Ants will infest a dirty carpet that is always wet with food particles in it. Sugary snacks and drinks that are spilled on the carpet will also attract ants. Carpets are made of heavy materials that retain water and they need to be dried after cleaning.
Deep clean an infested carpet with a steam cleaner to kill all the ants in it. After that, parch it in the sun for at least 5-8 hours. If there is no sun or you can’t drag it out, leave the windows open and use a fan to dry it up. Return it indoors and sprinkle white vinegar on it to repel ants.
Deep cleaning is efficient because will get rid of the stains, food particles, and all the ants. Carpets should be aired at least 2 times a month to keep ants away. If it is a wall-to-wall carpet that cannot be easily moved, you can use a blow-dry fan until it’s dry.
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Causes
Ants do not eat carpets and that will never be their reason to infest it. In most cases, ants are attracted to the food, moisture, and warmth that your carpet will provide. All those in one place will make their nest and live in your bedroom or living room carpet
Sugar, carpenter, and the pharaoh ants are some of the common ones that infest carpets. In most cases, the sugar ants are always found allover the carpet when there is a lot to feast on. However, ants in bedroom carpet are normally attracted by warmth and moisture.
If you have a wooden floor, placing a wet carpet on it without constantly checking it can attract ants. The moisture that is retained in the carpet will soak down into the wooden floor and this will keep it damp and moist. This damp and warm feeling is what will attract ants and they will nest down there.
How to kill ants in carpet
Since moisture is one of the major attractions of ants, you need to figure out how to do it dry it after washing. In most cases, it is good to wash a carpet on a sunny day. If you have to do it in winter, then do not use too much water on it. This will make the drying process faster and easier.
If you wash it on a cloudy day, you have better ways of drying it. You can use 2 fans on both ends. Turn them on at full speed, remove everything from the carpet and let them dry it up. If you have fun that is on top of a room, this will even work better for you.
1. White Vinegar
White vinegar will not stain your carpet yet it kills ants on contact. This also deters them from coming back. However, you need to clean the carpet fast before using it. It will be less effective if the carpet is still dirty because ants will keep coming back once the vinegar dries out.
After cleaning the carpet, mix half a cup of white vinegar with 1 cup of warm water in a spray bottle. Spray this on the carpet and ensure it spreads well to kill and repel all the ants. If you run out, make another solution of the same until the whole area is covered.
The advantage of using vinegar on an infested carpet is that it will also get rid of other pests like carpet beetles and moths’ larvae. It will also not leave any marks behind and to give it a plus, it will leave the carpet free from any scent from spilled drinks that may attract ants.
2. Vacuum
Vacuuming the carpet at least once every 2 days will help in removing food particles that attractants in a carpet. This can also suck ants up and this is a sure-fire way of getting rid of them. However, vacuuming will not remove stains from sugary drinks spilled on it and this can still attract ants.
This will only remove ants that are already crawling on the carpet. In case some juice or any sweet drink was poured on it, you will have to wash that in order to keep ants out. Vacuuming is only a temporary and fast solution for a few ants.
3. Steam cleaner
Using a steam cleaner is one of the best options you can use to permanently get ants out of your carpet. It will press and release water deep into the carpet and this will kill all the ants plus their eggs. Here is how to use it:
- Remove everything from the carpet and vacuum it to remove solid particles
- If the carpet has stains, use a wet towel dipped in soapy water to soak the stains
- Add I cup of white vinegar to the water poured in the steam cleaners tank
- You can now start the cleaning process and ensure the whole carpet is covered
- Leave the windows open and turn on the fans so that the carpet dries up completely
This will help in removing the ants and other pets like fleas in your carpet. It will also sanitize the the carpet and leave it with a fresh bright and new look. This is a sure fire way of dealing with an infestation and removing ants allover the carpet.
What can I put on my carpet to kill ants?
You can put baking soda or borax on the carpet to kill ants but either of those will take too long. Borax and baking soda can kill ants but they will not do so instantly. In most cases, everyone wants an instant result when dealing with ants on a carpet.
It can take borax and baking soda 2 days or more to completely remove ants. They have to eat it and take it back to their colony to wipe out the rest. This process can take too long. It is only fair to believe that nobody wants to sit around with ants crawling around hoping that they will soon die.
However, here is what to do if you still want to use it. Scoop a handful of baking soda or borax and sprinkle it on the carpet. Use a brush to shake it in and let it settle in there. Wait for 2-3 days before you clean it up.
Sounds like a waste of time right? Borax is only great when killing ants outdoors but using it on carpets is not practical. The same opinion applies to baking soda on carpet for ants. This will only add more particles to the carpet and the cleaning process will become more difficult.
Ant spray on carpet
You can spray and ant spray on your carpet but it is not really a good idea to do so. This is because those sprays are made of chemicals that are not designed to be used on upholstery like carpets. The scent will stick around for some time and this can be very difficult to remove.
It is not safe to use any ant killer spray on the carpet because your pets and kids are always playing there. They may drop something that they are eating and pick it up again to eat. Pets may lack and lie on the carpet and this can cause imitation.
Ant spray may also leave tough stains on a bright carpet and this can be very difficult to wash. Additionally, how many cans of ant spray will you use to cover the whole carpet? A homemade alcohol spray can kills ants on contact. However, don’t overuse it because the smell can cause nasal irritation.
It is therefore not economically smart to use this if you have an infestation on your carpet. Washing the carpet is the only viable way that will work. After that, you may want to learn a few tricks on how to dry a carpet.
