If you’re wondering how to get rid of pharaoh ants, perhaps using pharaoh ant bait or how to get rid of pharaoh ants naturally, read on to learn more.
We also explain our professionals exterminate pharaoh ants and answer questions like “do pharaoh ants bite?” or “do pharaoh ants sting?”
If you want to make the process easier on yourself, simply call for a free quote on pharaoh ant extermination and control: 651-342-9489. We look forward to helping you.
Table of Contents
- All about pharaoh ants
- Pharaoh ants as pests
- How professionals exterminate pharaoh ants
- How to get rid of pharaoh ants
- 6 ways you can prevent pharaoh ants
- Consider routine pest control treatments
- Conclusion & next steps
All About Pharaoh Ants
The pharaoh ants size is very small, yellow or light brown ants, considered to be native to Africa, but is prevalently found throughout the United States. The pharaoh ants size is about 2 millimeters long or less and can almost appear transparent.
Pharaoh ants are pretty similar to any other type of pavement ant or carpenter ant in colony life, duty, and organization. As any ant colony, pharaoh ants also split off into satellite colonies or fractionate colonies. This is why, when a homeowner gets pharaoh ants in their home, it can be so hard to get rid of the whole colony, satellites and all.
A fun fact of pharaoh ants is that they are like day-time factory workers: they begin their work day around 8 am and end at sundown. Pharaoh ants are also very common MN ants.
These little ants, also called grease ants, have 3 sets of pheromones they use to communicate with their colony throughout the day. They were the first species of ants to use what is called a negative trail route or a repellant. They use this when their trail proves fruitless in terms of food or shelter or if it is particularly dangerous. This way they can save other worker ants’ time and effort in foraging.
While most ant colonies can have about 10% of the workforce centered around foraging for food, pharaoh ants have a few scouts search for food. When they find food, they return to their colony (whether main colony or satellite colony) at once. Then, groups go back with the scout to get more food. After that, swarms go together to the source of the food. If you have swarmer ants, this could be why: they could be pharaoh ants gathering food.
Unlike some ant colonies where there is one queen, in pharaoh ant colonies there are many pharaoh ant queens, which leads to larger colonies, more rapid growth in colony life, and a larger radius of land the colony can take up (between main colony and satellite colonies). The pharaoh ant queens often only mate with males from other pharaoh ant colonies ensuring genetic diversity and a stronger genetic colony.
Because there are many queens in a pharaoh ant colony, it can make do-it-yourself treatment methods ineffective. A strong bait may be needed in order to ensure all pharaoh ant queens have died.
Fun fact: while a queen pharaoh ant typically produces 10 to 12 eggs every time she mates, she she has the capacity to lay up to 400 eggs every time she mates.
It then takes the baby ant 42 days to mature from egg to adult.
As you can see Pharaoh ants can be very hard MN ants to get rid of. They often require professional pest control treatment.
Pharaoh Ants as Pests
Pharaoh ants are not your typical common ant or sugar ant. While they feed on similar foods like grease or sugary foods, they can also eat their way through silk, synthetic fibers, and rubber goods.
Like other ants, pharaoh ants can make their homes in wall voids or under floors, sometimes they will make their homes in some types of furniture, usually wooden or anything that hides them away from the home.
You may see itty bitty ants in the kitchen or bathrooms and if there isn’t a pile of sand around, you may have a case of pharaoh ants on your hands, versus a case of pavement ants.
Fun fact: pharaoh ants actually get their namesake from a mistaken believe that these ants were one of the plagues of Egypt during the time of the pharaohs.
A lot of folks wonder, “do pharaoh ants bite?” Any ant can bite, and may often try, but there jaws are too small (generally) to pierce human skin. You don’t have to worry about pharaoh ants bites, but know that they can.
If you’re wondering , “do pharaoh ants sting?” the answer is: no. Pharaoh ants do not have stingers like bees, hornets, or wasps. You don’t have to worry about pharaoh ants stings.
