Ants in the House

A trail across the counter can belong to any of half a dozen kinds of ant, and at a glance they look alike. They do not respond alike, though: the spray that knocks back one kind can split another into several new nests. Where the ants show up, their size and color, how they move and when they are out usually narrow it down.

Ant Troubleshooter

Pick where the ants show up, what they look like, how they move and when you see them most.

Where They Show Up Kitchen counter or sink Bathroom sink or tub Along the baseboards Outside walls or windows Lawn or garden beds Potted plants or lanai Ceiling, attic or roof Outlets or the AC unit

Size and Color Tiny with pale legs Black with pale feet Reddish, mixed sizes Some with huge heads Big, orange and black Dark with long legs Too small to tell

When You See Them Most Mostly in the daytime Mostly at night Both day and night After heavy rain Not sure

How They Move

Marching in a line Running every which way From a mound or soil piles Winged ants coming out

Show the Likely Ant

Choose where the ants show up and what they look like, then press Show the Likely Ant.

Call (321) 450-8504

Telling Central Florida Ants Apart

Size and color tell most of them apart, and where they nest decides the first steps.

Ants in and around Central Florida homes

Ant	Appearance	Usual Location	Signs	First Steps	When to Call a Pro
Ghost ant	Tiny; dark head, pale see-through legs and rear	Kitchen and bathroom sinks, counters, potted plants	Quick trails to sweets and water	Skip sprays, wipe the trail with soapy water, set a sweet bait beside it	Trails in several rooms, or still there after two weeks of baiting
Red imported fire ant	Reddish-brown, mixed sizes up to a quarter inch	Sunny lawns, garden beds, slab edges, AC units	Loose dirt mounds after rain; stings that blister	Leave the mound alone, keep children and pets off it, bait the lawn in dry weather	Mounds by doors or play areas, ants indoors, or anyone who reacts badly to stings
White-footed ant	Small and black, with pale feet	Outside walls, window and door frames, shrubs touching the house	Long, steady trails up the foundation, often by the thousands	Trim plants off the walls, use sweet liquid bait on the outside trail	Trails still coming in after a few weeks, or ants in the attic
Big-headed ant	Small and brown; a few workers with oversized heads	Slab edges, patios, pavers, baseboards	Fine soil piles; loose soil tunnels that look like termite tubes	Sweep up the soil to see if it returns, pull mulch back from the foundation	Soil indoors along baseboards, or tunnels you cannot tell from termite tubes
Florida carpenter ant	Large; reddish-orange front, black rear	Dead tree limbs, attics, wall voids, damp wood	Big ants trailing at night along branches and wires; winged ants indoors	Trim branches and palm fronds off the roof, follow the trail after dark	Winged ants indoors, or a trail that leads into the attic
Crazy ant	Dark, with long legs and long antennae	Mulch and leaf litter outdoors; kitchens and bathrooms inside	Ants running fast in every direction, sometimes in huge numbers	Rake back mulch and leaf litter, seal food, check outlets and the AC unit	Large numbers in the house, or ants inside electrical equipment

The First Day of an Ant Problem

A few minutes of watching before you reach for anything saves trouble later.

1. Hold off on sprays. A spray kills the ants you can see and scatters the rest, and with ghost ants it can split one colony into several.
2. Follow the trail. Watch it both ways: to the food or water it leads to, and back to the gap it comes from, such as a window frame, an outlet or a crack in the slab.
3. Take a close photo. One ant beside a coin shows its size and color, the quickest ways to tell the ants apart.
4. Clean up what they came for. Wipe the trail and the counters with soapy water to remove the scent the ants follow, and seal away sweets, fruit and pet food.
5. Dry the sink area. Wipe up drips and check the cabinet below for a slow leak: ghost ants come for water as much as for sugar.
6. Look outside. Check the outside wall below the trail and any shrubs touching the house, since many indoor trails start at an outdoor nest.

If you try bait, put it beside the trail rather than on it, follow the label, and keep it where children and pets cannot reach it.

Sprays, Baits and Fire Ant Mounds

Kitchen Habits and Entry Points to Check

Ants come back to whatever worked for them last time. These checks take away the food, the water and the way in:

• Wipe the counters, the stovetop and the edge of the sink each night.
• Keep sugar, honey, syrup, cereal and pet food in containers that seal.
• Pick up pet bowls after meals, or stand the bowl in a shallow dish of water the ants cannot cross.
• Seal gaps along the backsplash and around the pipes under the sink with caulk.
• Clean out sliding door tracks and check the small drain holes at the bottom of window frames, where trails often come in.
• Trim shrubs, vines and branches so nothing touches the walls or the roof.
• Look inside potted plants from the lanai before you bring them indoors.

When the Trail Keeps Coming Back

Ants that return after a couple of weeks of careful baiting are usually nesting somewhere out of reach: inside a wall, under the slab or in the attic. When you book an appointment, tell us where the trails run, what the ants look like and what you have already tried.