# Red ants



## Ashful (May 30, 2014)

What are these damned red ants that cover my patio walls by the millions every summer? How can I safely eliminate them, and keep them from coming back?


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## Hogwildz (May 30, 2014)

Are you sure they aren't clover mites?
Google it for some info and remedies.


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## woodgeek (May 30, 2014)

definitely mites.


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## Ashful (May 30, 2014)

Okay... we've identified them.  Now, about removing them from my property...

(weird, I don't have any clover in my yard...)


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## Highbeam (May 31, 2014)

So do you have some sort of problem with poison designed to safely kill them? Maybe you don't want to hurt their feelings?


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## Ashful (May 31, 2014)

Nope, just looking for a product recommendation.


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## Corey (May 31, 2014)

Around here we call them 'spider mites' which I guess is the same thing.   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spider_mite

As for getting rid of them, the usual things apply - neem oil for a 'natural' / low chemical way to do it, the usual pesticides if you want to hose the place with chemicals.  They also like warm / dry conditions.  A blast from the garden hose or pressure washer will definitely remove the bugs, though I don't know if it is enough to actually kill them.  But can be effective at removing them from a plant.

As stated in the wiki, these things have reproductive cycles measured in days, so one becomes millions in pretty short order.  One main key is getting after them early and often to keep the population in check.  Ideally before, or at the first sign of one crawling around.  As the old saying generally goes... for every one you see there are hundreds you don't ...and given 30 days to multiply those hundreds become hundreds of millions.


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## Highbeam (Jun 2, 2014)

Joful said:


> Nope, just looking for a product recommendation.


 
Start here...

http://www.doyourownpestcontrol.com/clovermites.htm

The Bifenthrin product listed is rated for indoor use and in food handling areas so it is about as safe as you can get in the pesticide world. Also appears to be effective on mosquitoes.


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## flyingcow (Jun 7, 2014)

Listen to highbeam.....It's either that or I might be able to find some after market DDT. Very misunderstood chemical...


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## Lee4him (Jun 7, 2014)

Go to Lowes and get some Malathion.  Mix it with some water in a pump sprayer and spray all around the house and they will go away real quick

http://m.lowes.com/pd_188464-316-188464_0__?productId=1053675


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## dougstove (Jun 24, 2014)

Why get rid of them?
They do not bite, do no harm, and are fun to watch tumbling semi-randomly around.
I like them.


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## Jags (Jun 25, 2014)

I have also had good luck with Demon WP for general bug control.  When the Asian beetles were bad a couple of years ago, I used this stuff.  It laid waste to many a bug type and seemed to have good residual.  Supposedly pretty mammal friendly.


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## DBNH22 (Jun 25, 2014)

I don't know about clover mites but seeing as you originally thought they were red ants I can tell you what has worked for me in the past.  Each year it seems like we have ant infestations of at least a few different species around the house/yard.  I've used the Amdro ant block product and it has worked great.  I know they make another product, I forget what it's called but they carry it at HD, that supposedly kills 250 different insect species.


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## Ashful (Jun 25, 2014)

Thanks, guys.  Knowing they're clover mites, and not red ants, I decided to just leave them alone (as long as they stay out of the house).


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## vinny11950 (Jun 26, 2014)

i hate using poisonous chemicals and only use them as a last resort when i have no other choice.  who knows what those things do to you, your family or the environment around you.  no use in risking it for something that small.

think of them as a part of the nature around you - they come and go and serve some type of purpose in the overall scheme of your environment around you.


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## Ashful (Jun 26, 2014)

vinny11950 said:


> i hate using poisonous chemicals and only use them as a last resort when i have no other choice.  who knows what those things do to you, your family or the environment around you.  no use in risking it for something that small.
> 
> think of them as a part of the nature around you - they come and go and serve some type of purpose in the overall scheme of your environment around you.


Yep.  If it's not destructive (eg. groundhogs, carpenter bees, sod worm) or causing danger to my kids (eg. yellow jacket nests in the lawn), I usually try to live and let live.


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## 1750 (Jul 8, 2014)

Me, too. 

If anyone happens to be struggling with ant infestations, I was amazed this year by how well 20 Mule Team borax worked to get rid of ants.  You mix it equal parts with table sugar, sprinkle it in a very thin layers around where the ants are traveling.  You wait a couple of days to let them carry it back to the nest and they are gone, gone, gone.   It worked with little tiny ants and big, big ants.   

My web research into its toxicity didn't raise any concerns, though that opinion isn't unanimous.  If it matters, it has the same MSDS safety rating as household baking soda.


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## Adios Pantalones (Jul 9, 2014)

For actual ants- I have used the borax method. I mixed it with powdered sugar, and set it in bottle caps. Worked great.

Good on ya for leaving these guys be.


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