Ants

[Goodsoulette]

maybe a question for Ratter!

I reckon you can smell ants. Only when there are lots of them and I cant really describe the smell but I am certain.

I was wondering if it was in my head or if they only smelt when they were carrrying the poison around or something like that? : S

[leelapops]

Hi Goodsoulette :)

Well they've bl**dy colonised my kitchen! So I'd like to sniff them out. Having a nightmare trying to get rid! Maybe you're right...

Lisa x

[Goodsoulette]

hey leela, have you checked the pointing in the walls outside your kirchen, mine had eroded away under the ground.

[sherlockian]

Goodsoulette - ants produce formic acid which is maybe what you can smell - I remember as a child watching David Attenborough lay a white handkerchief over an ants nest, and it was soaked in acid in seconds! Have a look at Wikipedia info on the stuff - it's name comes from the latin for ants.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formic_acid

[RATTER15]

Hi Goodsoulettes, Well I can honestly say I have never heard of anybody smelling ants and I have never smelled them myself. What makes you think it is ants that you are smelling?

leelapops, ants are not the easiest thing to get rid of, the most important thing is to be determined!!

Then get a torch and try and track them back to where they are coming into your kitchen, if you can find the nest all well and good, then you need to put a load of ant powder all around the area and you may need to treat it more than once, they will probably come back again next year as well.

Also check for ant activity on the other side of the wall from where you are finding the ants.

We always treated them with a very fine high power powder pump that blasted powder straight into the nest and sprayed around outside with a liquid but you wont be able to do that!

Good luck!!

[Goodsoulette]

because when I squashed them all in a tissue there is a smell and I only smell it with ants, not that I squash lots of things to see how they smell.


Ahhh, this is turning into hill sheep and badger sandwiches all over again.

[leelapops]

Goodsoulette, thanks for the tip! And re. the sandwiches-WHAT??!!!! *lol*

Ratter, you are bloody right there! They are everywhere! My kitchen leads directly to my back door. Initially I thought they were sneaking in from outside, but they now seem to have developed an interior army! The problem is we have a dog so we have to be very VERY careful about what we put down. Also, as you noted, as it's the kitchen, spray (or anything else that can't be controlled) is problematic. I have a (relatively inneffectual) "ant trap" (ha!) but the ******* are still about! It's a rented property, and the association are fairly good at repairs etc., but I am not sure this extends to pest control.

Well, fingers crossed! I feel guilty (Have you SEEN Antz?!) but they are a nuisance!

Lisa x

[RATTER15]

leelapops, when I was doing pest control we used to treat a lot of housing association houses for ant infestation, ants are a health hazard so they are legally obliged.