Our kitchen is being regularly raided by a hoard of tiny ants. Our kids seem to be incapable of eating their food without dropping half of it on the floor.
I’ve debated using ant-poison (which I used a lot back when we lived in a wooden house favored by carpenter ants), but given how tiny and harmless they are, it’s been fun to see if I can actually stem the invasion armed only with a can silicone sealant. I figure at worst the house will be more energy efficient by the time I give up and nuke the suckers. Given the way Spanish people seem to love everything chemical, I’m sure the ant poisons here are much more potent than the US stuff.
It’s been harder than I thought. Every time I think I’ve covered every hold, the ants discover one tiny flaw in my defenses. Over the last couple days I’ve developed quite some respect for their distributed intelligence.
Last night I had a nightmare that I was covered in ants. Perhaps it’s time to throw in the towel.
5 comments:
When will you learn to stop hating Catalan organisms?
We've been similarly afflicted. Borax was pretty good, so we didn't have to resort to the ripe-melon-on-the-neighbour's-roof trick.
These were definitely formigas, not hormigas.
Hi from an Irishman living in Sant Cugat. We had a more serious issue with some formiga-cousins some years ago...termites. We had to call in the pro's and got there just in time. By the way, if you're interested in the history of SC, try my book, it's in English and on sale in all the local shops now: A Short History of Sant Cugat. Tell your friends!
Love the blog, thanks.
ground cinnamon also works well, but can be messy. Usually ants won't cross over a line of cinnamon. We've had ant problems also. For the moment, we have a peace pact, in which they remain outside. Everywhere you look in our backyard - the lawn, gravel, walking up a tree - there are ants! Good luck in reaching an agreement with your guests.
Good news. The silicone has sealed the ants outside the house. Hopefully the peace pact can begin now. Good fences / Good neighbors and all that.
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