A single fire ant sting is annoying. It may even need medical attention if you have a bad reaction to it. But it’s usually not life-threatening. The problem is that you’ll rarely get just one fire ant sting. Fire ants in yard and garden areas will swarm and by the time you realize they’re on you, you could already have dozens of stings. This has resulted in deaths, particularly when children or the elderly are swarmed by fire ants. You can get rid of fire ants with a few few fire ants removal methods or you can rely on a specialist to do so safely and with less risk of spreading them.
Does insecticide work?
If you use insecticide, it’s important to drench the whole mound and as many exits as you can find. At the same time as you do this, you have to make sure they don’t find your feet and start climbing. A fire ant colony can pick up and move if their current location is in danger. Fire ants can also distribute into multiple new colonies. If you treat one colony incompletely, you may soon discover you simply scattered your fire ants into three or four colonies.
What about bait?
Baits can also be used effectively. Just remember that pets can get hold of these baits, and that’s not safe for them. Since fire ants in your yard are outside, the bait has to be outside, too. Never put the bait directly on the colony mound. Place it around the mound.
Can you just flood them with water?
Flooding the mound with water won’t do any good. Fire ants are experts at surviving even torrential floods and hurricanes. A garden hose won’t do anything but spread them out.
Where can I get help with fire ant removal?
Fire ants removal can also be conducted by an expert. A thorough examination of your property will reveal every fire ant colony, not just the one you know about. Strategies to get rid of fire ants are individual to every property. Some have pets, some don’t. Some fire ant colonies are close to the home, some aren’t. Some might be spread out over half a lawn, some might be condensed.
Fire ant control can get serious when there are many mounds that exist side-by-side. Contact Slug-A-Bug, a Brevard County ant pest control specialist with experience in fire ant control is your best bet when it comes to tackling fire ant colonies.