Random ants are a nuisance to many people.
They are commonly found in homes and public buildings and pose a health hazard. You can take care of these pests by implementing various pest control strategies.
So, why are there random ants in the house but no trail around? Ants leave trails when they travel between the nest and food.
However, when ants invade your home, they generally sneak in through tiny cracks and crevices. They also tend to hide in dark corners where they can go unnoticed.
Because they don’t leave a trail, it’s difficult to figure out where they’re coming from or where they’re going.
Let’s start now.
Why Are There Random Ants In The House But No Trail Around?
Contents
Ant Infestation Inside Or Outside Your Home
Ant infestations do happen both inside and outside the home.
It takes time for an ant colony to grow to the size of one that will successfully attack a home.
There are several causes for ant infestations inside and outside the home.
The major explanation, however, is the abundance of food available to them and the attraction of sweet foods inside the home that will attract them.
Solitary ants on their own are relatively harmless and mostly just a nuisance in kitchens and bathrooms, but ants in colonies can do serious damage to homes when they build their nests inside walls, ceilings, crawl space.
If you live in an apartment, seeing a few ants on your kitchen counter may be no big deal; but if you see hundreds of little black bugs marching around your pantry or kitchen, it is time to call in the professionals.
The cause of an ant infestation in a house can be due to a number of factors, such as Food Source.
Ants are always on the lookout for food. They are always looking for it and when they find it they move in huge numbers making it almost impossible to get rid of them without the help of a professional pest control company.
Ants being social creatures like to live in colonies which have hundreds or even thousands of members.
When they find a suitable location for their colony they will settle in.
A few ants may investigate your home and find a crack or crevice that they can use to gain entry, but most new ant infestations will start on the outside of your home.
When they discover it, the ant colony will quickly move in and set up residence in your attic, wall voids or under concrete slabs.
The unknown will enter your house via a hole the size of a pinhead or even smaller.
The Ants Are Looking for Food and Nesting Sites.
Random ants are foraging in your lawn for food and water sources.
They’re also hunting for moisture sources like leaking pipes or clogged gutters where they’ll lay their eggs.
When there is no food around and you still notice ants in your home, it’s likely that they’ve discovered your food sources and are using them to establish nests inside of your home.
When the ants identify both or either of your food sources, they will establish a nest close by and begin feeding themselves on crumbs and spills from your pantry or kitchen, pet food and bird seed.
Pheromones are odors that signal to an ant colony that there is food or water present.
Ants move in a trail because they follow pheromone trails left behind by other ants.
The paths guide the ant colony to find food and water sources easily.
And that location is either your home.
The ants at random times will search for food, and when they discover a food source they quickly follow it back to the colony to feed the other workers there.
Most of the time, though, they stay close to the food sources in your home so they can feed the colony.
Biting red fire ants may carry dangerous diseases, including food poisoning and dysentery that can be transmitted to humans through their bites.
You’ll find out in a second what you should do when you see them inside of your home.
How To Get Rid Of Random Ants In The House From Their Source
Examine the Back Sides of Your Home’s Electrical Appliances.
Ants often hide in cracks and crevices around electrical items, so look behind your refrigerator or stove for signs of an infestation.
They may also nest under items around the house such as books, cardboard boxes, rugs, and even in the cracks of walls.
So, get a flashlight and look under electrical items like your dishwasher, refrigerator, toasters, etc.
If there are any, use soapy water to wipe them out.
Examine Your Home for Possible Ant Nests
If your house has a history of ant infestations or you see a lot of ants outside of your home, then you probably have an ant colony living nearby.
Through addition, ants establish colonies in trees outside as well as hollow tree trunks.
Ants will hibernate in the winter months and will hatch new queens in the spring.
In the spring, they will search for food and begin to build their nests inside your home.
That is why many people find that once they start treating their infestation they suddenly have many more ants around their home.
Whether you locate any, use a pointed object to tap on the wood of the structure to see if the noise is amplified and carries through the wall.
If you locate any, sprinkle an insecticide dust or spray along the area to locate the nest entrance and seal it off.
To Keep Ants From Entering Your Home From the Yard, Use Ant Repellents.
This step is necessary if your home’s exterior isn’t sealed properly.
After you’ve exterminated the ants in your home or business, seal cracks or holes on the outside of the building to prevent future infestations.
One method is to spray a silicone-based caulk into cracks and crevices about 1/8-inch wide around the outside foundation of your home.
The minty scent of peppermint deters ants from coming into your house; plant some in your garden to keep them away as well.
You may also use sticky ant traps in problem areas to catch and kill foraging ants as they pass by.
Examine Your Yard for Ants
Ants in the house often come inside through cracks in the foundation, so look for signs of an infestation in your yard as well.
Ants will initially feed on sugary substances like fruit or soda, but they eventually move on to other food sources, including grease, meat, cheese, and peanut butter.
And as the temperature rises or their food supply becomes scarcer, some species will start eating each other to survive.
That is when an ant infestation gets out of hand and needs to be dealt with quickly.
These mud mounds may be home to carpenter ants or pharaoh ants.
Pour hot water on ant hills to kill the queen and the rest of the colony.
It will kill the ants that live there now and prevent new ones from moving in.
Ants may also be found in damp areas near water sources such as leaky pipes or under sinks with leaky faucets.
Ants are most likely entering your home in search of food or a water source.
When you find them, use boric acid to poison them, then seal off the area to keep them out for good.
If the infestation is severe, it may require professional pest control services.
Kill the Ants You Discovered.
It may seem harsh, but killing the ants you see is the best way to get rid of an ant problem in your home.
Kill the ants that have made their way into your home by placing a few drops of liquid soap on the ant’s body and watching it die in about two minutes.
You may either stomp on or drown the ants with a cup of water.
Keep an eye open for the anthill in your yard and destroy it if you can.
If you come across an anthill that is too big for you to destroy on your own, call your local exterminator for assistance.
Also Read: Ants In The Winter
Conclusion
Random ants in the house with no ant trail surrounding are a sign that you have a nesting ground nearby that is no longer active at this time.
A single ant sighting might signal the presence only of a scout looking for food or a mate, but if you see several in the same area repeatedly, you may have a larger problem on your hands.
So, if you find solitary ants in your pantry or near your kitchen, chances are they are coming in from outside in search of food.
