Ant infestation

[aircamper]

We were in a campground in Palacios, TX last night. Ants found their way into the trailer by climbing the front, street-side jack. We've sprayed with Raid, vacuumed, swept and washed everything inside ... and yet they keep coming.

Any suggestions for getting rid of these things. We haven't had anything like this in 6 years of Airstream travels.

[ModernVista]

Originally Posted by aircamper

We were in a campground in Palacios, TX last night. Ants found their way into the trailer by climbing the front, street-side jack. We've sprayed with Raid, vacuumed, swept and washed everything inside ... and yet they keep coming.

Any suggestions for getting rid of these things. We haven't had anything like this in 6 years of Airstream travels.

I have had that at a few CA beach sites. Spraying the jacks and around tires with raid or equivalent seems to deter them. Did you try that?

[triterra]

I have heard DE (diatomaceous earth) or some type of powder (comet, baby powder-corn starch) around anything that touches the ground. Have not tried it but at this point what do you have to lose?

[Flying Gypsies]

Originally Posted by triterra

I have heard DE (diatomaceous earth) or some type of powder (comet, baby powder-corn starch) around anything that touches the ground. Have not tried it but at this point what do you have to lose?

Here is a link about diatomaceous earth- have used it for fleas and it works! Trying it out on ants in the yard- plenty of the here in Florida- and I actually think I am making headway!
http://www.vegetablegardener.com/ite...xic-ant-killer

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by triterra

I have heard DE (diatomaceous earth) or some type of powder (comet, baby powder-corn starch) around anything that touches the ground. Have not tried it but at this point what do you have to lose?

I'd avoid cornstarch; that may actually be food for ants.

When I stayed at Eastbank Campground (a CoE campground) on Lake Seminole earlier this year, they were handing out leaflets when we checked in, warning of an Argentine Ant infestation and recommending the use of Comet cleanser to keep them at bay.

It worked, too, as long as we also remembered to put Comet around the service pedestal as well, and make sure the water hose and shore power cable didn't rouch the ground between the service pedestal and the RV. Point of interest, I also put some around the legs of the picnic table to keep ants away from the food.

You do have to also make sure there are no overhanging branches that touch your RV, though.

Comet is good not only because it keeps the ants at bay, but also because if it rains, you can tell at a glance if the Comet has washed away and you need to put down more.

To keep ants off my patio mat, I sprayed it all over with wasp spray; that seemed to work, but just to be safe I also made sure the pario mat didn't touch the tires.

I'm told (but haven't tried it yet) that wrapping flea collars tightly around the RV end of your your water line and shore power cable will keep ants from climbing up those to get at your RV if you can't keep the hose and cable from touching the ground.

[MissPearl]

I had ant problems in New Orleans. They seem drawn to the aluminum! Sprinkle any powdered cleanser (ajax, comet, etc) around the jack stands, stabilizers, etc.
It works.

[gramzinski]

Having survived and won the Serge of The Ant Army @ Stillhouse Lake, we swear by,live by DE (diatomaceous earth). Sprinkle it around all parts of the trailer that touch the ground,sweep it into all cracks in the floor, and the little "soldiers" will soon disappear. And it is not poisonous to humans and pets. earthworkshealth.com has lots of info on this wonderful powder.

[polarlyse]

If you must resort to other means I highly recommend a product called TERRO. Had small ants coming into our kitchen sink area at home this past spring. Tried a few things but they continued to come in. Local hardware store recommended this stuff and it worked great. Other I tried did absolutely nothing but this stuff worked great. Saw immediate and lasting results.

[Melody Ranch]

If it's Texas....probably Fir Ants after a rain. I use Lorsban sprinkled around the jack, wheels and hose/cable contacts with the ground. Look around for the tell tale red ant mounds too.

[BeachHouse]

Terro works wonderfully. I leave an open Terro at the vanity sink (put it in the sink for traveling). Every once in a while they show up but only for a few hours and then they are gone.

Terro is a bait so the ants take it back to the nest.

[adonh]

Originally Posted by polarlyse

If you must resort to other means I highly recommend a product called TERRO. Had small ants coming into our kitchen sink area at home this past spring. Tried a few things but they continued to come in. Local hardware store recommended this stuff and it worked great. Other I tried did absolutely nothing but this stuff worked great. Saw immediate and lasting results.

Which product did you use

Ant Problem? Terro = Ant Control Solutions

[jcanavera]

Had that happened twice in my pop up days down in Kissimmee Fl. I remember coming back to the trailer after a late nite at Disney World. We walked in flipped on the lights and the ants were crawling. Headed out to an all night quick shop and bought a can of spay ant killer. Found the ants were gaining entry via the power cord. After closer inspection I found them crawling up the jack stands also. I considered it a freak occurrence.

Back a few years later and we kept an eye out. Again we saw the ants attempting access and had some kind of ant powder with us. We made circles around every thing connected to the trailer touching the ground and around the service pole. Obviously the southern ants like to explore more than their northern cousins. Never had this in any other places we've ever camped in (not even in Destin, Talahassee, or St. Augustine).

Jack

[NevadaGeo]

Borax seems to chase them away for me. Powdered Borax soap.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by NevadaGeo

Borax seems to chase them away for me. Powdered Borax soap.

I may switch to borax as well. Based on the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) it's pretty safe overall.
http://www.omsi.edu/sites/all/FTP/fi...Borax-msds.pdf

Compared to borax, Comet cleanser is positively nasty:
http://emergencyservices.catawbacoun...MSDS/Comet.pdf

[SuperTrouper]

Originally Posted by Protagonist

Compared to borax, Comet cleanser is positively nasty:
http://emergencyservices.catawbacoun...MSDS/Comet.pdf

Yeah! I've heard from my kids that it "makes your face turn green" and "tastes like gasoline"!

When we stayed at the Chula Vista KOA earlier this year they recommended and sold comet in the Kamp store. We used it and nary an ant but I assume that eventually it can speed corrosion of metal parts.

Brad