How To Get Rid Of Ants In The House: What Everyone In Missouri City Ought To Know

Ants are one of the most common visitors to Missouri City homes. These stealthy pests often come in search of something sweet to eat or because of an issue with moisture. Something as seemingly minor as allowing garbage to collect is enough to create an ant infestation, and clogged gutters and a collection of yard clutter can also be the source of ant problems. No matter how they appear, ants can be a nuisance, but certain species can also lead to health issues or attract other types of ants.

Luckily, there are steps that you can take to limit your exposure to ants. In addition to slight habit changes, working with a professional pest control company like Modern Pest Control can drastically reduce the number of ants that you encounter on any given day. We are a long-trusted company that has been in operation since 1952. Our Missouri City ant control services come standard with all of our residential programs and are informed by Integrated Pest Management methods. We hope that the following guide provides the information that you need to know about these pests, and if you’re ready to engage in our ant services, please call us today.

How To Tell If You Have An Ant Problem In Your Home

For the most part, ants are very small pests that don’t often make themselves known to local homeowners. They come in search of food and water, which often relegates them to parts of your home and property that you don’t visit all of the time. Here are some of the signs, however, that you can look for to help identify possible ant populations:

Mounds: One of the worker ants’ jobs is to create access points to the earth, and in doing so, their digging creates the mounds that you might see in your yard or around your patio. Very often, these mounds are home to fire ants or pavement ants. When these mounds appear around driveways or outdoor tiling, they are most likely due to pavement ants, which are not known to cause health problems, unlike fire ants.
Trails: If you notice more ants than usual and they are in trail formation, then you likely have an infestation in your home. Pay special attention to the areas around sinks, bathtubs, and garbage bins because these are places that provide ants with the sustenance that they’re looking for.
Ants in your yard: Ants are also known to take up shelter in trees, not just below ground. Check the trees around your property and if you notice an abundance of ants, then you might have an infestation on your hands.
Property damage: The carpenter ant is a type of ant that causes property damage that is akin to the work that termites do. While carpenter ants don’t eat the wood, their ability to burrow in the walls and foundation of your home can lead to noticeable property damage. If you notice wood shavings around your floor, pinholes in walls, or wood that seems shredded or hollow, you might have a carpenter ant problem in your home.
General ant activity: While spotting a singular ant doesn’t necessarily mean that you have an infestation, finding a number of them congregating around dirty dishes or food items might mean that there is a larger issue at play.

If you suspect that your home is hosting an ant infestation, simply give Modern Pest Control a call. We have been the area’s trusted ant experts for more than 60 years and with good reason. Each of our technicians is highly trained and can spot even the most subtle of infestations. We utilize detailed property inspections every time we visit your home to locate ongoing infestations or areas where new ones could arise. We’ll check all of the nooks and crannies of your property that might not be obvious to you, but with our expertise, we might be able to identify ants before they become a big problem. For more information on ant infestations in Missouri City and how to deal with them, please call us today.

The Health Risks Of An Ant Infestation

Seeing ants around a home in Missouri City isn’t an uncommon occurrence for most residents. And while ants might seem like a mere annoyance to most people, they can actually pose a series of health threats when they interact with humans and our homes. Some of the health problems that ants are linked with include:

Painful bites: The fire ant is a species of ant that is known for the venomous bites that it delivers when it feels that it is being threatened. While the results of these bites are often limited to swelling and pain around the bite site, sometimes the issues can be much larger. Some people experience hives, redness, itching, allergic reactions, and even difficulty breathing. This type of ant can be especially harmful for children, who may even experience chest pain and shortness of breath.
E. coli: E. coli is one of the most common bacteria that ants can spread inside the home. It attacks the lower intestine of humans as well as pets, which can have some very unpleasant side effects. People who experience E. coli infections often experience stomach cramping, fever, and a variety of gastrointestinal distresses.
Salmonella: Ants are actually not the only pests that are linked with the spread of salmonella; however, they are a key source of it. When people have salmonella infections, also known as salmonellosis, they widely report fever, nausea, vomiting, and full body chills. This type of infection often requires professional intervention in order to completely clear.
Shigella: Shigellosis is another food-borne illness that often shows itself with abdominal pain, cramping, and a fever. People who are dealing with shigellosis also often experience dehydration or may have no symptoms at all.
Clostridium: This type of bacteria is regarded as one of the most common sources of food poisoning, according to the Centers for Disease Control. People who have encountered clostridium may have a loss of appetite, be dehydrated, and experience stomach cramps.

