(i apologize if this isn’t the correct forum for this question, i’m new here & i’m desperate…)
we are getting a lot of rain here in Northern California, and the ants who live in our crawl space are seeking refuge. unfortunately, they’ve found a long crack at the juncture of our hardwood floor & wall in our bedroom!
we just bought our house (small 1912 bungalow) last september and are new to homeowning. what can i use to seal this crack to keep out the ants? it’s barely a milimeter in width, just enough room for these ants to get through.
thx in advance for your recommendations! we’ve got caulk, but it’ll really mess up the edge of the hardwood flooring.
Replies
The same answer as I gave in Knots -- tape both sides, use flexible caulk in a color to match the flooring or the baseboards. Smooth out the caulk then remove the tape.
IanDG
thanks again!
Seal that crack and they will jsut find another one. You have a whole nation of ant refugees fleeing the rising tide there. they can even make their own entry after you seal all the others. It is a force of nature.Better to kill the buggers, especially if they are carpenter ants or fire ants of any kind.Head to the garden center
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repair / fix according to Ian..
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Closing off a crack is ok, but, in my experience (living in an old log cabin) they will just find another crack. My advice, don't invite anyone squeamish over to your house until you:
Roger <><
Try below link to Terro no tox borate ant bait. Works wonders on our local species. Available at many local retailers (including the "W" word). This is the only product I have found (tox or no-tox) that works long-term on carpenter ants. Feed them for a few days, and they are gone for the season. Works on other varieties as well, but the carpenters are the tough test. Oh, and it's cheap besides.
http://www.terro.com/antkiller.php
I'm in the same area as you, and ants seem to come in when it's very rainy, or very hot/dry. I've heard that all the ants on earth would outweigh humans by five times (how do they know that?), so it will be an ongoing battle. My next door neighbor swears by the poison, but then he buys it all the time. The only thing I could add is that you should try to make things as unhospitable as possible - obviously this means not leaving food around, etc., but also there are products like "ant chalk" (available at some hardware stores) which can block their path (ants won't walk across ground cinnamon, either).