Even though they don’t bite or sting, the question still stands: “are pharaoh ants dangerous?” Since pharaoh ants typically don’t cause damage to the home like carpenter ants (though they can eat synthetic fibers, rubbers, and silk), it’s up to you if you would want to try do-it-yourself methods, or would rather a professional treat.
Please note that pharaoh ants can be dangerous. It has been implied throughout research that pharaoh ants spread more than a dozen disease pathogens (including salmonella, Streptococcus pyogenes). As a result, they are known threatening pests in hospitals where they can enter IV bottles, wounds, or open mouths of sleeping patients in search of moisture.
Please note that pharaoh ants can be dangerous. It has been implied throughout research that pharaoh ants spread more than a dozen disease pathogens (including salmonella, Streptococcus pyogenes). As a result, they are known threatening pests in hospitals where they can enter IV bottles, wounds, or open mouths of sleeping patients in search of moisture.’
As you can see, it is important to treat MN ants like pharaoh ants very seriously and have a professional pest control company inspect and treat.
How Professionals Exterminate Pharaoh Ants
If you’re wondering how to get rid of pharaoh ants, read on in this section to learn how our technicians professionally exterminate pharaoh ants using a pharaoh ant bait and an exterior spray.
Our technicians first inspect the activity you see and need to determine what type of ant infestation you have. When confirmed pharaoh ants, the technician will use a commercial-grade pharaoh ant bait with a long-lasting component that targets the multiple queens of the colony or colonies.
An exterior power spray of the home may be very useful in complete eradication and prevention for future pharaoh ant issues. Our power sprays also protect your home from other pests like hornets and wasps, centipedes and millipedes, spiders, earwigs, silverfish, and pavement ants.
Because pharaoh ants have multiple little colonies, treatment methods, both self-treatment methods and professional pest control treatment methods, can fail since some queens may not die off and slowly start to repopulate. It is not uncommon to have pharaoh ant problems every few months, as a result.
At Done Right Pest Solutions, our technicians take this into consideration and treat thoroughly. The technician will know if follow-up treatments are needed, and all of our services come with a 2 month warranty, within which any additional treatments are NO additional charge.
So if you’re looking for how to treat pharaoh ants and simply want a reliable company to treat pharaoh ants for you, give us a call for a free quote: 651-342-9489.
If you’re wondering how to get rid of pharaoh ants in apartments, there typically is a bigger issue at hand. A thorough treatment of the foundation and some of the exterior may be needed, as well as interior treatment in affected units. We have commercial multi-family housing pricing and options for you. Simply have your property owner or manager give us a call for a free quote: 651-342-9489.
How to Get Rid of Pharaoh Ants
If you’re wondering how to get rid of pharaoh ants, read on in this section to learn how you can get rid of pharaoh ants on your own.
When it comes to the majority of pests that can cause damage to your homes or belongings, like carpenter ants, pantry moths or clothing moths, any type of wood-boring beetle, or invasive and disease carrying pests, we always recommend having a licensed and experienced pest control company inspect and treat to ensure the success of the treatment. This also puts your mind at ease.
Please note that using an insecticidal spray will make it seem like it is killing off the live ants and you may think it will kill off other colony members that come to it. Insecticidal sprays, however, cause the pharaoh ants to scatter and split off, causing a larger issue for you. This process of the pharaoh ants splitting off when a colony is disturbed is called budding.
Pest control companies have access to commercial-grade non-repellent, residual baits and insecticides, which will take care of the problem at the large scale. If you are able to find a non-repellent, residual bait or insecticide, you would then be effective in your DIY measures.
Another DIY treatment method is to simply mix your own bait of sugar water with 1% boric acid. Most baits you can buy over-the-counter at your local hardware store or home improvement store contain 1-5% boric acid and can have success. It will take time for these methods to work in order to get to all of the pharaoh ant queens, but these can be effective pharaoh ant baits.
