Fall is upon us, and with it comes cool, less-humid weather. Now is the best time of the year for leisurely barefoot walks in the yard, outdoor picnics, and relaxing on the hammock. One pest that can disrupt a pleasurable stroll through the yard is fire ants. An encounter with fire ants will quickly ruin your day.
If you have fire ants in your yard, you need the Cedar Hill pest control team from ProActive Pest Services. Our team members have been in the pest control industry for almost twenty years, and we know how to eliminate fire ants from your property.
How To Tell If It's Fire Ants Crawling Around Your Home
There are thousands of ant species investing yards, and most don't pose a threat or concern, but fire ants are different. You can identify fire ants in Cedar Hill by the following:
- Color: Reddish dark-brown
- Size: 1/8 to 3/8 inch
- Habitat: Two to four square feet of irregular mounds
- Body: Two bumps between the thorax and abdomen
When comparing fire ants vs. red ants, the differences are size, aggression, and reaction. Compared to fire ants, red ants are larger, do not sting, and don't swarm quickly from their nest. If you see a big mound near landscaping or the foundation of your house with reddish-brown ants, you have fire ants.
Why A Fire Ant Infestation Is Such A Problem For Your Home
Usually, fire ants are in a fire ant hill in your yard, but they will enter homes after heavy rains, drought, or cold weather. Fire ants enter homes through cracks in the foundation or water and electrical boxes attached to the structure. Because of their powerful stings, an infestation of fire ants puts your family and pets at risk.
The venom from fire ant stings creates a painful and itchy fluid-filled pustule. Because fire ants quickly swarm out of their nests, they inflict several painful stings on the victim fast. For some people, the flood of venom overwhelms their body resulting in severe chest pain, nausea, shortness of breath, and other life-threatening symptoms. If these symptoms and others occur, immediately seek medical help.
Why DIY Fire Ant Control Is A Waste Of Time And Money
You will find many do-it-yourself solutions on the internet promising to eliminate fire ants and save you money. Common fire ant home remedies include: dousing the nest with hot, soapy water or vinegar, sprinkling baking soda or instant grits on the nest, or drizzling molasses on the ant mound. You may see some success with these DIY methods, but you may damage or kill surrounding vegetation, pollute local water supplies, and cause a hazard for your pets and children.
One problem with do-it-yourself methods is that they may not kill the queen. There are thousands of fire ants in a mound, and their nests include a labyrinth of underground tunnels, which may go as deep as three feet! Pouring a hot liquid on the nest may kill a few hundred workers but never affect the queen bunkered safely below ground. Unless you kill the queen, you will not stop the infestation.
When fire ants sense danger to their nest, they will create new nests. When a DIY solution fails to kill the workers and the queen, they will begin new nests. In other words, a DIY solution may result in more nests in your yard. Long-term, effective fire ant control for your Cedar Hill home will require professionals like our team at ProActive Pest Services.
Contact The Professionals For Total Fire Ant Elimination
The best and safest way to destroy a fire ant mound in your yard is to get trained pest control experts from ProActive Pest Services. We have the tools, experience, and knowledge to eliminate fire ants on your Cedar Hill property the first time without risking the creation of more nests. Contact us today and schedule your inspection.
