Help!! Ants Around Top Of Agp - Can't Get Rid Of Them!

[niklepikle]

Ok, here's the story! Mini Doxy got fleas last week, took him to the groomer now is all clear. Sprayed some kind of mega spray in the yard to kill the fleas (it was an all in one spray from the local feed mart - ate through a plastic cup it was so strong) and now all of the ants have decided to take up residence around the bottom of the pool and on the wall, then up on the rim/ledge around it. Afraid to spray (don't want it to get into the pool). have sprayed around the bottom and on wall with raid but no good. THey are hiding under the caps to the form of the pool that you have one about every 3 feet (i don't know what they are called). We have saltwater pool, thought that the salt would deter pests...how to get rid of them?

[sevver]

Flame thrower!! lol

Really though, what about hosing them down with water, maybe they will die once they hit the ground.

[niklepikle]

Thanks, have tried dousing with water, drowning them, whatever....BUT it doesn't work! I think that they reproduce by the nanosecond! Flamethrower sounds great, but would like to have pool left at the end of all of this

[ellenicol]

Have heard that white distilled vinegar sprinkled around things will get rid of ants. ie: sprinkle around the bottom of the pool and they won't go up it. Not sure if this really works or not but it might. Supposidly you can use a rag to wipe your door jambs on the bottom with the vinegar and ants will not cross it. Hope you figure it out.

[CarlD]

DE powder.

That's right, I said DE powder! If you have a DE filter, you already have it. If you have a sand filter, well, a little DE in it can help as well.

It's one of the few, rare items that is FAR cheaper at a pool store than anywhere else. DE is sold as an insecticide at far higher cost. But I buy about 10lb a season for my sand filter for $8.

Poconos pioneered adding 1/3 cup or more to a sand filter, just enough to raise pressure 1 lb, and the performance improvement of the filter is AMAZING! You just need to add DE everytime you backwash, but in a sand filter that 10# of DE seems to last FOREVER!

Plus you have DE to kill the ants. My mom told me she used to use it when she and my late dad had a pool--she'd swipe some of his DE for it and worked GREAT. Folks here have confirmed that.

Cheap, effective, dual purpose!

There's been some discussion of using DE with cartridge filters. The verdict is unclear but it seems it may not be a great idea--it MAY clog the filter.

Edit by Poconos:
Just to set the record straight I didn't pioneer the idea about DE in a sand filter. I saw that idea a few years ago in some obscure thread on the old forum.
Al

[cpmart]

Another suggestion for a BBB-related solution to your ant problem: borax.

There is a product out there called "Terro" which is a borax + sugar solution. They sell both indoor and outdoor versions of the stuff (I believe it is the same recipe, just different delivery systems). We used it for some small indoor ants and it worked great! You put a small puddle of the stuff on a slip of cardboard near where you see the ants roaming. Eventually, they find the stuff, drink it, bring it back to the nest, and kill the others hiding in the nest. It was disgusting, but the ants loved this stuff so much that they were shoving each other out of the way to get it, and we had a line of ants walking from the nest to the terro and back to the nest. It is really important not to kill the ones that you see drinking it, because they have to deliver it back to the queen so she will die and wipe out the hidden nest. Our ants were completely eliminated in less than 2 days.

The outside version of terro is the borax solution in a small plastic cup that you spike into the ground. I'll bet one of these near your pool problem would call the ants to it, and eventually kill the nest. I'm sure there is an online recipe for making the sugar-borax solution, but I bought mine at Walmart, and it was pretty cheap.

I know borax is relatively safe, but you mentioned you had a dog, and I wonder if the sugary solution would also draw him to eat the borax? I might call the terro company (or google them) and see what they suggest regarding pets. Ours worked so quickly indoors though, it just might be worth keeping the dog away from the area for a couple of days.

Good luck
chris

[bgray]

I know borax is relatively safe, but you mentioned you had a dog, and I wonder if the sugary solution would also draw him to eat the borax? I might call the terro company (or google them) and see what they suggest regarding pets. Ours worked so quickly indoors though, it just might be worth keeping the dog away from the area for a couple of days.

From the terro.com website:

"Pets occasionally find the Terro and eat it. Our advice when this happens
is to do nothing at all. The product is not toxic enough to cause a problem
and the pet will be just fine."

[hoffmans]

Diatomaous Earth a.k.a DE
kills bugs dead.
And it is safe to use all around the home.
If you get food grade DE you can sprinkle it in your pet food to help kill their intestinal parasite (worms). Do not feed them filter grade DE.
You can also sprinkle the food grade on your garden, however, it doesn't know the difference between the good bugs and the bad. Also great sprinkled around the foundation of your home/garage and pool.


Make sure you know what grade of DE you are buying.
One is food grade.
One is filter grade.
Don't mix them up.
They are both safe and amazing products when used for their intended purposes.

~Hoffmans

[webfeet]

Where can you find the food grade DE?

Webfeet

[Spensar]

Try a health food store, and not hard to find on the net.

Interesting point here:

http://wolfcreekranch1.tripod.com/defaq.html

Pool filter grade diatomaceous earth has been heat and chemically treated and will poison an animal or human who ingests it, so it is always of utmost importance to only obtain food grade diatomaceous earth to use in and around your household.