A brief history of violence, by me against ants

As another wet summer rolls around so do summertime traditions such as cooking out, getting sun burned and killing plenty-o-ants. Last year we were plagued by them and so I had many opportunities to try lots of different solutions found on the inter-web. Let me just say this: Many of them are all sitting around right now with their pants on fire.

Some people suggested strong smelling spices. This lead to a rather red looking counter top with ants seemingly rolling around and giggling in it. I tried several different cleaning sprays, some of which would kill the ant instantly, others seemed to do nothing at all except bath them. I used white vinegar everywhere until my house smelled like a cheap seaside chip shop (the best kind IMHO) and this probably worked the best. But still they would come back...and in greater numbers. I also tried just squishing the heck out of them but I really hate to do that (although, after three or four days of it it becomes easier).

Eventually I used a Terro product outside and that seemed to do the trick. Mostly. I wasn't entirely convinced and had to also take care of some ant hills with hot boiling water and a can of raid.

So, this year we get ants in our entryway. I'm not entirely sure why they target us but my guess is that folks like to throw trash up against the side of our house which then invites the little buggers to set up shop and invade the house. Anyway, so I'm down on my knees squishing ants and spraying white vinegar and not having much success. I decide I'm going to have to go buy some ant baits.

I head off to ACE to get the Terro things I did last year (they were outdoor pots of Ant liquid bait) but they had completely sold out. So, I trot off to Walmart (You can see how desperate I was) and they too were out of Terro products so instead I opt for Amdro (a product which is difficult to find even on the mighty google). Walmart had it tucked away in the gardening products section of the store rather than the handy Ant and bug control section they set up near the laundry products (that's how Walmart gets you to buy crap stuff it wants you to buy!). I choose a bait that you can place indoor or outdoor (because of our cat, Cooper) and I chose to put 4 outside around the house. Next thing I know, no more ants! It worked like a charm.

The moral of this story is: Walmart always gets your money.