<p>At least they’re not roaches, but I can’t believe we have ants in the house already with snow still piled up outside!</p>
<p>Any home remedies?</p>
<p>Wow! That does seem early!</p>
<p>If you know where they’re coming in, you can put a bay leaf near the opening. It’ll repel them. Mine come in through the kitchen window, and since I’ve been putting bay leaves there I haven’t had a problem.
As far as getting rid of the ones that are already inside, I’ve heard peppermint oil works, but I’ve never tried it. Good luck!</p>
<p>We used to get ants at our former house. Luckily there was usually a line of them marching up the back steps and under the back door. A little line of Raid across their path was all it took. (Though if the natural remedies work I’d be all for trying them first!)</p>
<p>Now can someone tell me how to get rid of our mice? They just dance around every trap we put out.</p>
<p>Mathmom, what do you use for bait? I use a smear of peanut butter and regularly get them with that. They can’t carry it off like they can cheese.</p>
<p>For mice, I finally started putting poison in the basement.</p>
<p>For the ants I’d rather use something more natural, especially in the kitchen.</p>
<p>I usually put diazonine ( sp? ) around the base of the house and it works. Maybe not the most environmentally friendly, but I can’t stand ants in the house.</p>
<p>Bethievt, do you have an old tree that is near the house? We found that was a culprit in our older home. Once we cut it back, the problem cleared up. But in the meantime, a small bowl of cloves near the window helped and gave a nice scent in the room.</p>
<p>bethie~</p>
<p>I just started noticing some ants too! :eek: Last year was HORRIBLE for ants…I’ll be interested to read what works.</p>
<p>~b.</p>
<p>I forgot what it’s callled but I have had success with the stuff that smells like oranges. Plus you don’t have that eau de Raid in your house…</p>
<p>Sorry, I am environmentally friendly most of the time, but I draw the line at crawly things. I have a bug man who comes to visit regularly. He puts little booties on and sprays inside and then brings out the big guns for outside. (I live in the woods and for some strange reason the bugs think they OWN the place :)…</p>
<p>There is this little bottle of “stuff” I get at home depot, among other places. It is a yellow bottle with a top that you “squirt” the solution out of. You use old bottle tops–like liter soda bottle tops, or prescription bottle tops. You squirt this stuff into little containers and place near windows, or under the sink, etc. The stuff is “syrupy” and blue in color and dries hard, so don’t be tempted to just squirt it around. It will dry and you will be chipping it up. I seem to remember it is natural–but it might have insecticide in it. It draws the ants to it, you will see them in large numbers. But it really worked for us in removing the indoor ants. Then, get outside and look for the source, and try to remove it. They are coming in through on opening in the house–a kitchen drain/sink pipe, a window. They are arriving via tree branches onto the roof, or via mulch that sits against the house or something. Look for an outside source and remove, and use this sticky but wonderful stuff to get rid of the ones inside. The blue stuff dries in a day or two, so you have to reload it or use new bottle tops with fresh solution until they are gone. The little bottle is only about 4-6 ounces, but will last for a very long time. And it is very inexpensive.
I swear by this stuff. I could do an infomercial…</p>
<p>don’t know if this works - but someone sent it out in a “helpful hints” e-mail</p>
<p>To Get rid of ants:
Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it “home,” & can’t digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, esp. if it rains, but
it works & you don’t have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!</p>
<p>Sunny…I can just imagine…But wait…buy now and we’ll send you not just 6 ounces, but 12 OUNCES! And a set of ginzu knives to chop the little beggars up if the blue stuff doesn’t do it. :)</p>
<p>sunnyflorida</p>
<p>Any idea what this wonderful blue goo is called?</p>
<p>I don’t know what is in it, but my mother swears by a product called “Ant Terror”. Not even sure where you buy it as she stocked up years ago. It sounds like the blue goo, except it looks more like Karo syrup. You pour it on little pieces of cardboard or in old bottle caps and it too will dry hard and you must “reload”.</p>
<p>We caught several mice in various traps. Peanut butter worked two years ago, but no more. Nutella briefly. Glue traps with nothing - the current ones have scones crumbled in. They had no problem munching bread when I accidentally leftthe bread box open, but they won’t eat anything in any kind of trap. They tend to come in for the winter and leave when the weather gets good. But I think we’ve now selected for smart mice.</p>
<p>Terro Liquid Ant Bait. I swear by it. I think it’s the stuff mkm56 was talking about. You put down a little of this clear goo on a bit of cardboard in the path they’re taking, or use one of their pre-baited traps, and wait patiently. (Patience is important here.) Ants love this stuff: they LOVE it. It’s a sweet substance like syrup, with a Borax-like substance in it. They call all their buddies and pretty soon they’re all yumming it up and taking it back to their homes and sharing it with everyone else… and then the Borax does its job and swells up where there isn’t expansion space on the little exoskeletons, and… queue the Pink Panther Theme Song (get it? “Dead ant, dead ant, dead ant dead ant dead ant…” heh, sorry).</p>
<p>You have to have patience and a bit of a strong stomach to use this stuff (because the bait will be BLACK with ants for hours: I try to avert my eyes, it’s kind of creepy) but then… POOF! Usually within 24 hours, they’re much diminished, and in my experience within two days they’re gone. Gone. Not minimized, but GONE. Their website says it may take as many as 10 days, but I’ve never had it take more than two. I’d link their website but that would be commercial stuff so I won’t (it’s easy enough to find on your own, and I buy mine at the local hardware store; occasionally I’ve found it at Home Depot).</p>
<p>I do swear by this stuff.</p>
<p>mkm and mootmom- I AM SURE what you describe is a variation on the SAME PRODUCT. Yes, its syrup like, and it is a miracle. I am at work, and will try to remember to check the name, but the above has to be quite similar, just not with a blue tinge of color. So go for it OP. Anyone who has used a product like this just swears by it. Its funny.</p>
<p>Argentine ants have overrun Southern California. Nothing stops them. We eventually moved to Washington, where the ants are not determined and are easily defeated. I suggest relocating.</p>
<p>mathmom–smearing nutella on mouse traps—say it ain’t so! Having introduced our D’s to nutella/banana crepes from sidewalk vendors in Paris, Nutella holds a sacred spot in our family!!! Also–did you see the news story yesterday about the guy in Maine who had his false teeth stolen by mice? He woke up, and the teeth were missing from his bedside table—they investigated inside the mouse hole in the wall, and there the choppers were. After cleaning them for an hour, he put them back in his mouth…EWWWW!!!</p>