Hi - we moved into our new bakery in November and now that its Spring we found out we have an ant problem. Normally, I'd call in an exterminator, but money is a bit tight now. Does anyone have a suggestion for a product that is OK to use in a food environment (and any tips on how to us it) - or do I have to bite the bullet and call in the specialists? TIA for any advice!

http://www.grinningplanet.com/2004/04-27/ant-control-ant-killer-article.htm

I heard this works great. You might want to put the solution on top of wax paper for easier cleanup.

In Home Depot they have a spray that it's for kitchens... it's food safe... it's labeled just like that.. safe to use around kitchen areas and food prep areas... they also have it at Walmart...

HTH

Cinnamon oil will get rid of ants.

I've had good luck this spring already with Combat ant traps. They are contained in little plastic pieces that you put around the area where you see ants. They don't contaminate food because the poison stuff stays in the plastic -- no smell, no spray -- and they have been quite effective. Supposedly the ants go in, get the poison, and take it back to wherever they come from and poison the whole nest.

There are ant traps called "Terro" they sell them at Wal-mart it's made up of almost 100% borax. The ants LOVE these things and go in and eat it and take it back to the nest (resist the temptation to kill the ants when you see the trap fill up! lol).

They're in an orange box and I am telling you this stuff is a miracle worker with ants!!! Everytime I see ants I put out a couple of these where I've seen the ants and within 2 days there are NO ANTS at all!!!

I had thrown away a couple traps that still had the liquid in them into the trash can and the liquid came out and dripped over some stale oreos that were in the trash and you guessed it.........my then 5 yr. old picked up an oreo from the trash WITH the ant bait liquid all over it (dripping off like honey.......so gross!) and ate the cookie........I saw him take a bite and started yelling NOOOOOOOooo then called the number to poison control, they had no idea what to do or if it was poisonous so I googled the company......called.......turns out the product is made up of 99% borax and is non toxic.......they said aside from tasting bad there is absolutely no harm with it, that it was developed for use around food and that's why it's not poisonous.


So one year I couldn't find them at wal-mart and got to thinking......why not use borax??? So I took some borax and put it OUTSIDE of my house......around the perimeter of my foundation and I have done this every single spring since and have NEVER seen another ant in my house.....EVER! They will not cross the line.......they'll come up to it and eat it and go back to the nest and die! They never make it inside............one time my son came in and had his shoes covered in ants.....screaming like a madman.........he was just inside the back door and the ants literally crawled off of him and went towards the door and when I opened the door they went OUTSIDE to get the borax!!! lol

I have no idea why they like it, but they do and it kills them!

Thank you to everyone that submitted answers to this problem that I get
every spring! Only a few here and there, but enough to drive me nuts. I ocassionally get the 'flying ant' as well. ugh. Thanks again.

My hubby is an entomologist, and works in the pest control industry. Do not use sprays like Raid: they are repellents, and will not rid you of your ant problem - they only kill what you can see, and there are THOUSANDS more in the nest.
Boric acid (powder, available at home depot, etc.) mixed with regular old jelly - dot it around baseboards, door frames, wherever you see the ants. They will eat it, bring it back to the nest and die there, NOT in your kitchen. (always a bonus!) It takes about couple of days, but it WILL work! It seems gross, but yeah, works like a charm! And the boric acid is NOT harmful to humans or pets. (although I know you aren't worried about pets in a bakery! LOL!)
The Terro traps are also good.
In the end, though, the commercial stuff is best, and usually only obtained from a licensed pest control expert. Non-repellent bait gels, also, they can do a one-time spray around the outside of the building that will help, and will also help with termites.
(WOW, I know more than I ever thought I would about bugs! ick!)

Last year we had a huge ant problem in our house...We've used Terro with much success (it comes in two forms, a liquid and a "bait").

I learned a lot about ants, that's for sure!
Terro is my favorite for getting rid of them. They eat cornmeal and it expands inside them and kills them. Boric acid (at least 95%) is supposed to work wonders.

I recently heard that ants that are squished or when a whole lot of them die at once will produce a pheromone that tells the colony to reproduce. Not sure if it's true or not... heard it from a friend who said a exterminator told her... but something to be careful of if you don't want the colony to go into overdrive and have an even worse ant problem later on.

after spending hundreds on different exterminators...used boric acid around baseboards...just the powder no jelly, it gets on their feet, or whatever bugs have...ha ha...they lick it off....no more bugs....3.00 at the drugstore.

boric acid scratches their shell, and they dry up....thats how i understood it anyway.

Terro liquid. Easy, stays in place, discreet, and no mess to clean up. They eat this stuff up like crazy and then they're gone!

We had a problem with ants and put a line of Comet (in the cleaning section at the grocery store) along the doorways! Works great and is cheap!

I am SO glad you asked this question! Every year I get tons of sugar ants and I've tried all the non-chemical things (coffee beans, cinnamon, ect.) with no luck. They're especially bad this year. I bake out of my home and it's so embarrassing to admit I have ants! I clean my kitchen really well to make sure there are no bugs or pesticides when I cook, but still! I'm going to try the boric acid thing.

My question is: does Borax work since it has boric acid in it?

yes borax works!!

Oh good because I use that in my laundry so I have it on hand.

We use straight Borax powder. You can also make a little homemade trap. I use Borax and sugar dissolved in warm water. I set it in a jar lid where the ants are. The next day the thing is covered, and a few days after that - no ants.

I SO second the Terro! Every year we had trouble with those terrible "micro ants" and since finding out about the Terro, we have no problem whatsoever. First time we see a little ant, we run out and buy our Terro and go at it.

[quote="djs328"]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bonniebakes



...........

His bug-geekiness is useful sometimes! LOL!!

HTH!!

Does borax/boric acid works on roaches? Is there something safe, effective, and non toxic, which I can purchase it easily for roaches?
We do not have a roach problem in the house but in the summer time once in a while a roach, specially the ones that can fly (ick.....) find their way into our house, and you have to see me to belive how I react when I see a flying or any kind of roach. Once I stayed in my room for 2 hrs till my DH came home from work and killed the roach.

My brother works for Terminix and he says you have to take care of the problem outside and they won't be inside. Find the nest outside. Also, infinitsky, my brother used to live in Hawaii and he told me they had the flying roaches there! Ugh!

Oh my! What great information! Off to the store to get some of these things. So glad others have had success without having to spend zillions! Thanks for all the replies.

boric acid works on roaches too

Terro all the way! I get ants every spring. We sprinkle this ant granuals around the foundation and it helps but we still see them in the house. In the bathroom mostly of all places. Anyway, I put a drop of terra near the baseboard where i saw the ants and within a few minutes the drop was covered with feasting lil ants. Two days later.. no ants! Love that stuff!

I just had a terrible problem with ants in my bathroom. I remembered someone mentioning Terro on here last year when they had a problem with the annoying little things, so I tried it and the ants are gone. I found it at Home Depot for under $7 for 6 baits. So worth the money. I only used 3 of them in my bathroom.

Great thread with a lot of helpful info. I noticed some ants coming in our kitchen from the deck. I will definately get some tarro to get rid of the little buggers.

Thanks for sharing the info!