Cypress Homeowners' Complete Guide To Effective Ant Control

There are so many ants trying to invade Cypress homes and so many different ways they can make their way inside. Ants are one of the most common of all household pests, but that doesn't make them any easier to combat. While some ants are of the nuisance variety, others can bring health risks into your home or threaten the very structure of your building. Luckily, if you are struggling with ants, there are professional Cypress pest control businesses that can help. 

Modern Pest Control wants to help you keep ants out of your home now and into the future. Here's what you should know about common ants that live in Texas, the problem ants can cause in your home, six easy and effective ant prevention tips, and the most effective ant control available: Modern Pest Control. 

Life Cycle And Diets Of Common Ants  

There are close to 12,000 different types of ants in the world and around 1,000 in the United States, but only a handful of ants are likely to invade your Cypress home or business. The life cycle of ants is similar across species, with four life stages: egg, larvae, pupae, and adult. The life cycle process takes around two months to complete from start to finish. Most ants are scavengers and will eat a wide variety of foods. 

Carpenter Ants

Given their name, you might be inclined to think that carpenter ants eat wood as termites do, but this actually isn't the case. These insects tunnel out wood to create nests, but they do not eat the wood they remove. Instead, when carpenter ants are in your home, they are likely to damage your building as well as contaminate your countertops as they look for leftover crumbs. In nature, carpenter ants feed on insect honeydew, plants and fruits, insects, and other arthropods, but inside your home, they will look for sweets and proteins like eggs, meats, cakes, and grease. Many mature colonies can hold 10,000-20,000 workers, and large colonies can even grow to 50,000 ants. 

Crazy Ants

These ants get their name from the erratic movements they make when they are searching for food. Like carpenter ants, they will eat insects, seeds, fruits, and honeydew outdoors. These ants will commonly move into homes in search of food and moisture, especially as the weather cools and natural food sources become more scarce. Crazy ant colonies are relatively small, with only 1,500-2,500 individual ants. 

Harvester Ants

Harvester ants also get their name from a behavior – their habit of collecting or harvesting seeds as their primary food source. They will remove vegetation from around their nests, making large bare spots on lawns. Some harvester ants have been known to live for up to 30 years. They are also one of the few ants that sting when their nest is disturbed. An average mature colony of harvester ants can contain around 12,000 workers.

Odorous House Ants

These tiny ants give off a rotten coconut smell when they are crushed. They are common home invaders as they are partial to sweets. Outside they feed on honeydew and other available items and move their nests periodically in response to rain. Inside, odorous house ants nest near water sources and can become a nuisance when their numbers begin to grow out of control. 

Pavement Ants

There are another small variety of ants with a fitting name. Pavement ants often make their nests under cracks in the pavement but are not shy in invading area homes if there is food available for the taking. In addition to the pavement, they can also nest in masonry walls, wall voids, insulation, and underneath floors. Worker ants live for several years in colonies of over 10,000 ants.

Pharaoh Ants

Pharaoh ants are thought to be native to Africa but now live throughout the United States. They prefer feeding on sweets, oils, and proteins but will also eat other dead insects. Pharaoh ants live in colonies with thousands of ants. If their colony is disturbed, the members will spread out to new locations and begin several new colonies in a process known as budding. 

Red Imported Fire Ants

These ants are infamous for their fiery red coloring and aggressive nature. They are more commonly found outside but will enter buildings through HVAC systems and AC units. It's best to avoid the telltale mound of a fire ant nest and deal with infestations before they spread. Average-sized colonies can grow to contain 100,000 to 245,000 stinging individuals. They primarily eat insects, earthworms, ticks, spiders, arthropod eggs, honeydew, and other sweets they can find. 

Yellow Ants

Yellow ants are also called citronella ants because of the lemon-like odor they give off when they are crushed. Unlike some other ants, yellow ants are primarily nocturnal and feed almost exclusively on honeydew and underground insects. They are one of a few ants that are rarely, if ever, seen inside homes looking for food. 

The Problems Ants Can Cause In Your Home

Ants are such a common pest that it can be easy to ignore them or assume that they will go away on their own. Just because they are a common nuisance pest does not mean that ants cannot wreak havoc on your home. With all of the different species and types of ants, there are a variety of problems that they can cause. 

Nuisance

Many ants are simply nuisance pests who grow their populations, contaminate your cooking surfaces, and make themselves a nuisance in general. The problem with these ants grows when their colonies become unmanageable in size or when they go through a budding process and spread throughout your home. If you've ever had a widespread ant problem in your home, you know the importance of taking action early and stopping ants before their numbers spiral out of control.

