help! i have ants

[westernmassachusetts]

any suggestions for eliminating ants? just bought a 1998 saturn that was not used for a couple of years. no evident problem when i bought it but towing it home must have "woke" the ants up. they are pretty bad. i have been using two types of traps spread around the inside, but there must be a nest somewhere that is hidden from sight. any suggestions would be appreciated. i am going away next month and want to have this problem fixed by then. should i call a professional and fix this once and for all, or should i stay the course and continue to use the traps?
tony

[PTHutch]

Welcome to the club and sorry to hear about your ant problems.
Weive had similar problems a couple of times.

We’ve used the Raid Ant Traps with success, both in our Sunline and in our house.


Also take some ant spray and spray it all along the baseboards inside the trailer and then ouside around all items touching the ground, such as tires, shore power cord, stabilizer jacks, etc. just to make sure they're not getting in where you have it setting.

Check the exterior to see if you find any signs of ants getting in. Sometimes they’ll get in by crawling up the shore power cord or stabilizer jacks, etc.

The other option is to bomb the coach. Close all roof vents & windows of the trailer tight, remove all food, dishes, utensils, cloths, etc., open up all cabinets, and set off a fogger/bomb. That should take care of anything that crawls.

Help this helps some.
Hutch

[2beagles]

We've had good luck with Terro ant baits. They're filled with liquid which the anys take back and contaminate the nest, eliminating the problem. It works great on carpenter ants as well as sugar ants.

[kathyh]

2 hints from Trailer Life for getting rid of ants:

1. Use dry mixture of 1/2 Borax and 1/2 sugar in a shallow dish placed near where you see the ants. The ants will carry the mixture back to the nest and eliminate themselves in a few hours

2. Put small piles of cornmeal where you see ants. They eat it, take it "home", can't digest it so it kills them. It may take a week or so, especially if it rains, but it works & you don't have the worry about pets or small children being harmed!

Never had to try either method but at least they are cheap.

KathyH

[Mooney]

+1 for the liquid ant baits. They are working well for my dad at his house (heavily wooded lot)

[Hematite]

My Sunline is stored on blacktop but ants and spiders can still be a problem. I immediately spray the blacktop around the Sunline with a potent insecticide mixture. I used to use Diazinon but that is again off the market.

My second line of defense is glue traps set on top of the tires. You'd be suprised at the number of insects that they will catch.

The third line of defense is one or two glue traps inside the trailer. Rarely ever catch anything so this is optional.

The primary protection, I feel, is the continued use of insecticide around the outside of the unit. Ants look for damp spots so be sure to spray around all the tires and front jack.

I have to say that the other suggestions are excellent, as well.

[Rich Nagel]

I myself have had really good success using Ortho Home Defense Max. I usually spray it around the inside corners and crevices of the trailer once every 5-6 months or so, and (in the past three years that I've lived here) only spotted two scorpions and three spiders (Eeeeeek! 'twas the reason for the spray in the forst place <G>!).

Anyhow, those are the only bugs that I've ever seen in my travel trailer... even being three years Out here in the woods <G>

[nickster60]

I also use the Ortho home defense. We where camp one time and when we came back for the day the camper was full of ants. They came up the water hose and came in the the refrigerator cover. We went down to Wally World and got some Othro Home Defense. We also use it at the house, yes you can live in Florida and not have bugs.