How to win against ants
I’m adapting to long-term lifestyle of outdoor living, and getting constantly assaulted by this or that type of bug has been a major issue.
Sleeping in a tent has thwarted most my opposition at this point in my transition, such as mosquitoes, gnats, and horse-flies. Yet one pest still gains access, and I find this one the most invasive! My current enemy is the red-ant, and they invade my tent by any means necessary.
What are my options to completely eradicate ants in the immediate environment around my tent?
If you have a large enough car, depending on your environment it can be a better solution - for example, in a prius if y …
5y ago
You are outnumbered. You will never be able to "completely eradicate" ants. Outsmart them instead. Build a moat. A tri …
5y ago
There are a number of articles on the web telling you how to kill ants that invade your campsite with common household p …
5y ago
The best way is to reduce (actually to remove) any kind of attractions they like: food and water. If they cannot find an …
5y ago
Pour boiling water into the anthill If a bit of animal cruelty isn't beneath you, pouring boiling water into an ant nes …
5y ago
Salt is the answer. A continuous line of fine salt around your tent and campsite. Ants don't like crossing it. You have …
5y ago
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6 answers
The best way is to reduce (actually to remove) any kind of attractions they like: food and water. If they cannot find anything useful, than they will stop releasing scents that attracted other ants.
This means, you have to make sure there is no (open) water or drinks nearby, no sugar in any way, and no food in general. Keep everything enclosed, in such a way it doesn't smell, there is no opening and clean up everything fast after use (better, eat and use food/drink away from your tent).
It can take a few days before the scents the ants are releasing will go, but the above will help.
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If you have a large enough car, depending on your environment it can be a better solution - for example, in a prius if you fold down the back seats there's easily enough space to sleep with a decent mattress as well. Keep a window open a tad to allow fresh air in, but put a car cover over to block sunlight and unwelcome eavesdroppers, and you're good to go - I'm quite tall, and I sleep in one fine, given the right kind of weather. Certainly a lot warmer than a tent, that's for sure. And keeps the bugs out
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There are a number of articles on the web telling you how to kill ants that invade your campsite with common household products. See, for example, Tips And Tricks To Stop Ants From Invading Your Camp. Also, as @Michel Keijzers said in his excellent answer, be fanatical about removing ant attractants.
However, I suggest considering a different strategy. Remove yourself from ant-infested regions. They perform useful functions in the ecosystem, and don't deserve genocide.
This is easy for me to say, because almost all of my camping is done above timberline in the Sierra or the Rockies. Ants are no more than a minor nuisance, if that, there. I fully realize that this may not be practical for the OP and other sufferers.
This Question reminded me of the old movie, Elephant Walk starring Elizabeth Taylor and Peter Finch. A macho manly man (Finch's late father) built his house on an elephant migration trail that led to their watering place, and Finch spent most of the movie trying to deflect elephants from his house. Eventually, the elephants lost patience and smashed the house. Taylor (of course) and Finch survived.
All I am saying is that you try to avoid Ant Walk and consider ensuring that you are not on an ant trail or an ant's nest.
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You are outnumbered. You will never be able to "completely eradicate" ants. Outsmart them instead.
Build a moat.
A trick for keeping ants off a table is to put each table leg in a small container of water. If your tent is sufficiently water proof then pitching the tent inside a large kiddie pool with a bit of water might help. Smaller tents might even be able to be pitched atop an air matress which itself is in the kiddie pool.
Note that I've never tried this and I can think of a host of problems that it might cause. But you will have to decide if those trade offs are worth it. Desperate times call for desperate measures.
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Salt is the answer. A continuous line of fine salt around your tent and campsite. Ants don't like crossing it. You have now angered the ant God so you have to do an appeasement offering. Smear the base of a tree outside your perimeter with strawberry jam or any other sweet and delicious gel. Put a healthy dose of it up the trunk and in crevices. Don't be grinchy. They'll start going there and not into your tent. I have used this double strategy and it works quite well. But hey, you are always going to find one or two where they shouldn't be.
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Pour boiling water into the anthill
If a bit of animal cruelty isn't beneath you, pouring boiling water into an ant nest gets the job done. Scientists sometimes use this method for precision killing (example).
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