How To Get Rid Of Ants In Your Car

Ants can be a nuisance in the house, garage, storage spaces, and in your vehicle. These creatures can invade your automobile in huge numbers running into thousands, and they thrive in areas with food and moisture.

Ants have the capability to detect food in the environment, particularly foods that have high sugar content. Most home designs have the garage located just next to the kitchen so an infestation of ants in the kitchen can easily extend to the garage where you park your car.

Avoid throwing food remains in the front yard as this will attract ants to the lot and driveway. If your landscaping includes vegetation, perform routine maintenance of the yard to ensure that your parking spot is ants-free.

Despite all these measures, ants have a reputation for persistence; ants will crawl up the garage and find their way into your vehicle. If you are grappling with how to get rid of ants in your car, try these simple solutions.

Also Check:- Best Car Vacuum

How To Get Rid Of Ants In Your Car

#1. Identify The Type Of Ants

The first step in handling this infestation is learning the kind of insects in the vehicle. Identification helps to focus the extermination process as not all methods work for all ants. If you are not well-versed with the various kinds, can capture some of them and show a pest expert.

#2. Move The Vehicle

Typically, ants crawl up inside the car when you park it near vegetation or underneath trees. These two environments are a natural habitat for insects where they spend their time seeking food.

If your park your vehicle near this habitat, you can almost guarantee that the ants will climb and find entry through small spaces.

The first thing you can do to solve the problem is to move the automobile to a different location to prevent more ants from crawling in. If this is not an option, read on to find other solutions.

#3. Remove Food And Drink

Similar to the kitchen, garage and any other room in the house, avoid leaving food wrappers and leftover lunches in your vehicle. If your companions have a snack or drink inside the vehicle, dispose of the leftovers and packaging in the street garbage bins or when you get home.

If you are running errands with younger children in the back seat, inspect the carpet and seat to see if they spilled their drink like soda or fruit juice. Ignoring this even for a night is enough to attract a colony of ants in just a matter of hours.

If you must carry food for long drives, store it in sealed containers. The next time you notice a few ants in your vehicle, grab a trash bag and clean up. This simple task helps by denying them food, so they ward off to the next target.

#4. Baits And Gels

Baits can either be in the form of granules, liquid or gels. When you purchase bait, the packaging comes with a container where you pour the liquid. Alternatively, you can opt for bait products that have the active ingredient already put in the bait station.

The latter is a safe option as it saves you the trouble of handling chemicals. Baits are effective with ant control due to the sweetening substance that is part of the ingredients.

The poison in these baits is slow-acting, and this gives ample time for the ants to carry back the poison to their colonies, hence killing more ants! Place the bait container near a line of ants and ensure that the station is out of reach from unsuspecting children and family pets.

If you are using gel, place it behind equipment in the garage, near the tires of the vehicle so you can draw them out. If ants’ infestations are commonplace in your home, purchase bait products that have different active ingredients to stop insects from developing resistance to the chemical.

Advion Ant Gel Bait comes highly recommended for its capability to attract thousands of ants in just three hours. This swift action goes on if you leave the gel out for longer.

#5. Vacuum The Car Thoroughly

Even the most cautious drivers, it is inevitable to avoid spillage of sugary drinks or particles of food in your automobile. When this happens, vacuum the vehicle and upholstery with your regular sweeper or one from a gas station.

The former option may be less than appealing especially if your home machine is bulky. A cordless hand-held vacuum is convenient to use, and your children can help with the cleaning.

The only disadvantage with a cordless sweeper is the battery power; charge the sweeper before commencing on the deep cleaning. To make your work easier, you can invest in a sweeper tailored for car cleaning like a 12v vacuum that can charge using the 12v outlet in your vehicle.

The last idea is convenient as you can store the vacuum cleaner in the boot of your automobile and use it anywhere. This mobility is particularly helpful when on a camping trip in the woods or when taking a long road trip with the family.

#6. Spray The Tires

Finding the right parking spot is important for many reasons; security, shelter from the sun and protecting your vehicle from ants.

However, as most drivers know, your choice of parking is influenced by many factors like assigned parking spots at work, shortage of parking spots in public spaces like malls, etc.

Parking hurdles mean that you are likely to park station your vehicle in less than ideal areas that attract ants. To negate this, plan ahead and spray your tires with an effective bug spray like Terror Outdoor Anti Killer spray which kills the insects instantly and provides long-term pest control.

Besides the tires, you can apply this spray as a perimeter treatment in your garage or driveway to prevent ants from coming near the vehicle. You can also use non-repellant insecticides like Taurus SC, Dominion 2L, or FUSE.

#7. Natural Remedies

Besides chemical options, you can turn to natural remedies to deal with ants in your vehicle. The most affordable choice is table salt.

Boil water and add a few servings of regular salt. Allow the mixture to cool then put it in a spray bottle. Spray directly into the garage seams where ants hide and inside the vehicle.

Essential oils are also useful in control. Spray peppermint or clove oil in the affected areas like underneath the car carpet or even on the tires. Clove oil contains eugenol, a fast-acting contact insecticide that kills a variety of household pests including ants.

Chalk contains calcium carbonate that repels insects; these little creatures will not cross over chalk lines. Draw chalk lines inside your car and around the parking spot to prevent them from coming back.

You can also try cayenne pepper, coffee grounds or distract them with a pot of honey.

#8. Dish Soap And Water

Mix one cup of dish soap and two cups of water then shake them in a bottle to allow blending.

Inspect your vehicle for a line of ants and spray the solution directly on them. The ants will stop and suffocate to death.

Take a piece of wet cloth and wipe up the mess. You can repeat this process each time more ants show up.

Conclusion

Combine deep and regular cleaning to keep your car’s interior squeaky clean. If you drive carpool, have the kids eat snacks from plastic bowls to avoid spilling over the carpet.

If you are fond of essential oils and their exotic fragrances, keep a few bottles in the car to ward off ants. Consider setting traps underneath the seats away from your feet and children.

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