Why do ants keep coming back after I spray them?
Wiping up trails and store-bought sprays only kill visible ants while leaving the underlying nest untouched, which makes people feel like they are just chasing pests around the house. Without knowing what to put down outside or how often to treat, homeowners end up playing an endless game of whack-a-mole until they feel completely defeated.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Wiping up ant trailsDid this help you?
- 2Trying various ant products from the storeDid this help you?
- 3hiring an exterminatorDid this help you?
- 4setting up a camera to track themDid this help you?
- 5gluing window screening over AC ductsDid this help you?
- 6dumping diatomaceous earth into the cracksDid this help you?
- 7using Terro bait stations to kill at the nestDid this help you?
- 8using natural ant sprays that kill on contactDid this help you?
- 9identifying whether the ants are attracted to sugar or proteinDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“These little shits have been showing up on and off for a couple weeks and apparently today they invited the whole family.”source ↗
“I've wiped up the trails and tried some ant stuff from the store but they disappear for a bit and then I find them somewhere else. Starting to feel like I'm just chasing them around the house at this point.”source ↗
“I don't mind spraying myself. I just don't really know what I should be putting down outside or how often.”source ↗
“The ants are coming through this crack in the floor and don’t know what to do about it.”source ↗
“We’ve had ants get into the house before but we thought we found the spot they were coming from and didn’t have ants after we patched up the one area but it seems they found another way in and I’m unsure of how to deal with this one.”source ↗
“I have looked for every hole imaginable. I found one and patched it and still am visited by wasps in my bedroom (coming from the attached bathroom).”source ↗
“I don’t know if there’s a nest in my bathroom walls, a hidden hole, or something in the attic…..I’m defeated.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 6Ants keeping AC contactor from closing
- 22How do I find where pests are getting into my house?
- 2Why does my AC blow cigarette and outdoor smells into the house?
- 17How to keep palmetto bugs from coming upstairs from the attic
- 5Exterminators won't treat cluttered or unsanitary homes
- 28Why won't house ants go away no matter what I spray?