Ants are small insects that are considered general household pets. Although ants can reside particularly everywhere, most of the nests themselves inside human houses. Ants tunnel their way to make their nests, they live in colonies, and a colony of ants can range from a few hundred to over one million. If ant colonies already exist in your house, then consider these ants as a nuisance. Because they will not only cause significant damages to the physical structure of your house, they can also inflict painful bites for you and your family. In this case, it is important that you know the basic sources of ant infestation.
Considered as social insects, ants are almost everywhere in community environments. They don’t only thrive outdoors, they also like it indoors where they can access food and water from any human household. Outdoor ants are usually helpful in maintaining the balance of an ecosystem, while indoor ants are usually pests, chewing through wood structures, invading human food sources, and biting human skin. In Canada, the types of ants that are known to invade homes are carpenter ants, little black ants, odorous house ants, thief ants, and pharaoh ants. All of these types of ants forage for food, and they enter human houses for crumbs, sugar, oil, and other edible items.
There are two main reasons why an infestation occurs. First, because these ants are hungry. Your food supply is a great target for them. Once they know that they can directly access food within your house, they will then enter through crevices, cracks, and other openings in your walls, doors, and windows. Since they are tiny, they fit almost anywhere. The second reason is the presence of an ant nest. This renders any wooden fixtures as a potential ant dwelling place. Ants burrow themselves in these wood structures, especially those that are saturated by water leaks and/or rotten. Within these woods, these ants will procreate, adding more and more colonies until the wood becomes hollow. As these ants multiply in number, your food supply will always be attacked. Your house will always be dirty. Your own skin will be bitten.
That’s why it is important to get rid of ant infestations immediately. And the best way to do that is through prevention. You can do this with the help of pest management professionals. Upon moving to a new home, you can tap on the expertise of these professionals to check the entire house for any possible signs of ant infestation. If a colony is already present, then they can create the best approach to solve the infestation. And if the house is still not infested, then you can call on them to regularly check your house for any infestation. This way, immediate treatments can be applied which can prevent further infestation.
But if you already own a house that is infested, you can do simple home solutions that will keep ants at bay. This includes proper sanitation and storage of any food supply. Always lock your food in containers with no openings or keep them refrigerated. If ants can’t find any food sources in your house, then they can move someplace where food is abundant. But this would not guarantee that ant infestations will not occur.
Still, the best way to manage ant infestation is to seek professional help. There are ant colonies that can only be reached with the right equipment. There are also ant infestations that are not traceable and are almost invisible to your eyes. Sometimes, solutions are also dependent on the types of ants that are present in your house. Moreover, there are colonies that survive even when you have already used pesticides. Thus, you cannot truly treat ant infestation alone. You need experience, knowledge, and equipment. And that’s where professional pest control Oakville management can help.
Government of Canada. (2013). Ants. In the Website of the Government of Canada. Retrieved from https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/pest-control-tips/ants.html
Manitoba Housing Authority. (n.d.). Ants. Published online by the Manitoba Housing and Renewal Corporation. Retrieved from https://www.gov.mb.ca/housing/pubs/pests/ants.pdf