Homemade Ant Killer

Since we moved to our house, each Spring we have had a problem with ants. It’s one of those things where one day we will see one in our kitchen and then within a couple of days, there are tons chillin’ in our house like we are a resort destination. We were having a professional exterminator come out to spray inside the house and the outside perimeter. Clearly, this was costing us a pretty penny but if it meant the ants were gone then I was okay with it. I do not like bugs and I particularly do not like bugs in my house. Last year, I saw the first scout the Friday of Easter weekend and thought for sure that the Easter Bunny would be scared away by the army of ants that was sure to invade before we would be able to have the exterminator out. So I decided to try out a homemade ant trap to hold off our tiny little “friends” until we would be able to get someone out. It turns out that my homemade concoction did the trick and killed off ALL the ants and we never even had to have the professionals out at all to spray! I put it out that Friday night and within a few days all the ants were gone – GONE! I’ve shared this info with a few friends who have also had success with it so I figured I’d share here.

Homemade Ant Killer Recipe

2 Cups Sugar

1 Cup Water

2 TBS Borax (found in the laundry aisle at the grocery store or on Amazon HERE)

Combine all ingredients until it’s a soupy consistency. Leave mixture out in small, shallow containers where you have seen the ants. Keep in mind that the ants need to be able to easily get to it. I used the lids to baby food since that was what I had available. It's best to leave the bait as undisturbed as possible - don't touch it, move it, or even refill it (unless the ants no longer have enough to eat).

The ants then enjoy the “food” and also carry it back to the nests to kill off the whole colony. Sha-bam! When you first put out the bait you will notice an increase in ants. This is okay. The scout ant has simply let his friends know about the food and you want as many of them to eat it as possible. Resist the urge to kill them when you see them because you want them to bring it back to the colony.

Each ant that eats the bait will die withing 12-48 hours. Some people will notice a decrease in ants within a day and for some it will take a week or more. It all just depends on the size of the ant colony that you are working on killing.

If you notice that the ants are ignoring the bait then there is probably too much Borax in it and you should add more sugar. You want to make sure that you have enough Borax in it to kill them but not too much that they can smell/taste it and don’t consume it. The recipe above worked for me but you can tweak it if your ants have a finer taste palate than mine! You can also adjust the quantity that you make by cutting the recipe in half, doubling it, etc. 

For all of you out there fighting the ant battle, best of luck!

This was our ant trap a few hours after I put it out. Gross, yet oh so effective!