Ants

Anything to do with camping, fundamentals, secrets, etc...

Ants

Postby Dee Bee » Sun May 01, 2005 9:12 pm

Ants can be a real probelm at some locations..

Some where I saw a camper who had placed a circle of baking soda around the spot where each wheel touched the ground as well as the spot where the tongue jack rest on the ground.

Seems like a simple, cheap idea that apparently works...

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Postby jgalt » Sun May 01, 2005 10:01 pm

Maybe some merit to that one. Ants are very acidic due to their high concentration of formic acid. Perhaps the baking soda makes their innards bubble?

some ant trivia...

Ants are edible (all species except the fire ant to my knowledge). Some people say they taste like pickles. Eggs and pupae are choice, use a sieve and shovel on an anthill to harvest - do this in the morning before they retreat to cooler, deeper tunnels.

Formic acid is a medicinal treatment for several joint ailments. Soak ants in vodka to extract the acid, and drink. I use strong Chinese rice wine for this. Add a bit of sugar if you need to balance the flavor. In many countries, you'll see dried ants in the pharmacy just for this purpose.
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Postby roadtrippin » Sun May 01, 2005 11:35 pm

Durn fireants bit my hand up good when I was at the local P-Patch today. Thanks for the info on this. They seem to gravitate towards me...especially when sticking a weeder in their house.
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Postby Bigwoods » Sun May 01, 2005 11:42 pm

Borax work great for ants. They do eat it and in fact blow up.. We had an old farm house and put 20 Mule Team Borax in lids all over the palce. Never had ant again.
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Postby asianflava » Mon May 02, 2005 1:10 am

Gage posted the picture that you were talking about.

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Postby Geron » Mon May 02, 2005 5:33 am

My mother-in-law uses baby powder and swears by it to keep the ants away. I don't know about that one. If the ants have already invaded and are visible Windex is a very safe way to get rid of them before taking further preventive measures. The Windex kills'em dead and cleans up afterwards :twisted:

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Postby Woody » Mon May 02, 2005 3:35 pm

Most insects, like ants etc., have an exoskeleton that has pores from which they breathe. Any soapy water solution would kill them by suffacating them. Soap being a bipolar molecule relieves the surface tension of most liquids and allows a even film of water to coat the body of the insect, therefore, suffacating them. An enviromentally safe way to kill ants is to use oatmeal. The ants eat it and the mositure in thier gut is absorbed by the oatmeal and it expands. This kills them, the secret is to keep the oatmeal nice and dry for it to work effectively. It is the same priciple why you don't throw rice at a wedding anymore. Rice does the same thing in the birds gut and kills them as well
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Postby dmb90260 » Mon May 02, 2005 7:25 pm

Woody wrote: It is the same priciple why you don't throw rice at a wedding anymore. Rice does the same thing in the birds gut and kills them as well


The soap bit is correct but notthe bird part, otherwise all those ducks on flying over the rice fields in the South would be exploding all over the place.

http://www.snopes.com/weddings/horrors/birdrice.htm

Other anti-ant items are Comet (maybe any brand) cleanser or drawing a circle around something with common sidewalk color chalk. Some of the items are toxic and some have tiny sharp bits that ants will not walk over.

Just keep tossing the rice until the birds attack the bride. :P
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Postby Woody » Mon May 02, 2005 9:04 pm

