# Ants, Ants and more ANTS



## Tinytraveler

We have been invaded by ants! Has anyone found a good product that works with out making you want to move out of the house from the foul oder?

We have killed what we see and then wiped everything down with white vinegar and still they keep coming. We have found out some of our "air tight" plastic food containers we bought here are not tight enough to keep ants out. SIGH I want these little bugs GONE!


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## Liralen

Boric acid always worked well for me. Not sure if you can get it here.. will do some research for you though. Its a powder.. non-toxic to animals. The little ******s eat it/pick it up on thier feet.. track it back to their nests.. where it kills em dead. Not as fast as those foul smelling potions, but always did the trick.

Strangely enough though, Windex is much better at wiping out ant chemical trails.. than vinegar (which still contains some sugars, and may actually attract them again). Great for when you want that "instant kill" feeling.

Good luck!

(btw, boric acid is the main ingredient in most powder forms of roach killer. Kill both in one sprinkle)

Addition: I have found references to boric acid being common in egypt, but still looking for a brandname/location for purchase.


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## DeadGuy

Gasoline!! Yep, the bad smelling thing! It's the only thing that was recommended to me and actually worked in here, all other kinds of killers never actually worked!! You just track those lil monsters down and find out where the hole that they come out from is, then just inject some gasoline into it! I use a regular size syringe for that (Syringes are sold with no restrictions in here! Any local pharmacy).

It won't smell that bad if you just did it before you leave home for like 3 or 4 hours? Just leave a window open and it will be ok, unless anyone in the house got any allergies or so, the smell isn't that noticeable in like 6 or 7 hours period! And it does work! At least for a couple weeks, not sure what it depends on (Temperature, humidity, etc.), But it did work better than any other product sold in the market in here!!

Good luck!


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## PoleDancer

I've an invasion of the little ******s too. I've not been able to discover where ant central HQ is, as they cunningly run all around the place in circles rather than march in formation back to barracks. 

I'd be a little nervous about pouring gasoline into crevaces of my apartment, but back in the UK I used this stuff:

Nippon Ant Killer Liquid | Vitax

It proved very effective, as they gather it up and take it home to feed to all their friends and babies. Is there an equivalent on sale in Egypt and where would I get it?

This does of course assume that the palate of an Egyptian ant is similar to that of their UK cousins.


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## MaidenScotland

DeadGuy said:


> Gasoline!! Yep, the bad smelling thing! It's the only thing that was recommended to me and actually worked in here, all other kinds of killers never actually worked!! You just track those lil monsters down and find out where the hole that they come out from is, then just inject some gasoline into it! I use a regular size syringe for that (Syringes are sold with no restrictions in here! Any local pharmacy).
> 
> It won't smell that bad if you just did it before you leave home for like 3 or 4 hours? Just leave a window open and it will be ok, unless anyone in the house got any allergies or so, the smell isn't that noticeable in like 6 or 7 hours period! And it does work! At least for a couple weeks, not sure what it depends on (Temperature, humidity, etc.), But it did work better than any other product sold in the market in here!!
> 
> Good luck!




Strange you say this as when I lived in France they would use diesel to kill woodworm, woodlice in fact any creepy crawlies.


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## PoleDancer

Kill them with diesel? I thought the French would regard them as gastronomic delights. Surely they fry them in garlic ;-)


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## Whiskey96

If you wash down all hard, non-porous surfaces with a reasonably strong bleach solution and leave it to dry naturally, you will create a barrier the little bug(gers) will not cross.


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## DeadGuy

MaidenScotland said:


> Strange you say this as when I lived in France they would use diesel to kill woodworm, woodlice in fact any creepy crawlies.


Well, the person who recommended it to me is actually a qualified pharmacist? It surprised me a bit yes, but it did make sense, after all, most insect/bug killers do contain gasoline! "They're just not putting enough of the effective material so you need to buy more" he explained! So it did make sense, and more important? It did work


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## Liralen

on a side note (since someone mentioned bleach).. its a fairly effective deterrent to small animals digging in the trash too (putting bleach in/around the can).

and yeah... gasoline/deisel does work on ants.. but best if you can find the nest. Being from Texas, ants were a common problems, but unfortunately the nests were often under the building. Thats why I resorted to boric acid, since they track it back into thier nests before they die off.


