Fire Ants/Ants Eradication?

[caduceus]

Over and out product. Used last 10 yrs with excellent results.little spendy at 20$ per bag
But worth every penny. Have to use a spreader
. Apply just before rain. We usually spend about 200-250$ treats our entire yard. Takes care of the problem.

 

[armadillo]

I have had good success with diatomaceous earth. It is natural, safe and cheap. It kills most crawling insects by scraping off their protective coating.

This is a dry area, so I wait until it rains and the fire ants build an elevated mound. Then I disturb the mound and in a few seconds they come pouring out - that is when I dust them heavily. The dust clings to them and they track it back into the colony eventually killing the whole thing.

 

[shouldazagged]

I have had good success with diatomaceous earth. It is natural, safe and cheap. It kills most crawling insects by scraping off their protective coating.

This is a dry area, so I wait until it rains and the fire ants build an elevated mound. Then I disturb the mound and in a few seconds they come pouring out - that is when I dust them heavily. The dust clings to them and they track it back into the colony eventually killing the whole thing.

Be sure to wear a good mask when using diatomaceous earth. It will slice and dice your lungs.

 

[BC38]

Mix borax with powdered sugar. They eat it and it kills them.

 

[AManWearingAHat]

The borax trick works great, the ants will get worse for a couple days as they rush to the sugar water and suddenly they'll all be gone.

Boiling water on the ant mound also works very well, but it may kill the grass around it. Use a big pot to make sure it penetrates all the way into the nest.

 

[Frank46]

I've tried bleach. Get the cheapest bleach you can find. Take a steel rod or old shovel handle and stick it inside the nest and down as far as you can do. rotate the heck out of it stop and when the ants come up on the ground pour the bleach in the hole and where the critters are. use the whole gallon if needed. Frank

 

[soFlaNative]

Like several others have posted Amdro is a good bet. Not much needed, I sprinkle it around the mound like pepper on a baked potato. Takes a day or two for the workers to die off but the mound is finished.
If the mound is in a bad spot and you need a quick kill try 7.9% Bifen I/T. Safe and effective, best stuff by far I have ever used around the house indoors and out.

 

[Bozz10mm]

I've had good success over the years with Amdro.

 

[SC_Mike]

I've used vinegar to kill the mound with no bad chemicals near gardens or pets/children.

But mostly its like playing Whack a Mole around here.

 

[andy52]

Mix borax with powdered sugar. They eat it and it kills them.

^^^^^^^^^^^
X2

I use that mix but add a little water to make a syrup out of it, 2 or 3 days no more ants.

 

[Ole Joe Clark]

I keep a container of Amdro by the back door, easy to grab and use. I also try to get the nest while it is small, takes less Amdro to kill the queen.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

 

[Old Corp]

They're terrible here.
Many of the popular bait products for them have to be 'watered in' - nope, don't have time for that.
I keep a shaker of Amdro on the riding mower and apply whenever I encounter a mound. I try to NOT mow over that mound until next time - and they're usually dead and gone.

One fun pastime I found - I have a small pond on my property.....have taken a shovel and picked up most of an occupied mound and tossed it in the pond (quickly). Fish love'em! Win-win!

 

[Erich]

I keep a shaker of Amdro on the riding mower

Awesome!

 

[misswired]

Fire ants have been in Florida a LOOOOOOONG time! I can't remember the first time I encountered them, but it was probably in early childhood. I use a product called Orthene. I like to run over a big mound with the lawn mower-gets em really agitated, then I sprinkle the Orthene on them. Kills them in about an hour.

What timing.... Sis walks in the shop saying 'the parents graves have fire ants, here's some poison'. Whistling as I walked away: 'thanks, I'll take care of it!'

Didn't have to spend a dime.

Thanks for all the good ideas....AMDRO is next on the list.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

I use hot coffee with the grounds. I put used grounds and water in a large saucepan, heat to boil, then dump the whole mess on the nest. I repeat daily until the problem is resolved - usually less than a week. Rain helps.

Chicory or pure?????

 

[kwselke]

Queen dies-they quit.

In Texas we have something called multi-queen colonies. It's multiple mounds with multiple queens, interconnected underground, and with cooperating workers. The last time I went on the hunt for fire ants I used Logic brand Fenoxycarb. It's not an immediate kill, it's population control.

Fenoxycarb

 

[kwselke]

What timing.... Sis walks in the shop saying 'the parents graves have fire ants, here's some poison'. Whistling as I walked away: 'thanks, I'll take care of it!'

Didn't have to spend a dime.

Thanks for all the good ideas....AMDRO is next on the list.

Orthene is still sold? It stinks them to death! I treated a severely infested 1/4 acre with Orthene once, mound by mound. Dropped a tablespoon of the dust on a mound and the ants would erupty out, dance a jig, and die. The next day there were hundreds of thousands of fire ant bodies piled around like coarse dust. It was an immediate population reduction, but needed bait as a followup for long term control.

 

[nachogrande]

AN UNDERGROUND METROPOLIS

In Texas we have something called multi-queen colonies. It's multiple mounds with multiple queens, interconnected underground, and with cooperating workers. The last time I went on the hunt for fire ants I used Logic brand Fenoxycarb. It's not an immediate kill, it's population control.

Fenoxycarb

I knew I had ants around a Meyer lemon tree. Eventually I wanted to remove it. When I dug it up it's like I found the lost city of Atlantis! An unreal complex system of tunnels & ants seemingly in the kajillions. ANTEATERS???

 

[oink]

Amdro is my go-to.

However, if rain isn't an issue or you can place it under cover or they get inside (and yes rain can chase them inside) I use a method similar to the Borax method previously mentioned. Except, I use straight boric acid powder. More commonly found sold as roach powder. It has very low toxicity to humans and pets. Mix it with cheap peanut butter and some extra olive oil or similar to keep it pretty soft. You don't want it drying out too quickly in the sun or heat. Put it near the mound or their trail. It isn't quick but it does do the job. Just beware that your dog will eat it if they get to it. It might give them a tummy ache.

National Pesticide Information Center:
Boric Acid General Fact Sheet

 

[soFlaNative]

This would be a fitting end to the little booger eaters.
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOz3UvRfUyA[/ame]