How To Get Rid of Ants in Your Car
Carlos Kirby
· 4 min read
We rely so much on our cars. Most of us use them daily and don't give time for proper
car maintenance
. This can catch up with us in surprising ways. Ants are a common pest in cars, for instance. Fortunately, its quite easy to get rid of ants in your car.One of the most annoying ways that it can catch up with you is by attracting pests. Now, it probably won't be like that Tennessee car attacked by a bear, but smaller creatures can still inflict a lot of damage.
You don’t need a reason to get rid of ants in your car, but here are a few
According to
Go Pests
, ants wind up in your car because they are looking for food or water. They wander around aimlessly until they find something, mark the spot with a pheromone, and then tell their colony.They might build a nest in a car that is often damp, has a leak, or has a lot of food. However, they prefer to do that only if the car doesn't move much.
They might chew through leather and wood in a classic car, or their nesting might damage internal insulation. They might also strip wires, and that can cause fires.
Most ants are harmless, but carpenter, red, and fire ants chew through insulation and bite people.
If you see a few and need to look for more, you will have to check the whole car for their trail. This includes the door frame, the trunk, the hood, and under the floor mats.
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The best ways to get rid of ants in your car
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The first order of attack on an ant infestation is cleaning your car. Vacuum all over and remove trash.
Ants mark food spots with pheromones, so you will want to scrub surfaces such as door cards and seats. Use a cleaner with a strong smell that will cover the ants' odor. They particularly hate soaps that smell like citrus.
If cleaning doesn't work, you can whip out an ant spray. This will kill the lone wandering ants that are looking for snacks.
The spray might not be enough if a nest has formed in the car or nearby. You will have to put out poison bait. Then the ants will take the poison to their queen and kill the whole nest.
A gentler ant spray is a mixture of Dawn dish soap, water, and salt. Combine three tablespoons of soap, three tablespoons of salt, and two cups of water. Mix gently and then spray the ants.
Another natural ant spray is orange oil. This has d-limonene, which kills many types of insects, including ants. You can buy it as a spray, or you can mix your own by combining an ounce and a half of orange oil, three ounces of Dawn soap, and a gallon of water.
You can use orange oil as ant spray. You can also spray it on surfaces as a deterrent.
Peppermint oil, tea tree oil, and lemon oil can overpower the scent receptors of ants. You can dab these essential oils on cotton balls and leave them around the car, or you can mix them with dish detergent and boiling water to use as an ant spray.
How do you prevent an infestation?
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You can keep ants from setting up in your car by keeping it clean. Vacuum it thoroughly, regularly toss the litter, and wipe down surfaces.
You will want to destroy any nests that you find near your parking spot. Poison any mounds you find or leave out bait.
Parking in a new spot may also deter them. Wash your wheel wells and tires to remove the ants' pheromones before you move your car so they can't follow it.
You can still get insurance while getting rid of the ants
There are many other types of damage your car can get, and many of them can be covered by insurance.
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