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## DeadGuy

Liralen said:


> on a side note (since someone mentioned bleach).. its a fairly effective deterrent to small animals digging in the trash too (putting bleach in/around the can).
> 
> and yeah... gasoline/deisel does work on ants.. but best if you can find the nest. Being from Texas, ants were a common problems, but unfortunately the nests were often under the building. Thats why I resorted to boric acid, since they track it back into thier nests before they die off.


Well, construction techniques in here are a bit different than how it's like in the States, concrete is the thing in here, and mostly there's a huge thick slab of concrete down under every building covering its whole area (The modern buildings anyway, the ones built after 1960's) So it's kinda hard for those lil things to dig that and get down under the buildings.

But they do manage to dig in the soft concrete that's used on walls and to fix the tiles, and that's where their nests usually exists


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## Liralen

DeadGuy said:


> Well, construction techniques in here are a bit different than how it's like in the States, concrete is the thing in here, and mostly there's a huge thick slab of concrete down under every building covering its whole area (The modern buildings anyway, the ones built after 1960's) So it's kinda hard for those lil things to dig that and get down under the buildings.
> 
> But they do manage to dig in the soft concrete that's used on walls and to fix the tiles, and that's where their nests usually exists


Ok.. if you say so. 

Where I lived in Texas.. they were all built on concrete slabs. So I fully realize the problem it can be gaining access to the little ******s. The soil in Texas had alot of clay, and buildings tended to shift (and foundations crack).. so they came up that way. I see alof of cracking going on here too, similar to the sandy areas in Arizona where they also managed to nest under the foundation) so I thought the info might come in handy.

They like to invade my bathroom here in Hurghada (much thanks for them staying out of the kitchen.. I only have to battle weavles there.. almost as annoying). They DO come out of the tiles as you said.


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## DeadGuy

Liralen said:


> Ok.. if you say so.
> 
> Where I lived in Texas.. they were all built on concrete slabs. So I fully realize the problem it can be gaining access to the little ******s. The soil in Texas had alot of clay, and buildings tended to shift (and foundations crack).. so they came up that way. I see alof of cracking going on here too, similar to the sandy areas in Arizona where they also managed to nest under the foundation) so I thought the info might come in handy.
> 
> They like to invade my bathroom here in Hurghada (much thanks for them staying out of the kitchen.. I only have to battle weavles there.. almost as annoying). They DO come out of the tiles as you said.


I thought you've been talking about wooden houses, the larger sized ants, or the wood ants, cause they are the main problem in there as far as I know, specially in basements, sorry if I was wrong anyway.

The tiles' thing in here, you can use the white cement's paste to fill the holes they dig after making sure there aren't any ants left down the tiles by killing them somehow.......But it needs to be done right cause otherwise they'll just dig it back :s

Good luck with the lil creepy things lol


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## Sam

DeadGuy said:


> I thought you've been talking about wooden houses, the larger sized ants, or the wood ants, cause they are the main problem in there as far as I know, specially in basements, sorry if I was wrong anyway.
> 
> The tiles' thing in here, you can use the white cement's paste to fill the holes they dig after making sure there aren't any ants left down the tiles by killing them somehow.......But it needs to be done right cause otherwise they'll just dig it back :s
> 
> Good luck with the lil creepy things lol


I've just googled wood ants and I think that's what I've had "bugging" me this summer. I kept having those giant ants appearing, and they seemed to originate from the wooden kitchen counter/cupboards. The images I found are similar... but do they have seasons as I've not seen them for a few weeks now?


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## Helen Ellis

PoleDancer said:


> I've an invasion of the little ******s too. I've not been able to discover where ant central HQ is, as they cunningly run all around the place in circles rather than march in formation back to barracks.
> 
> I'd be a little nervous about pouring gasoline into crevaces of my apartment, but back in the UK I used this stuff:
> 
> Nippon Ant Killer Liquid | Vitax
> 
> It proved very effective, as they gather it up and take it home to feed to all their friends and babies. Is there an equivalent on sale in Egypt and where would I get it?
> 
> This does of course assume that the palate of an Egyptian ant is similar to that of their UK cousins.


