Fire Ants hold an essential role in nature but make life in your home unpleasant if you have an infestation. One of the treatments you can use to kill ants is salt which is easy to find because most kitchen cupboards have it. Salt is affordable and eliminates insects, including fleas and roaches.
But is it only a myth that this everyday condiment can be the solution you need to handle the fire ants invading your home? This guide will answer this question so you can figure out if this fire ant-killing solution is right for you.
Can Salt Get Rid Of Fire Ants?
The short is, yes, but you will need more than salt to complete the job with this natural treatment. Below is the best method you can use to get optimum results when dealing with fire ant colonies.
Salt And Water Technique
What You’ll Need
- Sea Salt
- 8 Ounces of water
- Spray Bottle
Instructions
- Boil the water in a pot for 3 to 5 minutes
- Mix in the salt and let the solution down for 5 to 10 minutes
- Once it’s cooled down, put it in a spray bottle.
- Spray the liquid directly on ants or infested areas in your home.
If you don’t have a spray bottle, combine the sea salt with boiling water and pour it into a bowl. Then you can pour the bowl on fire ant mounds in your backyard. This optional method eliminates only 80% of the population, so you may need to repeat it twice.
It takes a few tries because of the complicated tunneling system fire ants construct under your property, so it takes a few shots to reach the entire colony. However, if the fire ant mound is newly built, it will only take one try.
Lastly, Myrmecologists believe you can combine brown sugar and bran with salt to kill fire ants according to research studies they’ve conducted. Below is the recipe you can follow for this method you can use to treat fire ants.
Secondary Method: Using Brown Sugar And Bran
What You’ll Need For Fire Ants
- Brown Sugar
- Regular Table Salt
- Bran
- 8-16 ounces of boiling water
- Bowl
Instructions On Dealing With A Fire Ant Mound
- Put two tablespoons of sea salt, sugar, and bran in the bowl
- Pour in 8 ounces of water
- Stir everything in the bowl until it forms a white paste
- Cut the paste into small pieces and place it in areas with large fire ant populations
Fire ants love this paste and are attracted by its scent and taste, making them willing to risk their lives. And after using this fire ant control method for 2 to 4 days, your ant infestation problems will be under control.
How Effective Is Salt At Getting Rid Of Fire Ants
You have many all-natural options to choose from when you have fire ants in your house and want to eliminate them.
However, salt is one of the least harmful to humans and any critters you have running around. It explains why so many posts are being written about salt and how it affects ants when you spot a fire ant nest on your lawn.
But a few questions remain before you make a decision.
- Is this treatment accepted legitimately by the pest control community, and how often is it used to deal with a fire ant infestation?
- What happens to fire ants when exposed to salt?
Using salt to eliminate fire ants became a thing in 1937 when an article was printed by Time Magazine entitled “Science: Salt versus Insect.” It was a narrative involving the notable Doctor Raymond Haber and how he figured out you can eliminate various insects using only Epsom salt.
In his experiment, he used Mexican Bean Beetles to show readers how simple it was to kill them using this all-natural ingredient, and it was successful enough to also be used by homeowners as fire ant baits.
Scientifically, the article was legit. Salt works like a sponge that soaks up all the water and moisture in an environment. Many homeowners have tried this experiment since the article’s release and have been able to kill most of the fire ants in their backyard using Epsom salt to take all the moisture away from them.
Also, salt kills fire ants because they inhale and exhale through their exoskeleton. Once the salt particles get through the tiny holes in the insect’s back, they destroy it from the inside.
If you want to see how it works without harming an insect yourself, watch the videos on YouTube of individuals sprinkling salt on exposed parts of a snail’s body. The snail dies within a few minutes because the salt removes all the moisture from its body.
Does Epsom Salt Kill Ants and Is it Dangerous to Use?
It does kill fire ants but it’s not perfect. Like every pest control solution, Epsom salt comes with advantages and disadvantages. The benefit of using it is that it’s not toxic to humans and pets.
Swallowing it in tiny increments is fine despite having a bitter flavor that doesn’t taste as delicious as the salt you use when cooking at home. It’s even possible to use Epsom salt for baths by applying it to your bathwater. It helps you feel relaxed after a long day.
The drawback is that Epsom salt harms the flowers and grass in your yard in some situations.
Conclusion On Treating Fire Ant Colonies With Salt
So will salt get rid of fire ants from infested areas in your home? Many have tested this method. It works because insects cannot thrive in a dwelling covered in salt. However, if you are still hesitant after reading our guide, we recommend you test it yourself.
You likely already have salt in your home, and you won’t regret the time you spent giving it a try to handle the fire ant mounds in your backyard.
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