okay so I misspoke about the birds with the comparision to the ant scenario, I should have not lumped the two statements together, My first mistake and you called me on it. It has been proven that small birds and with enough dried rice consumed. A small bird eats enough dried rice that it could cause an impaction in the crop and stomach by rehydration inside the bird. Sometimes not allowing food to pass in to the intestines and could cause starvation due to the impaction and sometimes not. It by all means does not mean that it still could have an ill effect on the animal. Granted it may not happen all of the time, but to compare a small sparrow with a large goose or any other large game bird is not a good comparison either. I did not state that they explode like feathered "Jiffy Pop", thank God for that, what a mess it would be. The article you refer to is innaccurate when comparing field rice to dried commercial food staple rice which is dried for storage and transport. Field rice is not that dry in nature and has moisture content from the enviroment and from the parent plant and references as to large game fowl needed it to survive, does not negate the smaller bird species having a problem with it's dried counterpart. My second mistake was not referencing "small birds' to begin with. Besides. I don't believe everything on the internet, even the site that was mentioned. Really are we all like sheep being lead to our eventual intellectual slaughter. What I find is really funny, however, is that all the technical info on internet sites, correct and incorrect, I get called on a mispoken bird and rice cause and effect comment :lol:
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Postby An Ol Timer » Mon May 02, 2005 9:19 pm

Don't feel bad Woody. About 30-40% of all info on the forum is flawed to a degree. A lot of it is just opinions and is rarely backed up by scientific proof. That's what comes of believeing all of the internet. Caveat Emptor
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Postby Woody » Mon May 02, 2005 9:30 pm

Trust me I don't feel bad at all. Even on this site I have seen stuff that could cause potential problems for builders and usually someone has caught it. Like I said it is funny that this is what is called out though. And you know what they say about opinions, Opinions are like a$$holes. we all have one and they all stink. Oh well we are all friends here and nothing was harmed or hurt
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Postby Ma3tt » Mon May 02, 2005 10:39 pm

diatomaceous earth used in swimming pool filters is cheaper by the pound and is a great desiccant. Dries them out!!! Another trick in the house is chalk line where they are entering your home they wont cross it.
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Postby Nitetimes » Mon May 02, 2005 11:13 pm

Woody wrote: I did not state that they explode like feathered "Jiffy Pop", thank God for that, what a mess it would be.


That sounds like fun, gonna have to see if the wife has any rice in the cupboard. My birdfeeder is about due to be filled anyway. :lol:
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Postby Johnnycat » Fri Mar 30, 2007 1:41 pm

One should take note not to use borax, or comet, or other chemical while camping, sure it will kill the ants but you pose a health hazard to other animals (not an animal hugger here ;) ) but the motto of "leave no trace still applies, so try the Baking soda, cinnamon and also cayenne pepper, they all work.
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Easy, No Mess, No Visible Trace Ant+ Control / Deterant

Postby WhitneyK » Tue Jul 05, 2011 10:25 am

If you are not afraid of or opposed to chemicals read on, if you are, stop here and find another thread to read. :lol:

Working for the health department, we try to curtail the mosquito population. I know, what's mosquito control have to do with ants? Give me time, I'll get around to it. We use a product from Durvet that has 10% Permethrin, here's a link to the website: http://www.durvet.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=92:permethrin-10&Itemid=64
This is a fairly safe product when used as directed. I / we use it around home to control flying pests as well as a barrier spray around the house.(wall of defense) It sells for less than $10 a quart usually, and this qt will make up to 25 gal of product. We mix it at only 3 oz per gallon.(has an easy to use 1.5 oz measure built into the container)
This product is even safe to use on your pets! Horsey people should be familiar with it. Control of ants is on the label also! (I told you I would get around to it)

My thought is, mix it up to use in a small spray bottle (old window cleaner spray bottle or something - BE SURE To Re-label as to the contents!), when you set up your camp, spray a ring on the ground around your tires / stabilizer jacks / tongue jack / etc. This should keep any of the creepy crawly's from climbing up into your camper (even scorpions is listed) If you are boondocking and are going to be in one place for a while, spray the folage around your camp site to control mosquitoes, flys, etc (if spraying is permitted of course)

This chemical is low odor, dries clear (leave no trace), non-corrosive, and in general is a good all around pest control. It will last up to like 28 days or the next rain will wash it off.

Disclaimer: Always read and follow instructions on the label. (just had to do it)

I hope this don't sound like an advertisement for them, this is just a good all around product for pest control.
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