Thanks for this, I'd forgotten the name. I used to use this and it worked well.
There is a powder available here that seems to work but the best thing I've found are the large tablets that smell revolting(like moth balls), but will clear the flat/house of all ants very quickly. and in my case they stayed away.
Spraying raid for crawlng insects in likely entry points may help too.


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## DeadGuy

Sam said:


> I've just googled wood ants and I think that's what I've had "bugging" me this summer. I kept having those giant ants appearing, and they seemed to originate from the wooden kitchen counter/cupboards. The images I found are similar... but do they have seasons as I've not seen them for a few weeks now?


The word "originate" makes it clear that they're popping out of the wooden stuff in your kitchen, but just as a double check, are they really coming out of it? I mean their nests are dug inside the wood itself? :confused2:

And I got no idea about their season times, but yes they do have seasons and apparently they come out to nag us during Summer? But it's still Summer now, so they should be pretty active......


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## Tinytraveler

Can we bring pesticiles into Egypt in our luggage when we fly into the country? There are these ant & roach bait traps that look like deformed hockey pucks that you just lay out and the ants will go in take some back to the nest and kill everyone. I like them because they are safer around children and pets. I wouldn't want my kid to put one of these things in her mouth but they seem much safer then just bait laying out or chemicals sprayed everywhere. 
Husband took some of these bait traps to Saudi Arabia for family there but that was several years ago when you could carry pretty much anything in your luggage.


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## Sam

DeadGuy said:


> The word "originate" makes it clear that they're popping out of the wooden stuff in your kitchen, but just as a double check, are they really coming out of it? I mean their nests are dug inside the wood itself? :confused2:
> 
> And I got no idea about their season times, but yes they do have seasons and apparently they come out to nag us during Summer? But it's still Summer now, so they should be pretty active......


The wooden cupboards at ground level have a hole, and I kept seeing them come and go through this hole. So I presume they have some kind of nest in the wood, maybe. It's not very thick wood though, so I'm not sure. But for about a week now I've not seen any, got the flippin' cockroaches back again now


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## Sam

Tinytraveler said:


> Can we bring pesticiles into Egypt in our luggage when we fly into the country? There are these ant & roach bait traps that look like deformed hockey pucks that you just lay out and the ants will go in take some back to the nest and kill everyone. I like them because they are safer around children and pets. I wouldn't want my kid to put one of these things in her mouth but they seem much safer then just bait laying out or chemicals sprayed everywhere.
> Husband took some of these bait traps to Saudi Arabia for family there but that was several years ago when you could carry pretty much anything in your luggage.


If it is in your luggage then I don't see why not.


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## MaidenScotland

I don't think you are allowed to fly with pesticides in your luggage.. check with your airline firs to be 100% sure


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## DeadGuy

Sam said:


> The wooden cupboards at ground level have a hole, and I kept seeing them come and go through this hole. So I presume they have some kind of nest in the wood, maybe. It's not very thick wood though, so I'm not sure. But for about a week now I've not seen any, got the flippin' cockroaches back again now


Probably they're just using the hole for making their way short lol, you said the wood isn't thick enough, so I don't think they could have a nest in there, not sure though, I never lived with ants 

As for the roaches...... Thankfully those disgusting stuff are not a problem for me in here, but I did have a problem with them, and some were actually the sh!t flying type!! They weren't staying long and they left in like couple days, so I am grateful they did that!


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## afrost

Tinytraveler said:


> We have been invaded by ants! Has anyone found a good product that works with out making you want to move out of the house from the foul oder?
> 
> We have killed what we see and then wiped everything down with white vinegar and still they keep coming. We have found out some of our "air tight" plastic food containers we bought here are not tight enough to keep ants out. SIGH I want these little bugs GONE!


I live in South Africa and had a very similar invasion. I have tried vinegar and bleach yet they came back to the point where they would make a trail up to the counter into the butter dish. They even got into our dishwasher...

