Most of our calls are for help getting rid of ants. Most of these problems are caused by Argentine Ants. Because of the nature of Argentine ants, there is no permanent solution or “cure” to completely eradicate them.
To control them, treating outside the house is usually sufficient.
Treatment takes about 60 minutes. Humans & pets must be out of the treatment area during, & for 1 hour after application. Materials may take 7-10 days to take effect.
The products we use are low risk, & many we use for treatment of ants and spiders are listed under Federal EPA 40 CFR 152.25(f) and California Section 25(b) regulations as “Minimum Risk Pesticides”, defined by the EPA to “pose little to no risk to human health or the environment.” In addition, some of these materials are Organic Materials Review Institute listed, which “assures the suitability of products for certified organic production”
Most are in the same toxicity class as caffeine and in the amounts we use, they present little to no risk to your family & are in general less risk than the insecticides in retail stores.
Because of the nature of Argentine ants, there is no permanent solution or “cure” to completely eradicate them.
To control them, treating outside the house is usually sufficient. I treat one foot up & out from the base of the house, as well as treating along the fence line, the edges of sidewalks & mow strips, & under rocks, potted plants & other harborage sites. If the foundation of your home is only accessible from the neighbor’s yard, we may need to access it. If ants are not controlled by the outside treatment after 7-10 days, I will return to treat inside the house. This involves using different ant baits and aerosol insecticides where the ants are active.
Once cold, rainy weather arrives, the ants move inside & treating the outside is much less effective. At this point control consists of treating both the outside and interior of your home. I treat a couple inches up & out from the baseboard, & anywhere ants are trailing.
MORE Details on Argentine ants
Argentine ants are the most common ant here in the Bay Area though carpenter ants and odorous house ants are found more rarely as well. In 1915 Argentine ants were discovered and codified in New Orleans and since then they have proliferated all over the south-west. Argentine ants are VERY aggressive to other species of ants but not against other colonies of Argentine Ants – driving out competing species, even fire ants in some areas.
One theory is that their non-aggressiveness towards other Argentine ants is a natural survival trait; another is that the gene pool for Argentine ants in North America is so small that they can’t recognize the difference, essentially making one “super Colony” in all of California and the south-west. Another factor is that the Argentine ant is a “multi queen” species. In a colony of up to 200,000, there may be as many as 50 queens capable of producing 30-50 eggs each per day under ideal conditions. A typical house lot will support 4-5 colonies perhaps broken into many more “Satellite” colonies. The combination of all these factors make Argentine ants some of the more difficult to eliminate.
Elimination of as many colonies as possible will greatly lengthen the time before they can rebuild enough to become a problem in your home again.
Service Options
One-Shot Service
I offer a one-time service to control ants with a 6 week guarantee.
Generally, customers contact us every one or two years. In severe infestations, I might have to come out twice in a year.
Alternate Monthly
Requires a year subscription.
This is our premier service. We treat the outside of your house for ants, spiders and other crawling insects.
This service comes with a guarantee of no-charge call backs for any pests for which we offer services.
Quarterly Service
Requires a year subscription.
This service is designed for those who have ongoing ant problems.
We treat the outside of the house for ants – but for effective control of other crawling insects, more frequent service is needed.