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Category: Pest Control

8 Natural Methods for getting rid of and preventing ants

Ants are common insects. They have some unique capabilities—including their legendary communication skills that allow their colonies to function as superorganisms. Rarely will you see an ant moving alone, if you do, wait for a few minutes you will see others joining, that goes to show how unique their way of communicating is.

Research shows that there are more than 2,000 types of ants. Ants can lift 20 times their own body weight and as interesting and fascinating as the ants are, they can be a menace in the home or office.

The question some of our clients ask us is “What can I do to get rid of ants in my house?” and since this question is becoming a common question, in this article, we are going to be sharing with you 5 natural ways to get rid of ants in your home and office.

  1. Lemons

Lemon juice can be used to repel ants by masking the scent of food and removing pheromone trails with a spray or wipe.

Additionally, placing lemon rinds (the tough outer skin) in your cabinet may prevent ants from settling in your kitchen.

      2.  Cut off sources of food

Ants are attracted to sweet and starchy foods like sugar, honey and cakes. Therefore, one of the best ways to deter ants is to ensure that no food sources are readily available for them to eat.

Keep food tightly sealed in containers or plastic bags. Wash all plates and cooking utensils immediately after eating.

Use a broom or vacuum to sweep up crumbs from your home on a daily basis. Crumbs may accumulate in the following locations:

  • under and around free-standing kitchen appliances
  • in chair cushions
  • in waste bins
  • Dining areas

3.     Seal ant entrances

Identifying the source of an ant infestation will help you eliminate it and prevent future infestations.

Really take a look at your home for breaks in the walls and openings close to the floors. You can seal cracks or treat them with ant repellent. If your window screens need to be repaired, look for rips.

4.    Cornstarch

It is possible to eliminate many ants at once by using cornstarch, which can be found at regular shopping/provision stores.

There are two ways to use the cornstarch to kill ants:

To get rid of ants, sprinkle cornstarch liberally over them and add water. You can then clean up the dead ants that have been coated in cornstarch.

Alternatively, you can cover the ants with cornstarch and vacuum them up, ensuring that the vacuum bag gets disposed of outdoors as soon as possible.

5.   Hot water

Put boiling water in ant holes if you notice them near your home. By using this method, many ants will be killed quickly and effectively. Even though a typical anthill may appear small, the ant colonies underneath them are enormous.

It is important to note that boiling water won’t be sufficient to kill off the whole colony. Therefore, treat each insect opening you see inside your home’s vicinity with the boiling water.

6.   White vinegar

You can get rid of ants with white vinegar, which is available in all grocery stores.. Furthermore, it has natural cleaning properties.

Use a mixture of vinegar and water to clean hard surfaces where ants are likely to appear, such as floors and countertops. The mixture can be sprayed on ants, or paper towels can be used to wipe them up if you see any.

Vinegar can be smelled by ants after it dries, but most people do not notice it for a long period of time.

7.    Ground black or red pepper

Insects seem to find the smell of black or red pepper to be irritating, so it’s a natural ant deterrent.

To use this method, sprinkle pepper around floor edges and behind appliances. There are several anecdotal reports that suggest this is an effective way to keep ants at bay.

8.   Liquid detergent

Here is how to do it:

In a clean spray bottle, add glass cleaning spray with liquid detergent (dish soap).

If you notice ants congregating or entering from one place, spray the mixture in that area.

Once the area has been sprayed, wipe it down lightly afterward..

Follow the steps above as many times as necessary.

The scent of ant pheromones can likely be removed by using soapy water of any kind (i.e., hand soap, dish detergent) if you do not have glass cleaner available.

Action Point

Now that you have been informed, ants should not be the problem, it’s an operation with no hiding place for the ants! Share this with friends across your social media handles, help to inform others. Stay safe, be healthy. 

5 Effective Rat Control Measures for Home and Offices

Rats are not pets, they don’t add value to any home or office they occupy, rather, they cause damage to your property, spread disease, several of which can be life-threatening. Rats can also contaminate food storage and kitchens. Rats have also been notorious for chewing electrical wires which can lead to power surges and eventually a fire outbreak.

5 Effective Rat Control Measures for Home and Offices

Things can get messy if proper control measures are not put in place to prevent a total infestation. Good enough, there are many ways to get rid of pests, and in this article, we are looking at the 5 effective ways of combating Rats.

