How to Get Rid of Ants in the Kitchen (and Keep Them Out)

Step by step

1. 1

   Follow the line back to where they come in

   Before you wipe anything, watch the ants for a minute. Follow the line away from the food to where they come in. Look for a crack along the baseboard, a gap around a pipe under the sink, or a window sill.

2. 2

   Wipe up the ants with soapy water

   Mix a little dish soap into warm water. Dip a sponge in it and wipe up the ants on your counters and around the food, along with the path they walked. UC Integrated Pest Management says soapy water removes the scent trail they leave behind.

3. 3

   Put away anything they can eat

   Move sugar, syrup, honey, cereal and snacks into glass jars or plastic containers with tight lids. UC Integrated Pest Management says to use sealed containers, not plastic bags or open packages. Wipe sticky jars, sweep up crumbs, put pet food away between meals and take the trash out.

   This step matters for the bait too. The University of Minnesota says bait can fail when ants have other food to choose from.

1. 4

   Set bait stations along the trail

   Set liquid bait stations near the trail and anywhere the ants come in. TERRO says to use all six stations in its pack so there is enough bait. Read the label before you open the stations.

   Put them where kids and pets cannot reach them. Do not set bait anywhere you have sprayed bug spray, because TERRO says ants may avoid it.

   What it looks like: more ants at first. TERRO says that is expected, because they have found the bait.

2. 5

   Leave the bait alone and do not spray

   Let the ants feed and carry the bait home. Do not spray them, and do not move the stations. UC Integrated Pest Management says not to use bug sprays while you use bait, and to keep cleaning up trails on your counters meanwhile.

   Check the stations every couple of days, and replace any that run empty.

   What it looks like: over the next 5 to 10 days you see fewer ants, until the trail is gone.

3. 6

   Seal the crack they used

   Once the ants are gone, close the gap you found in Step 1. Run a thin line of caulk into the crack and smooth it with a damp finger. UC Integrated Pest Management says to find where they enter and seal it with caulk.

   Follow the caulk tube’s label for how long to let it dry before you clean that spot.

When it will not work, and what to do instead

Sometimes the ants hang on longer than the bait. Here is what to check.

• The ants are ignoring the bait. They may have better food nearby, so go back over Step 3. The University of Minnesota also says bait can fail when there is not enough of it or when more than one colony is coming in. Add stations on each trail.
• They keep coming after two weeks. TERRO’s liquid bait is made for common household ants. It says it does not control fire ants, pharaoh ants, carpenter ants or harvester ants, so read the label of any bait to see which ants it lists.
• You think they are carpenter ants. The University of Minnesota says these ants nest in moist or rotting wood, and controlling them usually takes a pest management professional.
• They are back next spring. TERRO says to replace its stations every 3 months once the ants are under control, to keep them from coming back.

Why it works

Ants are not wandering. They leave a scent trail, and the rest of the line follows it to your food. That is why soapy water helps: it wipes the trail away, so the next ants lose the path.

Bait works because ants share food. UC Integrated Pest Management says workers carry it back to the nest, where the whole colony and the queens get it.

That is also why it has to be slow. UC IPM says a bait that killed the workers on the spot would never make it home. It is a little like sending a casserole to the whole house instead of handing a plate to whoever answers the door.