Odorous house ants, often called sugar ants, show up in homes across our region all year. These tiny ants measure about one eighth of an inch and range from black to light brown. They move in large numbers and spread fast once they find food or water. They don’t bite, sting, spread disease, or damage your home, but they will take over your space if you let them. They are just an incredible nuisance!

These ants build complex colonies with multiple queens. The ants you see indoors often come from a larger colony outside your property, but once they move inside, they set up smaller nests in hidden places. You might find them behind kitchen splashboards, along baseboards, inside electronics, in smoke detectors, or tucked into linen closets. Kitchens, bathrooms, and utility areas draw them in, but they can show up anywhere without warning.

Odorous house ants have a bizarre defense behavior called ‘budding’. Budding can occur when the sub colony is disturbed in any way, such as using conventional bug sprays or aerosols, bleach, hair spray, powders or cinnamon, or uncovering the nest itself, which can cause them to split the sub colony into multiple sub colonies sending queens with each faction. This can make eliminating them very difficult.

Therefore, we strongly recommend that you call us before you try ‘home remedies’. At All Seasons Pest Control, we use advanced baits and non repellent products that ants carry back to their nests. This method wipes out the colony at its core. All Seasons Pest Control offers a 3 treatment process over a 6 week period as an initial treatment as well as a bi-monthly perimeter treatment program for prevention.

Odorous house ants are now found year round in our region! Accurate identification matters. Pavement ants look similar but need a different treatment. Catch a sample so we can identify the species and treat it the right way.

If you see sugar ants in your home, act now. Don’t waste time on fixes that spread the problem. Call All Seasons Pest Control today at (253) 535-5600 or visit our website to schedule your consultation. Let’s get your home back under control!