Boric acid
, less commonly known as boracic acid, is an acid used as a flame retardant, a fission rate regulator, an antiseptic and an insecticide. It often comes in the form of a white powder, and is highly effective and widely used as a means of household pest control. However, experienced boric acid users know that in order to draw in the ants, the boric acid needs to be combined with foods that are tempting to insects. Does this Spark an idea?
What Will Make The Boric Acid Tempting?
A good overall approach to making an effective boric acid ant trap is to remember that ants love sweet substances. Mixing a sufficient amount of anything sweet into boric acid will make it irresistible to household pests. Perhaps the simplest recipe for a boric acid ant trap is a sugar syrup, made of two parts sugar to one part water, with 2 tablespoons of boric acid mixed in. Another popular formulation is to mix 1 tablespoon of peanut butter with 1 teaspoon of brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon boric acid. Yet another sugar-based boric acid recipe for ants involves 1 cup of corn syrup mixed with 1/4 cup hot water and 2 teaspoons of boric acid.
Just remember than anything sweet and preferably sticky--such as sugar syrup, molasses or corn syrup--will make the boric acid tempting enough that ants will instinctively be drawn to the poison.
Lay Out The Boric Acid Concoction
It's very important to remember that while boric acid is considered a weak acid, it is still poisonous, and must be kept away from children and animals. The best way to house your boric acid trap is to place it in some sort of jar or container with a fastenable lid. Remember to punch holes in the metal or plastic lid, so the ants can crawl inside, while still managing to keep pets at bay. To further child-proof the boric acid traps, keep them in areas hard for small children to reach, such as on top of a kitchen cabinet or behind a refrigerator.
The containers should be clearly labeled as poisonous, to eliminate any ambiguity about the contents.
How Boric Acid Is Effective In Killing Ants
It's worth bearing in mind that the goal of your boric acid recipe is not only to kill the ants that feed on it, but to kill as many of the other ants in the ant colony as possible. When ants crawl into the container in which you've placed your boric acid concoction, they will feed, then return to their colony and share. This, in turn, spreads the poison exponentially, and further kills off the ant population in your home.
A successful boric acid recipe will devastate an ant colony within a week or two, though in order for an ant colony to be completely and permanently annihilated, the poison must reach the queen.
Tags: boric acid, boric acid, acid recipe, acid trap, boric acid