If you’re wondering how to get rid of pharaoh ants naturally, this last method is the most natural method out there. Many people use boric acid as a cleaning element or a pest control element. We don’t recommend it for anyone with pets or small children, so use at your own risk.
If you’re wondering how to get rid of pharaoh ants in apartments, you may try the simple DIY options here, as they shouldn’t disrupt the colony (colonies) as a whole, but instead kill them off slowly.
Another DIY treatment method is to simply mix your own bait of sugar water with 1% boric acid. Most baits you can buy over-the-counter at your local hardware store or home improvement store contain 1-5% boric acid and can have success. It will take time for these methods to work in order to get to all of the pharaoh ant queens, but these can be effective pharaoh ant baits.
6 Ways You Can Prevent Pharaoh Ants
The absolute most sure-fire way to get rid of pharaoh ants naturally is to make sure you don’t get them in the first place. That’s right, preventative measures can go a long ways. Here are some tips to keep pharaoh ants away.
Keep counters clean. Wipe down your counters to keep them clean of food debris and crumbs. Sweep and mop your kitchen floors regularly.
Store food in airtight containers. This is a simple preventative measure for many pest issues.
Eliminate water sources. Make sure there are no leaks within your walls or in your home. Try to remove any standing water outside with upgrades to permeable surface coverage, like pavers or gravel, over cement or tar.
Maintain any plants or ornamentation around your home. Trim bushes and trees near your home. At this time you can monitor your foundation for larger entry points. Exclusion for pharaoh ants is impossible since they are so small, but keeping other pests out is an added perk of exclusion measures.
Store firewood away from the house. Firewood piles are a known attractant to crawling insects, sometimes stinging insects, rodents like mice and voles, chipmunks and squirrels, basically anything looking for a safe nesting location.
Have routine pest control treatments. More on this in the next section, but preventative pest control is the most cost-effective and all-around most effective pest control methods there are, especially from a company that takes Integrated Pest Management approaches.
Consider Routine Pest Control Treatments
Since pharaoh ants can be routine pests as they bud off and form new colonies, it is important to consider the financial implications of fruitless treatment. Done Right Pest Solutions’ year-round residential pest program called the Peak Seasons Plan covers your home for pharaoh ants.
Each treatment applied seasonally targets these pests and ensures they don’t make home in your home. With the annual coverage, there are no additional trip fees if you do happen to see anything amiss in your home, pest-wise.
Call today to get more information on our Peak Seasons Plan: 651-342-9489. Or visit our Residential Pest Control Page for all the details on residential services.
If you’re wondering how to get rid of pharaoh ants in apartments, there typically is a bigger issue at hand. A thorough treatment of the foundation and some of the exterior may be needed, as well as interior treatment in affected units. We have commercial multi-family housing pricing and options for you. Simply have your property owner or manager give us a call for a free quote: 651-342-9489.
Conclusion & Next Steps
Pharaoh ants are a very interesting species of ant. While the pharaoh ants size is small, their colony size can be huge. They can also be terribly hard to get rid of for a home owner with their budding off at disruptive and threatening measures.
You learned that pharaoh ants bites aren’t able to penetrate human skin and pharaoh ants do not sting. You learned that pharaoh ants are dangerous, disrupting hospitals and spreading more than a dozen diseases pathogens.
In the later sections of this article, you learned how to exterminate pharaoh ants and how to get rid of pharaoh ants with DIY methods, including how to get rid of pharaoh ants in apartments. We also specifically treat multi-family housing properties on a daily basis for pest issues like these, so give us a call for a free quote: 651-342-9489.
You can also email us at donerightpestsolutions@gmail.com and start the conversation today.
Pharaoh ants can be a big nuisance and we can’t wait to help you get rid of them: Done Right.
Talk to you soon,
Done Right Team
Have you ever had a pharaoh ant infestation before? What did you do? We’d love to hear your story in the comments!
Did you find this article helpful? Consider subscribing to our free email newsletter, which offers a targeted approach to things you want help with.