Getting Rid Of Odorous House Ants In Your Bathroom
Finding ants in your home is never a pleasant experience, but some species of ant can be more unpleasant than others. The odorous house ant, also known as the stink ant or coconut ant, is one of the worst ants to find in your home, for reasons you can probably guess. When their bodies are damaged or crushed, they emit a foul, sweet smell, reminiscent of rotten coconut.
These tenacious ants can appear in almost any room in your home, but are particularly likely to infest your bathroom, especially at this time of year. Acting quickly can rid your bathroom of these malodorous insects before they start to cause real problems.
Why Are Odorous House Ants In Your Bathroom?
Unlike most other species of ant, odorous house ants tend to build several colonies in different locations, in order to access a variety of food and water supplies. They are strongly drawn to water sources and will build colonies in any part of your home where moisture levels are above-average.
The average bathroom is an ideal colony location for odorous house ants. They will build their colonies beneath leaking pipes, inside sink cabinets, inside wall cavities close to your shower or bathtub, and in any other sheltered location close to water.
Because odorous house ants build multiple colonies, they may be breeding in many parts of your home at once. If you have any leaking fixtures or appliances in other parts of your home, such as the kitchen or laundry room, they may build secondary colonies in these locations. They are also attracted to pantries, pet-feeding areas, and anywhere where unprotected food sources can be found.
Odorous house ants tend to shelter within a single colony during the winter months and spread out to build more colonies when spring arrives. For this reason, you are especially likely to find ant colonies in your bathroom around this time of year, as ants spread out to search for new water sources.
How Can You Rid Your Bathroom Of Odorous House Ants?
If you spot (or smell) odorous house ants in your bathroom, you must act quickly. These ants move between colonies frequently, so if you wait too long, they may move to a different location inside your home, becoming even harder to find and control.
Store-bought ant-killing sprays and powders are generally ineffective because they can only be used to kill ants that leave their hidden colonies. Queen ants never leave their colonies, and will keep breeding new ants as long as they survive.
Ant bait stations are more likely to work. These stations contain food impregnated with slow-acting poisons. Worker ants carry these baits back to their colonies, where the poison takes effect and kills large numbers of ants, including queens. However, bait stations may only kill odorous house ants nesting in your bathroom, leaving ants in other colonies unharmed.
If you encounter odorous house ants in your bathroom, your best bet is to call in a professional pest control service to find and eliminate these foul-smelling invaders. These services can use commercial-grade, insecticidal bait stations, and foggers to thoroughly eradicate odorous house ant colonies in your bathroom.
Pest control professionals will also search your entire home, garage, and yard for other likely locations where odorous house ants may be hiding. To completely eliminate an odorous house ant infestation, all of their colonies must be found and treated with insecticides at the same time. Once all of the colonies have been found and exterminated, you can return to a sweet-smelling, ant-free home.
Contact a pest control service to learn more.