Three Things You Can Expect From A Visit By An Ant Exterminator
Getting rid of the ants in your house can take some time even with a professional involved. When your exterminator arrives, you can expect an inspection, the creation of a treatment plan, and even a temporary increase in ants in your house. Following this plan, along with possible follow-up visits from your exterminator, can help you drastically reduce the number of ants invading your home.
A Thorough Inspection and Prep Work
When your exterminator arrives for an initial inspection, he's going to want to figure out several things. This can include things like what parts of your house have the biggest problem and what they seem to be after, but also what species of ant you're dealing with and how they're getting in. While you might be tempted to do some cleaning before the exterminator arrives, you don't necessarily need to do this unless specifically asked to. In some cases, it can help your exterminator to see what your house is like on a typical day, which can help him narrow down possible treatment plans.
After the inspection is complete, however, you may be asked to change some things. This can include taking out your trash and running your dishwasher more frequently, moving any pet food, and changing how you store your food. What advice you get will depend on what factors your exterminator believes will best impact your ant problem, and it can be helpful to learn which household habits may have been contributing to it.
A Temporary Increase in Ants
Successfully getting rid of ants often entails the use of certain poisons, and these chemicals rely on a delayed effect. While some chemicals can be used as a protective barrier around your house, your exterminator might also use baits to draw them in. These baits will attract plenty of extra ants, who then take them back to their nests. While this means killing off many more ants in the long run, it means you can expect to see more ants in the short term.
Apart from efficiency, baits have another advantage in that this increase in traffic helps your exterminator more easily see the paths ants are taking to get inside. Baits can be strategical to further narrow down entry points and problem areas. If baits are used, your exterminator will tell you how to prepare for the increase in ant activity.
Repeat Visits
The most effective treatments will take several visits to apply. Exterminators can make use of subsequent visits to check baits, examine any remaining ant activity, and modify any chemical treatments as necessary.
While you can still receive effective ant-control treatments over the course of a single visit, scheduling multiple visits can make for much better results over time. You may not always need to do this depending on the severity of your ant problem, but don't be surprised if your ant exterminator recommends follow-up visits.
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