You cannot eliminate ants permanently even if you wipe out every colony on your property. Effective ant control requires ongoing maintenance.
Ants are one of the most abundant insects on earth. A single acre of Southern California suburb can hold dozens of colonies. Most of them are underground and out of sight. So the goal of removing every ant from your property is not a goal anyone can reasonably expect to accomplish.
But what you can do is better control the colonies that matter the most. And that means the ones against your foundation, in your mulch beds, in walls, and any that have trails that lead indoors.
Argentine ants make this harder in North Orange County than it would be elsewhere. They form large interconnected colonies with many queens, and neighboring nests cooperate instead of competing. Remove a few thousand workers and the colony as a whole will likely not even notice. Spray them with a repellent product and the colony can split into several, which is worse than where you started.
Baits work better. Foragers carry slow-acting material back to the nest and share it, which reaches the queens. Once you give that a few days to work, then you will want to seal up their entry points. You can do this by fixing gaps at windows and utility line penetrations. Wipe down any existing trails with soapy water so remaining ants can’t find the scent. And if you happen to have mulch up against the house, pull it back.
Even doing all this, bear in mind that even well-treated yards often sit next to untreated ones. And in Southern California, ants stay active all year-round. Heat and drought push them indoors looking for water. Rain floods their shallow nests and pushes them indoors for the opposite reason. Recurring treatment is what keeps them in check.
If ants keep coming back no matter what you try, Mosquito Squad of North Orange County can help. Mosquito Squad treats the ant colonies outside your home and the entry points they use. Recurring service will help you protect your kitchen year-round.