The most effective way to deter ants and limit exposure to the potential health risks of their infestations is with professional pest control in Missouri City from Modern Pest Control. We have been the area’s trusted pest experts since 1952 and continue to deliver top-quality services with each visit. Our company is QualityPro certified, which makes us uniquely qualified to address the health hazards of ant infestations. We abide by stringent standards in order to achieve the safest and most reliable results for our customers.

Because ants are such a prevalent pest problem in the area, we include coverage for them in all of our residential pest programs. By treating the interior and exterior of homes on a quarterly basis, with free retreatments as needed, we are able to mitigate exposure to these various health risks. For more information on residential ant control, call us today.

Prevention Is Critical To Successful Ant Control

Ants can get attracted to homes very easily due to a variety of factors that appear in everyday life. To complicate matters, ants are also masters of fitting through nearly any opening that they find. In order to mitigate exposure to ants, people ought to try the following tips:

Start outside. Because ants often find their way inside homes from the outdoors, homeowners should begin by taking a good look at their surroundings. This may entail tidying up patio areas from fallen leaves or keeping the lawn mowed and tidy. It may also be helpful to fill in cracks in cement or bricks with caulk to deter species such as the pavement ant.
Close off openings. To try to keep ants from getting indoors, there are several actions that homeowners can take. To start, it may be helpful to replace or repair window screens that have holes or even small tears. Next, apply weatherstripping around doors and windows that might have gaps around them. Finally, utilize door sweeps for an even more secure fit.
Be aware of trash. Whether homeowners store garbage indoors, outdoors, or both, it’s vital that they always use a bin with a properly fitting lid. Not missing garbage day is also crucial in deterring ants, as is cleaning out garbage bins from time to time in order to reduce food build-up.
Fix moisture problems. Because ants also seek a moisture source, homeowners will want to proactively look for leaks in places such as the bathroom and kitchen on a routine basis. Pay special attention to the pipes beneath sinks and always shut off showers and sinks properly after use. Outdoors, keep gutters and downspouts cleared, and tend to any exterior pipes or hoses that are causing issues.
Store all food in sealed containers. Rather than give ants a meal on a silver platter, always keep pet foods, leftovers, snacks, and other pantry items stored in sealed containers at all times.
Make cleaning a habit. Another way to reduce exposure to ants is to maintain a tidy home. Always disinfect countertops and stoves routinely and make sure that there is no liquid residue in hidden areas like beneath recycling bins. It’s also key to sweep and vacuum often to clear away any crumbs and food bits that may have appeared while cooking or at mealtime.
Seek professional help. The most reliable form of ant prevention is ongoing service from a pest control professional. These treatments will target the exact cause behind ant populations. They will also take into account the relationship between ant biology and ant behavior in order to build sustainable results.

For more information on keeping ants away, call Modern Pest Control today.

The Solution To Total Ant Control In Missouri City

Because ants are such a common problem in the Missouri City area, oftentimes the subtle habit changes that people make are just not enough to keep them away. This is why working with a pest control company such as Modern Pest Control can be invaluable. We are a locally owned family business that has been in operation since 1952. Over the years, we have been a steward of our community and have always made safety our top priority. We are a QualityPro-certified company, which is a mark of excellence in the industry. We thoroughly background check each of our employees and we uphold the most intense standards possible. This ultimately gives our customers the peace of mind that they deserve. We are also state licensed in order to meet important local standards as well.

In order to address the ant infestations that our neighbors may face, we offer the option of three residential pest control programs that are all in accordance with Integrated Pest Management (IPM) standards. What IPM allows us to do is understand the dynamic relationship between pest biology and behavior in order to locate the root cause of infestations. It also means that we’re able to solve pest problems in a way that is as environmentally conscious as possible. Whether homeowners opt for our Modern Plus, Signature, or Signature Plus program, they will receive routine quarterly services that address indoor ant problems and exterior fire ant problems.

Our ant service begins with a comprehensive property assessment that looks at both the inside and outside of a home. We use this as an opportunity to locate active ant populations, understand how they’re getting inside the home or where they’re living outdoors, isolate the factors that are attracting them, and find areas that could become problematic. From there, we are able to customize a treatment program that addresses our customer’s unique needs. We use targeted products both inside and outside to create a barrier of protection from ants. Our technicians will also spot-treat specific areas of concern.

Because we abide by Integrated Pest Management methods, a key part of our service is also making sure that our customers have the education they need in order to limit ant attraction between our visits. We will point out areas of potential attraction so that homeowners can create new habits to deter ants. Each of our plans also comes with a satisfaction guarantee, which means that if ants reappear between these visits, we will perform re-treatments at no additional cost to the customer. This is our promise to our customers so that they can have total confidence that their homes are free from ants. For more information on ant control in Missouri City, call us today.