I have finally found something that worked great! It is babypowder. Go figure. I just put some into the crevices where they normally originated and it worked wonders. I needed something non toxic since I have two young children and with this I do not have to worry about them getting it on their hands or clothes.

Good luck!


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## faima

I am using some egyptian spray- "MAX Killer", and ants have no chance


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## Tinytraveler

faima said:


> I am using some egyptian spray- "MAX Killer", and ants have no chance



The problem I have with the sprays is the smell. It is so bad and lingers for days. We have a small child that I really don't her breathing that stuff. A neighbor took DH to a market in Cairo where they sell all sorts of chemical type stuff. He was able to find borax and baking soda at one stop for pennies.


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## Sonrisa

I have tried to fight large ants and roaches since I moved to my ground floor apartment 2 years ago, and they always come back. 

I've tried everythig. Inlcuding products that I could not find in Egypt and had to bring from home.

One day I relaxed about the little ******s and realised that this is a fight that I cannot possibly win, so I just keep all my food stuff in tight containers, and at least I rest assured that they don't contaminate my food. 

One thing I noticed lately : when I have large ants invading my flat, I see no roaches. So I welcome the ants


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## faima

Dizzie Izzie said:


> One thing I noticed lately : when I have large ants invading my flat, I see no roaches. So I welcome the ants


LOL! if you mean royal ants, I love them too for the same reason  But honestly, my neighbor told me about this egyptian spray, and since 2 years I am using it verry effective.


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## PoleDancer

Me said:


> I've an invasion of the little ******s too. I've not been able to discover where ant central HQ is, as they cunningly run all around the place in circles rather than march in formation back to barracks.
> 
> I'd be a little nervous about pouring gasoline into crevaces of my apartment, but back in the UK I used this stuff:
> 
> Nippon Ant Killer Liquid | Vitax
> 
> It proved very effective, as they gather it up and take it home to feed to all their friends and babies. Is there an equivalent on sale in Egypt and where would I get it?
> 
> This does of course assume that the palate of an Egyptian ant is similar to that of their UK cousins.


OK, as the weather hots up, they're back, and I'm getting bored of having to stamp on them.

I brought them some tasty British 'Nippon' poison as a treat, but they show no interest in it. It does mention it doesn't work with 'Pharoah Ants' though, and whilst I am not great at ant recognition, there's clearly more than a hint of Egyptian in that name.

So, any more advice on good local products would be gratefully appreciated. Otherwise I'm off to Gaza Zoo to see if they'll sell me an aadvark.


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## MaidenScotland

PoleDancer said:


> OK, as the weather hots up, they're back, and I'm getting bored of having to stamp on them.
> 
> I brought them some tasty British 'Nippon' poison as a treat, but they show no interest in it. It does mention it doesn't work with 'Pharoah Ants' though, and whilst I am not great at ant recognition, there's clearly more than a hint of Egyptian in that name.
> 
> So, any more advice on good local products would be gratefully appreciated. Otherwise I'm off to Gaza Zoo to see if they'll sell me an aadvark.


And they will providing you are first there


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## casa99

We had a big ant problem in our casa in spain and we use chalk powder , we tried it on a line of ants and they would not cross the powder line, so maybe try that, also the baby powder that was mentioned, good luck.


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## Black Rebel

PoleDancer said:


> OK, as the weather hots up, they're back, and I'm getting bored of having to stamp on them.
> 
> I brought them some tasty British 'Nippon' poison as a treat, but they show no interest in it. It does mention it doesn't work with 'Pharoah Ants' though, and whilst I am not great at ant recognition, there's clearly more than a hint of Egyptian in that name.
> 
> So, any more advice on good local products would be gratefully appreciated. Otherwise I'm off to Gaza Zoo to see if they'll sell me an aadvark.


I bought Nippon too, if anything I have more ants now!

We got some powder from the Ministry of Agriculture... but it smells like 9 male lions have peed in your apartment... now I have to decide between ants or stench!


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## Horus

Baygon is VERY effective kills them in an instant and they won't come back....I have used hairspray on them as well


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