By Dwight Barnett
Scripps Howard News Service
Q: Please help. I'm being invaded by tiny black ants. No matter what product I use I can't get rid of them. I tried the Terro ant killer you wrote about, but they keep coming back. I feel like I live in an unclean house. -- T.J. Indianapolis A: According to Stoy Hedges, manager of technical services of Terminix International, ants are one of the most difficult pests to control. You need to identify the species of ant you have and then get the proper insecticide. Some species, such as the Argentine ant, the odorous house ant, crazy ant, white-footed ants and carpenter ants, have multiple queens or multiple colonies. In such cases the colonies and sub colonies have to be found and destroyed. Tom Kraatz, president of Senoret, manufacturers of Terro Brand products, says that Terro ant killer sometimes has to be applied more than once to be effective on the whole colony. The small black ant, monomorium minimum, is usually found under the baseboards or in the seams on kitchen countertops. You are seeing worker ants out foraging for food, and since the ant is a social insect it will take food and bait back to the main colony. Sometimes the queen or queens of the colony do not get the bait that is carried back. In that case, it takes more than one treatment to kill the colony. You have to destroy the queen to destroy the colony. If you find the ants in a different part of the home, then you are dealing with another colony and will have to treat it too. In the past you had to place the liquid Terro on a small piece of cardboard and place the bait in the ants' trail. Spill any liquid bait on a painted surface and there would be some damage. Terro has introduced a new liquid bait station that is easier and safer to use. You simply clip the corner of the holder and place the holder in the ants' trail. No more spills. Even after several weeks of being opened the bait is still liquid and still effective. The old Terro would dry out overnight. If baiting fails to keep the pests out of your home, you will need to contact a professional exterminator. They will attempt to trace the ants back to their colony and then will treat the colony and sub colonies with the applicable insecticide. (C. Dwight Barnett is a master inspector certified by the American Society of Home Inspectors.)
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