Introduction: Pests of all kinds can infiltrate your house, but the one common pest that is present in almost all households is always the ant. There are numerous kinds of ants, and all the more ways to get rid of them. Of course, like most things, there are also natural ways to eliminate them.

Difficulty: 4

Things You’ll Need: house cleaning materials, airtight food containers, silicon caulk, peppered powdered herbs, some water, one cigar, some citrus fruits, a jar of honey, gloves

Step 1. The first step to get rid of ants in your home is to keep your home clean always. Figure out what causes the ants to attack your home and get rid of it. If it is food, then clean all your tables after eating or snacking and take out the trash at night. Place all left overs in tight – sealing containers and place all other foods (like fruits and vegetables) inside the refrigerator instead of the kitchen or dining table.

Step 2. Have all your meals on one (or two) designated areas only. This means eating or snacking in the kitchen counter or dining table only. This way, you only leave or scatter crumbs in two places only, making it a lot more easier to clean.

Step 3. Drain pools of water that are left standing. This can also attract ants as well.

Step 4. Seal the cracks and small openings in your home using silicon caulk.

Step 5. Stop ants on its track by sprinkling peppermint, paprika, red chilli pepper or borax on its trails. Spread these powders on entryways and cracks as well in order to prevent them from moving in.

Step 6. Check your garden as well. Insects like whiteflies, mealybugs and aphids produce honeydew, which attract ants. Get rid of these insects and you can also get rid of the ants as well.

Step 7. Follow the ants to its ant hill. In fact, there might be different ant hills outside your home. You can completely get rid of all the ants by doing the following to the anthills.

Step 8. Buy citrus fruits and eat them. Keep the peels and blend them with some water. Pour the blended citrus peelings over the anthill.

Step 9: There is also another trick you can try. Ants can be killed if you drown them. Try boiling water or if not, a mixture of boiled cigar and water. The nicotine present in the cigar will surely kill the ants.

Step 10. Repeat the following steps until all the ants have gone.

Tips:

- Some people can’t bear to kill ants, and if you’re one of them, you can still keep them out of your home. Take a jar of honey and place it up in a tree branch. The ants will happily stay out of your kitchen.

- Still, cleanliness is the key. As much as possible free your home from any crumbs or unattended left over.

- The most permanent solution to eliminating ants inside your home is tracking its base which is the anthill. Once you destroy it, ants will never have a reason to stay any longer.

- Instead of heating and drowning the ants until they die, you can try feeding them dried rice, corn meal or wheat flour. These are difficult to digest and may cause them death.

Warnings:

- Pepper herbs like paprika and red chili should be kept away from children. If you have kids make sure it is away from them.

- You should also take good care when using boiled cigar as well. Nicotine can be dangerous, so use gloves to prevent it from contacting your skin.

- You might be doing these again at some point if ants return, so remember all these steps. You might need them again eventually.

Resources: www.hubpages.com www.ehow.com www.ezines.com www.about.com www.wikihow.com www.buzzle.com

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