It is always better to prevent a problem before it occurs, rather than having to solve it later. This is especially true when it comes to pest control. When I called in a local pest control company to deal with an infestation of termites, I asked them to give me all of their best advice about how to prevent pest problems. The contractors gave me lots of useful info about the steps I can take to deter a range of different pests from setting up home in my property. I hope you find the articles I have published here useful.
Ants are one of the world's greatest opportunists. One whiff of food and a single ant will bring a whole stream of its worker friends into your home through tiny cracks and holes in your walls or foundations. Electricity doesn't seem to faze them -- for instance, in the Northern Territory, Australia, Singapore Ants damage over $1 million worth of electrical equipment annually!
What if ants are coming through your electrical outlets? If ants are invading your home through your plug sockets then you need to find out why, and quickly.
Your Home Provides Them With Water and Food
If ants are invading your home, it means that they have discovered food, water, or both in your home — usually in the kitchen or bathroom. When a single worker ant discovers food or water while foraging, it heads back to its nest to inform the other ants. The other ant workers are able to follow the trail of pheromones left by the first ant all the way to the source of food or water.
Your Home Has Become a Nesting Site
Although ants can enter a crack on the outside of your home and follow electrical wires to your plug socket, if sufficient water and food is available they will build a new nest in your wall cavity. Then, starting in spring and during the warmer months of the year, they will begin to forage for food vigorously in order to feed their growing colony.
When this happens, they will enter your home through its electrical outlets.
Ants Can Damage Electrical Wiring
If ants are pouring out of one of your electrical outlets, you need to act quickly to get rid of them. In sufficient numbers, ants can chew through and damage electrical wiring, causing short circuits to occur. Surprisingly, electrocution won't stop invading ants from descending on the area in question.
When an ant feels threatened, it releases pheromones into the air. These pheromones signal the ant's comrades, which then hurry to the area to defend their fellow worker. However, when electrocution is the cause of the threat, your electrical outlet will become clogged with dead ants, which in turn will increase the risk of a short circuit.
Take Action Quickly
This could damage your electrical outlet and any nearby equipment, not to mention put you in danger. If ants are coming through your electrical outlets, wipe the area down with a dry cloth to remove any pheromone trails. Then place some poison bait in the vicinity. If all goes well, when the ants return they will take the poison bait back to their queen.
However, if your ant problem continues, you need a pest control expert to get rid of them before they cause any further damage to your home and its electrics.