The Right Way To Prevent Ants From Entering Your Yakima Home

We have several ant species in Yakima that can get into homes and become pests. Most are only a nuisance. But some ants are more than a nuisance. Some ants can create an unpleasant odor in your home. Some spread harmful bacteria and diseases. And, of course, there are carpenter ants, which are wood-destroying pests. It is best to not have any of these ants in your home. So how do you keep them out? We're glad you asked.

Sanitation

There are many ways you can accidentally invite ants into your yard and near your home. A common attractant for ants is trash. Ants are drawn to trash because the aroma of decaying food is strong. If you set a bag of trash on the floor and it creates a moisture spot, it will be a beacon for ants. If you put a trash bag out in your garage, don't be surprised when ants start coming out of the woodwork. Sometimes it isn't the trash that attracts ants but the smell of a dirty receptacle. Reducing smells can prevent ants from coming into your home.

Another way sanitation helps to resist ants is that it eliminates food sources. When you clean the cracker crumbs out of your couch, ants won't have a reason to mobilize into a giant army and explore every inch of your couch. When you vacuum your rugs regularly, you remove food particles that can lure ants into your home. When you clean up under your toaster, you give ants less reason to tell all their friends that your home is the place to be.

Moisture

Many ants are drawn to damp conditions and high humidity. They will find a pipe with condensation, run along that pipe, pass through a tiny gap in your foundation wall, go all the way up into your kitchen, and appear from the tiniest of gaps in the base of your kitchen faucet. You can work to prevent this by sealing gaps around your pipes and other foundation penetrations. But long before ants run up a pipe and enter your home, they are drawn to the exterior of your home by moist conditions.

You can reduce moisture around your home by:

• Cleaning your gutters and fixing any damage to your gutters, splash blocks, and downspouts.
• Loosening compacted ground.
• Removing containers that capture water.
• Trimming tree canopy to let the sunlight in.
• Watering your plants in the morning, rather than at night.

Food Sources

Ants eat a variety of things. Some of the things ants eat might surprise you. While they will certainly get into your kitchen cabinets and pantry, they aren't limited to eating human food. They'll eat the food in your pet's dish. They'll eat birdseed on the ground outside. They'll eat honeydew produced by aphids and other plant-damaging insects. They'll also eat the insect themselves.

You can remove food options for ants by:

• Putting pantry and kitchen foods in sealed plastic containers.
• Putting pet food down only during mealtimes.
• Putting bird feeders at least 20 feet from the exterior of your home.
• Investing in pest control for your home.

Reduce, Repel, and Eliminate Pests

If you live in Yakima, the Prosite team can help you keep ants out of your home. Our industry-leading residential pest control service plans are competitively priced and structured to give you the specific pest coverage you're looking for. If you just want the basics, SiteCare Guardian is the perfect choice. It is our basic plan. But it is anything but basic. With SiteCare Guardian, you get coverage for over 30 pests, including ants. When you step up to SiteCare Advantage, you get exterior rodent prevention and interior pest monitoring and prevention. For complete coverage, we offer SiteCare Complete. This plan also gives you protection from termites which can be a serious threat to the equity of your home.

If you're tired of dealing with ants, let those ants inspire you to get the residential pest control service you know you need. Pest control can protect your health and property from the harmful impact of pests. Reach out to us today and get started.