With its warm and humid climate, Florida is the perfect location for many ant species. These tiny insects are a year-round nuisance for Jacksonville homeowners. All ant species are incredibly invasive. If you see one ant in your home, there is about a 95% chance that several more are hiding around your house and your property.
At Mission Pest Solution, our goal is to keep everyone in the Jacksonville area safe. Our Jacksonville pest control specialists are able to do this by eliminating dangerous pests from their homes. Here is a look at why it could be hazardous to your health to have ants in your house and what you should do to finally get rid of your ant infestation for good.
What Do Ants Do All Day?
Most types of ants in Jacksonville live in large colonies that can contain several thousand other ants. Within these colonies, every ant will have a specific job that they are tasked with. However, the queen and the male ants only have one job: to mate. The queen spends the majority of her day laying eggs and mating with the males in the colony. The males will mate with the queen and then usually die shortly after.
The workers are all female. They pretty much do everything except mate. Every day, the workers are tasked with feeding the baby ants, caring for the queen, building and expanding the nest, removing trash and debris from the nest, and foraging for food. Usually, a few worker ants will leave the nest to go and find food. Once they have found it, they will alert the other workers, who will come one by one to gather up as much food as they can and take it back to their nest.
Are Ants In The House A Big Deal?
Many people are dismissive when they have an ant problem in their home. They mistakenly think that ants are not that big of a deal and that they will eventually leave on their own as long as there is no food left out in the open. Both of these assumptions are wrong, however.
Ants can spread a wide range of diseases and viruses, including salmonellosis, streptococcus, and E. Coli. They will continue to stay in your home until proper treatment is administered, forcing them to leave. They will usually hide behind your walls and in other hard-to-see places. The ants will stay in their nest if no food is out in the open. But just because they are not walking around your kitchen does not mean they are not in your house.
How Do You Prevent Ants In The House?
There are several simple and natural things that you can try to prevent ants from coming into your home. Some of the best preventative tips include:
- Keep your yard well-maintained and the grass cut short during the warmer months
- Make sure that all food, including animal feed, is in a sealable container
- Use caulking to seal any cracks or gaps around your home
It is much easier to prevent an ant infestation than it is to treat it. Following these steps gives you a better chance at keeping ants out of your home.
What's The Best Way To Get Rid Of Ants?
If you want to get rid of ants quickly, give us a call today. At Mission Pest Solutions, our ant control experts will effectively eliminate all ants from your Jacksonville home and keep them from coming back. Give us a call today to get your free quote.