  1. Seal holes in your Home and Office

Rats don’t need a big opening to get inside of your home and office. They are always looking to explore gaps they have been left unattended to, something they make those gaps bigger by digging or chopping.

The best option here is to ensure that the gaps are covered up. Cement, metals place can be used to fill these gaps depending on where the kind of gap and the materials used.

  1. Use natural deterrents

Black pepper, crushed pepper or peppermint oil have been known to be good natural deterrents for most pest infestation, this also works against rat infestation.

Simply spray any of the mentioned near rat holes or areas you have identified as their hotspots

  1. Get rid of Litters

Rats don’t like to be found, especially during the day, they hide behind or under things, away from direct light. One of the easiest ways to rid rats from your home is to make sure they have less or no space to hide, and this can be done by getting rid of litter and food leftovers.

Move objects away from walls and clean up the waste bin after disposal of waste, also ensure that the food is kept in an airtight storage room and containers. Use the fridge to store other perishable food, away from the reach of rats.

Your waste bins should also be closed with a lid when not in use, and to avoid having an overflowing waste bin, dispose of it as soon as possible!

  1. Use traps

The use of bait for catching rats is an age-long method of trapping rats. You just need to set your trap with fish, banana, grains or peanuts as bait. If you want it to be as effective, identify areas where the rats usually congregate and place the traps there.

There are other methods like using poison food crumbs, this method is not entirely safe, if you have toddlers in your homes, if you must use the poison ensure the doors to the place where the rat poison is kept locked.

  1. Call a Professional

If you want a quick solution and don’t want to bother with ‘Do It Yourself’ rat control, call Kleenrite. You’ll especially want to call up a professional if rats are in your home or office, especially if they are in places that are hiding, we will get rid of them without causing more damage to your home or office.

Action Point

So, here you have it! Don’t let rats become a menace in your home or office, their presence doesn’t benefit anyone. We have shared a few DIY rat control measures in the article, we hope that it will come good for you. If you are too busy to try any of these, you should contact us for a fast solution to the rat infestation.

 

 

4 Ways to Get Rid of Cockroaches for Good

Cockroaches are scavenging insects that resemble a beetle, having long antennae and legs and typically a broad, flattened body. There are popular household pests. They are common in the tropics, meaning they are common in Nigeria.

Cockroaches can be annoying, in recent research, we ask a cross-section of people from living in Lagos, they shared their funny and annoying experience with killing cockroaches, some had to the climb stool to reach a fleeing cockroach, other use broomsticks to chase them down, some recount spending so much money on insecticides all on a mission to get rid of cockroaches and other insects.

4 Ways to Get Rid of Cockroaches for Good

According to the World Health Organization, cockroaches can carry harmful diseases such as dysentery, cholera, leprosy, and more. This fact simply means cockroaches are not good for us, shouldn’t be in our home and our offices.

So, how do we get rid of cockroaches then? This question, we will answer in this article.

 

  1. Limit food crumbs

Food leftovers should be trashed as soon as possible, and rid the dining of crumbs because cockroaches are attracted to crumbs from food waste, and pet droppings.

  1. Remove clutter from the exterior of your home.

Avoid stacking your homes with disposable items special outside your home, clutters give cockroaches spaces to hide and breed.

  1. Clean your gutters

Gutters should be clean, because cockroaches breed in wet and dark places, if not properly cleaned, it gives cockroaches an easy path into your homes. They can come in through pipes and these water outlets connect to the house, that is, your bathroom, kitchen and other places where pipes are installed.

  1. Keep trees and shrubs trimmed

It’s good to have trees and plant flowers for fresh air but poses a threat if allowed to overgrow. As mentioned in No.3 cockroaches thrive in dark and moist environments, by trimming the trees and shrubs you prevent better airflow and increase the sunlight, a condition which cockroaches don’t enjoy being under.

Final Words

Save yourself from the embarrassment of apologizing to your visitors because the crawling insect called cockroaches is enjoying a free roam in your home or office. This can be a thing of the past if you take to the bits of advice we have shared in this article.

Above all, maintaining a clean environment prevents you from getting exposed to disease-causing insects.

Talk to us using the comment box below, share your experiences in combating a ‘cockroach invasion’ in your home or workplace