Kill Household Ants - Super Cheaply

On a budget? Got an ant problem? Do not fear, 'cause Domesticated Man and his sidekick Handy Hand have the answer for getting rid of those pesky ants!

Now, the D Man is not impressed with the performance of the commercial anttrap he purchased. It looks neat, but the ants do not seem to appreciate appearances.

The homemade bait on the right...now that is going down well.

Note: This instructable applies only to those tiny little black ants, ths ones that love sweet stuff and swimming in your coffee cup! Domesticated Man must first overcome his fear of bigger ants.

First, you need a thin base for the anttrap. A lot of commercial anttraps make it hard for the little guys to make the jump from being alive to being dead, so pick something that will lie flat and flush with your floor or whatever surface you place it on.
Handy Hand is using a cut-out piece of plastic from a blister pack (inspired, of course, by Domesticated Man)!

The active ingredient here is good ol' fashioned Borax. You can get this useful poison from your supermarket, Hardware store or senile Grandmother.

Why Borax? Well it's slow acting, so the ants will gobble their fill, and then take it back to the nest. And feed it to their Queen and all the unsuspecting citizens of Ant Central.

Oh no! Domesticated Man did not read the warning label, and ingested the Borax! Will he recover in time to stop the ant invasion?!

Note: If you feel bad about killing ants, just tell yourself that you will be destroying an oppressive and Totalitarian government, and ending the suffering of hundreds of enslaved and brainwashed footsoldiers.

Now, we need something the dear little ants will carry home to mommy. After serious investigation, Domesticated Man deduced that the ants in his kitchen like Golden Syrup the most. Honey or any other sweet syrup could also work.

Remember that ants, just like ordinary humans and super-type-people like Domesticated Man, have their own eating habits.

Have a look at what's popular for your ants. Why should they die unhappy?

Now, you want to get the proportions right: Too much Borax, and the ants will become suspicious and eat somewhere else. Too little and you will have very well fed, energetic and happy ants. Not good.

Go for about two thirds Borax to one unit of your syrup. So, if it's a teaspoon syrup, use two thirds of a teaspoon Borax.

Before losing consciousness, Domesticated Man gave Handy Hand a disposable piece of plastic to mix the syrup and Borax. 'Cause while Polymers are forever, good sidekicks are hard to replace.

Mix it really well. The Borax won't dissolve completely, but that's OK. We blame science, not you.

Right. You have mixed the Borax and syrup. Now, where to put it?

Watch your ants for a bit. You will see that they follow a trail, or maybe even more than one trail. You want to put the bait right where they will run into it, so a bit of patience will be rewarded.

Also, this stuff will not be good for your pets or kids. So put it somewhere out of reach of toddlers or dogs or parrots or cats or toads or lizards or drunken grownups.

If the base you used (in this case the plastic) lifts from the floor or kitchen top or wherever you put it, carefully spread a little of the mixture over the edge, so the tiny little ants can easily eat the poison and die. Do not use your finger.

Now, poisoning a colony of hard-working and selfless creatures takes persistence. Although you may see a lot less ants around after a few days of eating the bait you made, don't stop just yet.

Domesticated man recommends keeping it up for at least two weeks, making a new batch of bait when the old one is either eaten up or simply has been standing there for more than a week.

Remember, they may be small, but they ain't stupid. We have had ants simply go party somewhere else for a while, only to come back and mess up the joint when they thought the coast was clear.

And don't give them reason to go where they're not wanted! Clean your kitchen daily, and don't leave food out at night.