How to Get Rid of Ants in Your House (DIY Guide)

Before you start squishing every ant you see, here's the thing most people get wrong: the ants you see are only about 10% of the colony. There could be hundreds of thousands more hiding in your walls, under your foundation, or in your yard. Killing the visible ants does almost nothing.

The real strategy is to use those visible ants against the colony. They're worker ants — their whole job is to find food and bring it back. If you give them poisoned bait instead of your leftover pizza, they'll carry it straight to the queen. No queen, no colony, no more ants.

Most home ant problems are caused by a handful of species: odorous house ants (the tiny black ones that smell like coconut when crushed), pavement ants (small brown ones near driveways), carpenter ants (large black ants that nest in wood), and sugar ants (a catch-all term for small ants attracted to sweets). The approach is similar for all of them, with one big exception: carpenter ants can cause structural damage and usually need a pro.

• Ant bait stations or gel bait — Look for baits containing borax or hydramethylnon. You want slow-acting poison that workers carry back to the colony.
• White vinegar or soapy water — For cleaning ant trails and removing pheromone scent markers.
• Caulk or silicone sealant — To seal entry points once you find them.
• Spray bottle — For your vinegar/soap solution.
• Diatomaceous earth (food-grade) — Optional, for treating cracks and crevices around entry points.
• Airtight food containers — To eliminate the food sources attracting them.

Total cost: roughly $5–$25 depending on what you already have at home.

Step 1: Find the Trail (Don't Kill Them Yet)

This feels counterintuitive, but resist the urge to spray or squish. Instead, follow the ant trail in both directions. Where are they coming from? Where are they going? You're looking for two things: the entry point (where they're getting into your house) and the food source (what they're after).

Common entry points: gaps around windows, door frames, where pipes enter the wall, cracks in the foundation, and gaps around electrical outlets. Common food sources: pet food bowls, crumbs under the toaster, sticky residue on counters, open sugar or honey containers, and trash cans.

Step 2: Remove the Food Source

Clean up whatever they're eating. Wipe down all surfaces with your vinegar solution (50/50 white vinegar and water). This destroys the pheromone trail that other ants follow. Store all food in sealed containers. Take out the trash. Clean under appliances if you can. Don't leave pet food out overnight.

Step 3: Set Bait Near the Trail

Place bait stations or drops of gel bait right along the ant trail, as close to the entry point as possible. Don't put bait randomly around your house — put it where the ants already are. The workers will find it, eat some, and carry the rest back to the colony.

Important: Do NOT spray insecticide near the bait. Spray kills ants on contact, which means they never make it back to the colony with the bait. You want them alive and carrying poison home.

Step 4: Be Patient

Bait takes time. You might actually see more ants for the first day or two as word spreads about the "food" source. This is a good sign — it means more workers are carrying bait to the colony. Most colonies are significantly reduced within 1–2 weeks. Don't remove the bait too early.

Step 5: Seal Entry Points

Once the ant activity stops, seal the entry points you found in Step 1. Use caulk for small gaps and cracks. For larger openings around pipes, use expanding foam or steel wool. You can also sprinkle a thin line of diatomaceous earth in cracks before sealing — it acts as a long-term barrier.

Step 6: Clean Up Pheromone Trails

Do a final wipe-down of all the areas where you saw ant trails. Use your vinegar solution or soapy water. Even after the colony is gone, the pheromone trail remains and can attract new colonies if not cleaned.

• Keep your kitchen clean — Wipe counters daily, sweep floors, and don't leave dishes in the sink overnight. Even small crumbs are a feast for ants.
• Store food properly — Use airtight containers for sugar, cereal, pet food, and anything sweet. Ants can chew through paper and thin plastic bags.
• Fix moisture issues — Ants need water too. Fix leaky faucets, pipes, and any areas with standing water. Check under sinks regularly.
• Trim vegetation away from your house — Branches and shrubs touching your home are ant highways. Keep a gap of at least 6 inches between plants and your exterior walls.
• Seal cracks annually — Do a walk-around of your home's exterior once a year. Seal any new cracks in the foundation, gaps around windows, and openings where utilities enter.
• Take out trash regularly — Don't let trash pile up, especially in the kitchen. Use trash cans with tight-fitting lids.

• Spraying ants with insecticide — This is the #1 mistake. Spray kills the workers but doesn't touch the colony. Worse, it can cause the colony to "bud" — splitting into multiple smaller colonies that spread throughout your home. Use bait, not spray.
• Only cleaning up the ants you see — If you wipe them up without addressing the food source and entry point, new workers will show up within hours following the same pheromone trail.
• Using the wrong bait — Different ants prefer different foods. If they're ignoring sweet bait, try protein-based bait (and vice versa). Some ants switch preferences seasonally.
• Giving up too soon — Bait can take 1–2 weeks to eliminate a colony. If you remove the bait after a few days because "it's not working," you've just fed the colony for free.
• Ignoring outdoor colonies — If ants keep coming back, the colony is probably outside. Look for ant mounds near your foundation and treat those too.