Would Diatomaceous Earth be good/safe to use? Don't know much about it...bout I've heard about it...wanted to ask here first.

Thanks!
Todd In Philly

But not Pharaoh ants.They can only be controlled through a comprehensive baiting program.Make sure the ants you have are not Pharaoh ants. Treatment with insecticides will actually make the infestation much worse by causing the ants to "bud" or "split" into several smaller satellite colonies. There are many excellent baits on the market for pharaoh ant control.

I think I'm being misunderstood here....hope this clarifies things...

Todd

Ants need to be baited to the DE. Some are protein eaters and some are sweet eaters. It is possible to wipe a an entire huge nest of ants in a couple of days with the right bait and DE. I had to do that last weekend when ants decided to swarm into a downstairs bathroom. One baited trap, 24 hours. It was pretty intense for a few hours, but they swarmed to take the baited DE back to their nest, and those poor ants are now history.

DE can be used in vegetable gardens, as long as it is not applied indescriminately. DE can harm benefical insects, too. Hoopsmom, it is always best to try to ID a pest before trying something to get rid of it.

Ants are not always a bad thing.

DE works great in dry weather, but not after rain, so apply it when no rain is expected and reapply after rain.

I learned about DE recently and tried it this spring when they were swarming in (again).

I sprinkled it in between all my windows, on the threshold of outside doors, under sinks, around pet food bowls and then all over my kitchen floors and counters. And yes, I made sure I bought food grade.

The results?

The tiny brown "grease ants" died right as they crawled through it. After a few days I did not see any more of the brown ants that had taken over my kitchen. I swept up the dead ants and DE powder and only reapplied it to in between the windows and doors to keep them from entering again.

The big black ants that are running everywhere in every room are still with me. I watch them running through the DE powder that I have sprinkled on my door stoop and haven't seen even one dead one laying in the DE powder. Black ants are still running all over my kitchen walls and counters and other rooms of my house.

So, "Does it work?". Well, YES and NO. It obviously did not work for the black ants.

There is an old maple tree a few feet from my house where the black ants are nesting . I see them going in and out of a hole on the side and there is a pile of sawdust at the base of the tree in front of the hole. I tried blowing DE into the nest with straw. Believe it or not those ants are carrying the DE right back out as part of their house cleaning and there is now a pile of white DE powder at the base of the tree in front of the hole.

A neighbor has already called the city about the ants in the tree because she thinks they will hollow out the tree and it will fall on her house during a storm. The city told me they put out bait and I assumed they use some 'super-dooper' industial strength stuff but it hasn't done a thing. Ants are still running in and out of that tree.

If anybody has any suggestions for me PLEASE post or email me directly. I am at my wits end with these black ants. Has anybody used one of these exterminators listed in the Yellow Pages? Do they work? Or are they a rip-off? I'm willing to pay big bucks to get rid of these things since nothing else has worked but I don't want to waste good $$ on something that is going to do no good.

I have been using de for carpenter ants for quite some time now, and have found it quite effective, if used properly. Initially, I was broadcasting it about, willy nilly, without forethought and without too much success. I then read somewhere that the dust was most effective when spayed with a duster into crevices where the ants are crawling back to the nest. So, with some patience, you need to locate where the nest might be. Follow them, and locate where they are entering a possible nest site. Usually, you will see a few congregating around the opening and then entering. Once you have located what appears to be the entry area (I find that they most often enter my home through the outside soffits), you can then begin the application process via entry holes and crevices.

I use a mixture of agricultural de (not the swimming pool stuff) and boric acid in equal parts. Place the mixture in a duster. You can purchase a duster on the web for about $15 intended for crevice aplication. Or, you can make your own using a turkey baster. To reach deep inside the crevice, tape a 6 to 8 inch 3/8 inch flexible tubing (typically used in home aquariums and available at all pet shops) to the end of the baster using electrical tape to keep it in place. The flexible tubing will allow you to move the baster about for the best blast effect. Fill the bulb with the mixture and squeeze it into the crevice and openings where you have seen the ants entering. Also effective, is applying the mixture directly on to the ants as some will most likely carry it back to the nest. It adheres to their bodies, so they don't need to directly eat it to be effective. You may need to reapply in several days if you still see activity. The effect of dusting is not immediate, so you need to let at least a few days pass before you begin to notice the numbers dwindle. If you've done it correctly, they should should be gone in about a weeks time. However, if there are other nests you were not aware of, you will have to treat them as well as untreated ones will lead to reinfestation in other areaa of the home. You may also want to consider dusting inside your exterior walls from INSIDE the house near where the ants may be entering. Instead of drilling holes in the wall, try to find an electrical outlet near where you have located the ants entry point. Remove the faceplate from the electical outlet and insert the applicator's flexible tubing between the junction box and the sheet rock. You can also use this procedure for cable junctions attached to your wall. Use a dust mask, to avoid breathing the dust, and wash up immediately after using.

Thanks

"Posted by Kimmsr 4a/5b-MI (My Page) on Wed, Apr 13, 05 at 6:41

Finding ants inside your house is not very likely simoly because they are 3 or 4 feet from the house. Ants come in because they find a way, are curious about what is there, and are looking for a food source.
Make sure there is no food source for them and plug all points of entry (will also aid in keeping the Asian Lady Beetles and Box Elder Bugs out) and they won't come in.
There is never a good, justifiable reason to simply kill any insect just because."

I completely disagree with this post as ants will travel hundreds of feet to get to a food source so no matter how clean your house is, 3-4 feet away is much too close and they need to be eliminated immediately. As soon as you uncovered their nest they immediately started to evacuate and will move the larvae to a new 'safe' nesting site.

Having said that, DE preforms very poorly outside because moisture will render it useless. Even in dry environments, such as indoors, application technique is as critical as the location of application. Large clumps of it is not good as the ants will just avoid it. Less is more, as a fine dusting will provide much better results.

The fine powder absorbs lipids from the waxy outer layer of insects' exoskeletons, causing them to dehydrate. Arthropods die as a result of the water pressure deficiency, based on Fick's law of diffusion.

Sorry for my long-windedness. I'm really trying to be green - I am a former "KILL EVERY BUG IN SIGHT" person, and I've come to love my beneficials (I am quite happy to allow ladybugs to winter-over indoors at my house), so I just want some kind of affirmation that it's working.

Thanks so much!

Personally, I don't like the use of DE in a garden setting as it can affect far too many non-target organisms. I've used it for container plants, sprinkled on the soil. I've also used it to control sowbugs that were crawling into the drainage holes of my bonsai. Oh, I use it in bags of bird seed to keep the weevils and other buggies at bay.

I also read somewhere that DE is technically non-biodegradable (and based on the remnants of my filter cleaning, I would concur). If this is true, it seems it would be something to consider when spreading around your garden, yard, and/or house.

Many substances can be used safely one certain way, but are dangerous or toxic another way. DE is just another example.

For instance, just about anything in your shower and laundry room can be hazardous if used incorrectly. Many pantry items, too! Food grade DE, when used properly, is safe for indoor and outdoor use.