Health Concerns

With a few exceptions, almost all ants are after your food, and in their quest to get it, they often contaminate both your food and the cooking surfaces you prepare it on. In this way, many ants can spread pathogens like E. coli, shigella, and salmonellosis. Other pests, such as pharaoh ants, spread diseases like staphylococcus, clostridium, and streptococcus. This is especially an issue when these ants overtake a medical facility and infect vulnerable patients. Finally, there are ants like harvester ants and fire ants that deliver painful stings. For most people, this is an unpleasant experience, but for young children or people who are sensitive to ant venom, these stings can be very serious. And even healthy individuals without an allergy who are stung by enough of these ants can suffer more serious reactions. 

Building and Property

Not all ants are dangerous to your health. Ants like carpenter ants can do a number on your household. These ants hollow out wood to make their nests, and if they settle into your home, they can make short work out of the structural components in your home. Then there are ants that will nest inside machinery and cause issues for electronics and other property around your home. 

Ants are common pests that we are used to seeing around our properties, but that doesn't make these insects risk-free. If you have ants in or around your Cypress home, the ant control professionals at Modern Pest Control want to help you get them out for good. 

Six Easy And Effective Ant Prevention Tips For Around The House 

We can help you eradicate ant infestations from your home, but wouldn't it be easier to never have ants in the first place? The best way to combat ants in Cypress is to take steps to prevent having them in the first place. You can do this much in the same way as you would to avoid other pests, removing access to food and water and limiting ways ants can get inside your home or nesting areas on your property. The top six ways you can prevent ants in your home include the following:

1. Food: Ants are tiny pests with amazing senses and big appetites. It takes a lot to keep food out of their grasp, but you can start by storing leftovers in sealed containers or in the refrigerator, keeping floors and countertops clean and don't leave dirty dishes in the sink, keeping trash cans covered and emptying them regularly, pick up uneaten pet food, and, when possible, limit eating to just a few rooms in the house.  
2. Water: Moisture is another big draw for ants and other pests. You can minimize this attraction by fixing leaks, maintaining outdoor drainage systems, addressing condensation, and running dehumidifiers in poorly ventilated areas of your home. 
3. Cracks: Most ants are extremely small and can fit through the tiniest cracks and crevices. You'll want to avoid this by sealing cracks and crevices in your exterior walls and foundation, installing weatherstripping and door sweeps, repairing or replacing torn screens, and eliminating any other passageways ants are using to get inside your home. 
4. Utilities: Some ants will use the gaps around utilities and vents to make their way inside, so make sure not to ignore these areas as you are checking for potential entry points. 
5. Landscaping: Many ant species can live both indoors and out. A colony may have its nest outside but send scouts into your home for extra food. The more you can limit ants nesting in your yard, the further they will be from your home and the less likely they will be to forage within your walls. You can do a lot to deter ants around your property with proper landscaping. Removing organic debris like leaf and brush piles or stored wood can limit areas where ants are likely to nest. Trimming trees and bushes away from your exterior walls can make it harder for ants and other pests to gain access to your home through the upper levels or roof. 
6. Professionals: When in doubt, it's never a bad idea to consult with professionals about ant control. Even for the pros, it is far simpler to avoid an infestation than to treat an out of control colony within your home. 

If you are looking for help getting or keeping ants out of your Cypress home, the professionals at Modern Pest Control want to help. We are here to help provide solutions and educate you about the ants that could infest your home. We will work with you to make sure that your home remains free of ants. 

The Most Effective Way To Keep Ants Out Of Your Home

The most effective way to keep ants out of your Cypress home is with help from the experts at Modern Pest Control. We can work with you to determine the type of species threatening your property as well as the unique behaviors of the species and the severity of the problem. Our pest control technicians are experienced and licensed exterminators who are familiar with area pests and the effects they can have on your health and property. 

We offer a range of services so that you can choose the plan that works best for your home and situation. In all cases, our specialists will perform a thorough inspection of your home or business to identify the problem and provide you with a proposed plan of action to eliminate your ant infestation permanently. We use the latest pest control strategies and methods to solve ant infestations efficiently and effectively.

Don't let ants threaten your health and safety, damage your property, or simply become a nuisance to their large population. Instead, keep your home pest-free into the future with help from Modern Pest Control. We stand behind our work with a total service guarantee. If you see ants between services, simply give us a call, and your technician will return and take care of them at no extra charge. Call today for more information or to schedule your first service!