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What Is A Natural Repellent To Get Rid Of Ants? 6 Best Home Remedies

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When you see ant infestation at your home you think, “what is a natural repellent to get rid of ants”? Undoubtedly, you would have come across thousands of pages that talk about the millions of natural repellents that get rid of ants. However, the big question is, which of these methods will be suitable for your house specifically? And which of these to use in which part of the house.

I faced the same issues and decided to conduct independent research and conclude what suits me and my home the best. So I have written this article after carrying out a lot of practicals and using these methods myself. And thus, I will not just tell you whichnatural repellant to use at home to get rid of ants, but I will also tell you why it sometimes happens that these natural methods fail to work properly. Let us take a look.

Why are there ants in my house?

Amongst the most common pests that one finds in their house are ants. In fact, statistically speaking, the chances of finding an ant in your house are five times greater than the chances of finding a cockroach (the second most common pest in the world).

Black Ant, Insect, Garden Ant

And thus, it may not be too big of a surprise to find an ant or a handful of ants at home. However, if you find a colony of ants in your house, then it indicates that you probably have an infestation of ants in your house.

It is not a common sight to have a full-blown invasion in your premises, so that is your first hint that you have unintentionally opened the gates (or windows) of your house to the ants.

I have mostly found ants in certain areas of my house, the areas being: my kitchen, specifically the sink area, my bathroom, and the area where I keep my garbage bin.

After thorough research and the application of a little bit of common sense, I realized that this is so because ants enter our house with a purpose.

They are looking for one of the three things (or for all three of them), i.e., food, water, and warmth. And the easiest access they have to these things is in the specific areas that I mentioned before.

Thus if there is an infestation, it could be because the ants are either looking for food or water or warmth in your house.

What is a natural Repellent to get rid of ants?

Queen Ant, Ant, Ant Head, Insect, Ant

There are many natural ways that would help you eradicate the ants from your house. However, it may not all work out for you for various reasons.

So your best shot is to use the most effective methods in the correct manner and then make your pick based on your experience and go with the particular method in case of future infestations.

Here I have enlisted some of the natural repellants that worked great for me, and you should most certainly go ahead with what works best for you after carrying out your own little experiment.

Lemons

what is a natural repellent to get rid of ants

Here is a fun fact for you: the tiny pests that make our lives a living hell despise the smell of citrus fruits, including lemons. And the list of pests includes ants as well.

The reason ants hate lemons is that they get confused by them and the smell makes them paranoid. Further, it is toxic for certain fungi that they feed on, which further irritates them.

These reasons were enough for me to bring home a cleaning product that carried a strong smell of lemons, and I also started keeping tiny lemon pieces under my sink, and voila, the ants vanished; it was no less than magic.

Peppermint oil

Small bottle of essential mint oil

This is another prominent natural repellent, the smell of which confuses the ants to a great degree. The best part is that the smell of peppermint oil will make you feel calm and relaxed but would pretty much do the opposite for pests like ants.

Peppermint oil is a great natural repellant option if you are looking just to show these tiny little uninvited guests the door of your house and remind them that they are not invited in your house, instead of wanting to kill them.

The best way to use peppermint oil is to take it in a spray bottle, mix it with some water and spray It near the infested areas.

Tea tree oil

Doterra, Air, Oils, Essential

This is another oil that will do wonders for you in your everyday life and go the extra mile and get rid of ants from your house for you.

I always have tea tree oil in my bathroom, so I am really fond of this particular natural repellant. It’s also quite simple to apply; all you have to do is put it in a spray bottle and spray it where ants are found in your home.

Talcum powder

pink talcum baby powder container on wooden background

I will let you in on a little secret here. Did you know that ants communicate with each other through a trail that they create using a chemical called pheromone? Well, this chemical is very important for ants as it acts like a GPS navigator for them, through which they get instructions about where to go looking for food.

This is where Talcum powder comes into the picture as a natural repellant. It helps break this trail of ants which is made up of pheromones. Once this trail is broken, the ants are confused and have no clue about which direction to head in (just like we are lost without google maps).

So whenever next you come across an ant trail in your house, just spray some talcum powder on it.

Cinnamon

Cinnamon, Aroma, Spices, Condiments

Cinnamon is not just supposed to make our hot beverages taste better; it also makes our life easier by helping us get rid of ants from our homes.

Research showed that cinnamon consists of a compound named trans-cinnamaldehyde, which repels the ants and kills them.

Cinnamon has a strong smell that we love, but ants hate, and this is what makes it one of my favorite natural ant repellents.

Because when I leave cinnamon near the entrance of my house or when I role cinnamon powder in cotton to make a ball and keep it near the ants infested area, it does not just get rid of the ants for me, but it also makes my house smell fresh and lovely which as a result makes me feel great.

Vinegar

Olives, Oil, Food, Kitchen, Vinegar

Vinegar is like the kid in a class who is good at everything. Vinegar is not just an essential cooking ingredient, which also makes our clothes spotless when used for washing them, but it is also a fantastic and highly effective bug repellant.

Now, this natural ant repellant does not just repel ants, but it also repels all other possible pests that you can think of.

You need to take a spray bottle and mix 50% of vinegar with 50% of water and spray it near the infested area. Now sit back and watch the ants runs out of your house.

Three reasons natural ant removal methods don’t work.

Ants, Wood Ants, Hand, Danger, Disgust

Like I said before, you will find thousands of pages on the internet telling you about a million methods to get rid of ants. However, these methods fail to work out; do you know why? Well, I will tell you why.

You used the wrong solution.

Ant, Insect, Red Ant, Fun, Funny

Ants have a lot of species, and when I say a lot, I am not exaggerating, and I actually mean a lot. So when you fail to identify the species of ant that are present in your house, using a natural repellent may not have the needed level of effect on them.

It will result in the ants’ dispersing in various areas as a defense mechanism, making it all the more difficult for you.

You haven’t addressed a moisture issue.

Ant control is not just about using sprays or repellants. You might be able to get your house free of an ant infestation using the right natural repellant, but the ants would come back if you do not deal with the root cause of the infestation, i.e., moisture problems in your house, And trust me, I learned this the hard way.

You didn’t continue to apply the solution.

Certain effective natural repellants like vinegar tend to evaporate after a while, so continuous application of these solutions is very important.

When to call in pest control?

Insect Control, Extermination, Service

As important as it is to be persistent with our efforts, it is also important to know when to stop and reach out for external help. This is not just a regular life lesson, but it also plays a key role in ant control.

If you are facing frequent infestations despite doing everything right, then it means that it is time to reach out to an experienced pest control team.

About the author

A biotechnologist by profession and a passionate pest researcher. I have been one of those people who used to run away from cockroaches and rats due to their pesky features, but then we all get that turn in life when we have to face something.