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How To Kill Ants Vancouver WA

Why Using RAID! on Sugar Ants Is A Bad Idea

How To Get Rid Of Ants In The House

For some, there is something darkly pleasing about being able to wipe out a swarming colony of ants by nuking them with a can of ant spray. It is instant gratification (if you are into that sort of thing), which leaves you thinking that you have made massive progress on the war on ants in your home. The most common weapon of choice that people use comes in an aerosol can with the name RAID on it. It is so popular that nearly everyone has heard of it. The can clearly states that the product is designed to kill ants and that it is labeled for indoor use, so what could be the problem? Well, I am so glad you asked:

Spraying with RAID can make the ant problem worse!

It can be challenging to convince someone that killing ants with RAID is a bad thing when trying to get rid of an ant infestation. Sure, you can kill a lot of the scouts on contact and experience temporary relief for a while. You might even enjoy a couple of weeks thinking that you did an outstanding job in handling these things yourself. However, as soon as those scout ants are killed and stop bringing food back to the nest, the queen ant starts producing more.

On top of this, RAID! is a repellent, and it creates panic in the nest. If the colony senses that it is under attack, several bad things happen. In addition to reproducing at a higher rate, the ant colony may also split through a process that we in the industry call “budding.” What this means is that the colony splits into several smaller colonies, and now, instead of having them just in the kitchen, you have them in your bathroom, bedroom, and living room.

Fumes and odors

Using any aerosol can is terrible for the environment, but in my opinion, it is especially bad when you are talking about pesticides. I am not trying to single out RAID because all over the counter pesticides are similar (RAID is just the one that everyone has heard about). Anyway, when you spray an aerosol pesticide, you are fumigating your home, and those fumes can be inhaled and make your house smell pretty bad as well. Products that pest control companies use are “non-repellents” (that are not available over the counter) and come in a liquid form. So, in other words, we would use a combination of sprays (no fumes) and baits.

If you are convinced by now not to use store-bought pesticide sprays, but also cannot afford to have a pest control company come out and treat for you, let me give you two options. First, you can take a look at our coupon page and possibly reconsider having us come out and help you, or you can try using store-bought baits. Listen, store-bought baits will only get you so far, but they do not have any adverse effects (like the repellent based sprays all do).

If you want to try the store-bought baiting approach, let me give you a few pointers. If you take a look at my do-it-yourself blog, you will find helpful techniques as well as recommended products to buy. If nothing works out for you after trying these things, be sure to give me a call. I would be happy to provide you with a few more pointers!

Posted on by Jordan Wirkkala
Why Using RAID! on Sugar Ants Is A Bad Idea

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