartar may prove effective in stopping the advancing ants, right on their tracks.
There’s also dichotomous earth, safe and effective in killing the bugs. The organic compound is completely safe to ingest, and you can easily use it against ants.
The best way to avoid an ant problem is maintaining cleanliness. Wipe the floor clean so that there are no food particles left, and ensure that it is free of moisture. Also, store your food in airtight containers, which the ants cannot smell food out.
However, there are still a few pesticides that are relatively safe, and you can use indoors, but with precautions – you can never be too careful when it comes to children and pets.
Safe Pesticides
As a last resort, you can try pesticides that are relatively safer, and chances of children coming into contact with them are minimal.
The ant bait stations come with food baits, and insecticide to kill the ants through ingestion. The active ingredient slowly works through its digestive system, and the foragers also take the poison back to the colony, feeding the queen and her young. As a result, the pesticide can be effective in eliminating an entire colony.
The food attractant and active ingredient are usually inside a plastic casing, making it child and pet proof. For an extra layer of precaution, you can hide the ant bait stations, out of child’s reach.
Ant Gels
These come with a syringe that you use to apply the insecticide inside cracks and other points of entry. You can apply gels in the spaces between windows and doors, where the ants frequent and the children cannot reach.
Some brands have a childproof syringe, as a safety measure preventing the children from using the syringe to push the liquid out.