13 simple solutions to help you get rid of ants for good

From adhesive tape to vinegar, these 13 trusted items will tackle your ant problem and help you get rid of ants for good.

Is an army of ants marching toward the cookie jar on your benchtop or some sweet prize in your pantry? Here’s how to get rid of ants using only tape: Create a “moat” around the object by surrounding it with sticky tape or duct tape placed sticky side up. Ants or not, it’s always a good idea to have a versatile roll of duct tape around the house.

If you’ve had it with sharing your living quarters with roaches or ants, give them the heave-ho by sprinkling boric acid along any cracks or crevices where you’ve spotted the intruders. Here’s how to kill ants using boric acid: Use a baster to blow small amounts of the powder into hard-to-reach corners and any deep voids you come across. Note: Keep in mind that boric acid can be toxic if ingested by young children or pets.

Here are 10 organic pest control tips to try.

Another great example of how to get rid of ants: Keep them at bay by drawing a line of chalk around home entry points. What kills ants in chalk? Well, the ants will be repelled by the calcium carbonate in the chalk, which is actually made up of ground-up and compressed shells of marine animals. Scatter powdered chalk around garden plants to repel ants and slugs.

Here are 4 easy steps to get rid of stink bugs.

Wondering how to get rid of ants without dangerous pesticides? Sprinkle a line of flour along the backs of pantry shelves and wherever you see ants entering the house. Repelled by the flour, ants won’t cross over the line.

Find out more about general pest control here.

If fire ants plague your yard or patio and you’re tired of getting stung by the tiny attackers, a flowerpot can help you quench the problem. Here’s how to kill ants this way: Place the flowerpot upside down over the anthill. Pour boiling water through the drain hole and you’ll be burning down their house.

Learn how to control a wasp infestation.

You don’t need insecticides or ant traps to ant-proof your kitchen. What kills ants from your fruit bowl? Well, use lemons; they’re more powerful than you’d realise. Here’s how to get rid of ants with the lemon treatment: First, squirt some lemon juice on door thresholds and windowsills. Then squeeze lemon juice into any holes or cracks where the ants are getting in. Finally, scatter small slices of lemon peel around the outdoor entrance. The ants will get the message that they aren’t welcome. Lemons are also effective against roaches and fleas: Simply mix the juice of 4 lemons (along with the rinds) with 2 litres water and wash your floors with it; then watch the fleas and roaches flee. They hate the smell.

Here are 5 extraordinary uses for lemons.

Get rid of the ants in your garden, on your patio, and along the foundation of your home. In a blender, make a smooth puree of a few orange peels in 1 cup warm water. Slowly pour the solution over and into anthills to send the little pests packing.

Two or three of your annual summer visitors have invaded your kitchen. Those ants are looking for sugar. Here’s what kills ants: Give them some pepper instead. Cayenne pepper sprinkled in spots where the ants are looking, such as along the backs of your benchtops or on your skirting boards, will tell them that no sugar is ahead. If you find the ants’ home colony a little too close to yours and it’s causing them to relocate to your kitchen, cayenne pepper can help get rid of it. Pour the pepper down the ant hole and say so long to ants.

You watch helplessly as the ants march up the picnic table leg, onto the tabletop, and into the delicious picnic dishes you made for your family. Here’s how to kill ants using this foolproof way to stop them in their tracks: Place a plastic container on the bottom of each picnic table leg. Fill with water. The ants won’t be able to crawl past.