You can turn your back for 5 minutes, and you will have a long line of ants marching into your kitchen because one of them has identified a food source, and now hundreds of them know where it is! Ants are one of the pests that frustrate me the most. How dare they waltz into my home and steal food. I want them gone! One of the methods I use to attack these pests involves bleach. You may already know that bleach is very handy when dealing with most pests (bleach is good for tackling roaches, for instance), but can you use bleach to kill ants too? In this post, we are going to take a look.
Yes, bleach is your go-to household cleaner that kills ants! I have tested this multiple times and found bleach to be an excellent ant killer.
Bleach is a top product for killing ants, but you need to be careful not to spray it on materials as it can ruin them. Why? Because bleach contains strong oxidizing agents that strip colors. If you use bleach on a colored garment, you will find little white patches appearing where the color has been stripped out.
Does Bleach Repel Ants?
Not only is bleach an awesome household item for killing ants, but it also works to repel them away from an area they were initially attracted to!
Ants will hunt for food and water, and once found, they will lay chemical trails to the food for other ants to follow.
By cleaning these trails with bleach, you are removing the chemical trail, which means that ants will not pick up these trails and get to the food supply.
5 Ways To Use Bleach To Kill ants
Spray Bleach On Ants
The best and most potent way of killing ants with bleach is to hit them with a few bleach sprays from a spray bottle.
Make a potent bleach/water mix and spray it directly onto ants. You will find (from my experience) that ants will die within minutes of coming into contact with the bleach.
Wipe away dead ants and bleach before using the bleach mixture to clean the area. Cleaning the area will eliminate the chemical trails left by the ants.
Use With Bait
It might seem like an impossible task, but it is one that you can consider! Try using bleach with some ant bait (anything sweet).
The pungent scent of bleach is likely to repel the ants (which is also a good thing, right?), but if they consume it, they will die.
So it works in two ways:
Bleach will kill the ants if ingested
Bleach will deter the ants
Boiling Water With Bleach
If you have found many ants you need to get rid of, I suggest boiling up some water, adding some bleach, and pouring it over them.
It works! It has worked for me in the past too. Not only will the bleach kill the ants, but the hot water will also kill the ants.
I am sure I do not need to remind you of the dangers of boiling water. It would be best if you took care when handling hot water. Hot water can scold!
Bleach On Ant Hill
If you have found an anthill, you can kill many ants and disrupt the anthill by pouring a mixture of boiling water and bleach onto it.
You can also use bleach if you have no hot water. Both options will work.
Killing every ant in the anthill will not happen! Not unless you have a few hours to ensure none of the ants escape! Your goal is to kill as many as possible while severely disrupting the anthill to the point where it is not habitable.
Wipe Away With Bleach Cloth
Wearing a strong latex glove, soak a cloth in some bleach and wipe away the trail of ants.
Not only will the bleach kill the ants, but you will also squash some of them as they are wiped away with the cloth. I use this trick when I am all out of spray bottles! This is also one of my go-to methods of killing ants with bleach.
This tip will kill ants and will wipe away the chemical trail all in one swipe!
Using Bleach To Kill Ants – A Warning
There are 2 vital things that you need to be acutely aware of when using bleach to kill ants.
Do not use bleach on materials you do not want to be discolored! As mentioned above, bleach has a strong oxidizing agent, which will strip color away from any clothing. Don’t forget; hairdressers use bleach to strip the color out of hair! That is how strong it is.
Please do not use it in enclosed spaces! The smell of bleach is powerful and should not be used in enclosed spaces for your health. The strong smell of bleach can cause asthma, so you should be using it only in areas where you can open windows and doors to reduce the potency of the scent. You should only use bleach in well-ventilated areas!
Frequently Asked Questions
Does bleach kill ant trails?
Yes – bleach is very effective at removing ant trails! When ants have discovered a food or water supply, they will leave a chemical trail for other ants to follow. You are removing the ant trail by using bleach to clean these surfaces, so other ants will not follow it.
Are ants attracted to bleach?
Ants are not attracted to bleach; instead, the scent of bleach repels ants. It could be why humans do not like it, which is the strong odor of bleach! Using bleach to kill ants will also repel other ants from the same area.
Does bleach kill red ants?
You can use bleach to kill red ants. I have used it before to kill red ants, which was very successful. Use the same methods on this page to kill red ants with bleach.
What does bleach do to ants?
Well, it depends on how the bleach is used. If you pour undiluted bleach directly onto an ant, it will kill the ant almost instantly. However, if you mix bleach with water or use bleached products such as wipes or sprays, the ants may not die immediately. The bleach will eventually damage their exoskeletons and kill them, but it will take some time.
What kills ant colonies?
There are a variety of methods that you can use to kill an ant colony. One popular method is to use boiling water. This will kill the ants, and the colony will be destroyed. Another method is to use a pesticide. Pesticides are effective at killing ants and their colonies. However, they can also be harmful to humans and the environment. The best way to kill an ant colony is to use bait taken back to the colony for the other ants to eat.
Does killing ants attract more?
This is a common question, and unfortunately, there is no easy answer. In some cases, yes, killing ants do attract more. This is because their pheromones are released into the air when they are killed, which can attract other ants. However, in other cases, killing ants does not necessarily attract more.
If you use bleach to clean up, there is less chance of attracting more ants.
Conclusion
I have tested the 5 tips on this page, and I can confirm that you can use bleach to kill ants! Not only have they been tested, but they are used every year to help get rid of these pests!
Mostly, I use bleach to kill ants outside of my home using a spray or a mixture of bleach and boiling water. Inside my home, I will either use the spray or a cloth with bleach on to clear the ants away.
All options on this page are easy!
I’ve said it a few times, and I want to sign off this post with the same warning. When using bleach to kill ants, use it responsibly. Please do not use it on colored garments or materials. Always use it in well-ventilated areas too!
After spending the entire night lying awake in a cockroach-infested hotel, I have driven myself to build knowledge on all things pest control. Since then, I've tested pest control techniques to see what works and what doesn't. Now, here I am giving you all the info I have learned!
2 thoughts on “5 Ways To Use Bleach To Kill Ants”
Thanks for the info on killing red ants. I’m boiling water now. Have my bleach ready, too!
Thanks for the info on killing red ants. I’m boiling water now. Have my bleach ready, too!
Good luck, and be careful with the boiling water!