Why Ants Keep Returning Even After DIY Treatments

Have you ever tried an at-home ant spray? Or another type of DIY ant control “fix-it-all” solution? 

You always hope they’ll work. But, they usually over-promise and leave you disappointed. Right? 

Isn’t this what usually happens?

You spray the ants. The ants you see go away. You don’t see ants for a few days and start to feel hopeful. 

Then, they always come back. 

This pattern repeats, leaving you anxious about ants all summer long. So, why do these DIY treatments keep failing you? 

Why Ant Sprays Fail You

Retail ant sprays always promise to get rid of your ongoing ant problem. But, they leave out a few details on the bottle. Let us fill you in: 

Sprays only knock down forager ants on contact, but never reach the colony. Within the colony could be thousands of ants waiting to enter your home. Knocking down a few foragers barely scratches the surface. 

And repellent ant sprays don’t do much better. In fact, they can make the problem worse. Repelling ants can cause colony fragmentation (budding), which creates multiple new colonies from the original one. This means, you’ll have far more ants than you bargained for. Not ideal. 

Bait Stations Can Work

Bait stations are slightly better than sprays. Unlike contact sprays, they’re designed for ants to carry back to their colony and reach the source of the problem (which can make a small dent). 

But they require a little more expertise. You can’t just grab whichever bait station you see. The bait has to match the species present in your home, and then the ants have to actually take it. Different species have different preferences and moods. Carpenter ants like protein-based baits, odorous ants tend to like sweets, and pavement ants like both (depending on the time of year). 

So, if you grab the wrong bait, the ants invading your home will probably ignore it. Then you’re back to square one, and the colony keeps working completely unphased. 

Ant Colonies Are So Much Bigger Than You Think

Most ant colonies are far larger and more complicated that what you’d expect.

Some species, including odorous house ants and pavement ants, can have colonies with thousands or tens of thousands of workers. Some species have multiple queens, which means the colony can keep growing without interruption. 

Carpenter ants tend to be smaller, but often establish satellite colonies with their main nest. This way, they spread activity across multiple areas. 

So, the forager ants you see are just mere pawns in a complicated game of chess. As long as the colony stays intact, the game goes on (i.e. the ants keep coming back).

Professional Ant Treatment Gets to the Source

This is exactly why professional ant control works better than any other solution you’ll find on the store shelf. We always start with identifying the species and creating a treatment plan from there. Then, we can locate ant activity and kick them to the curb by addressing the true problem: the entire ant colony.

And for ongoing indoor protection, Home Shield treats both the perimeter and interior of your home, creating a consistent barrier that keeps ants and other pests outside where they belong. 

Also, if ants are present in your yard (which is often the case), Yard Defender pushes outdoor colonies out before they make it inside your home. Preventative ant control is always best.

So, if you’re tired of ants coming back after every DIY treatment in Woodbury, call Mosquito Squad Plus of Long Island at (631) 203-1252 or contact us online for a free quote.