how do i kill ants in my herp room?

[pyrodarknessanny]

i seem to have a problem with black ants, first they ruined my exo terra compact top,
they had nested inside of it! ( i tipped all the ants,larva and eggs out and froze them)

i went to check my hatchies this morning, to find a bout a dozen or so ants in the click clacks, and i had just changed the aspen the day before too!!!

they seem to be going in for the water.

any suggestions on how to be rid of the little buggers , i don't want to use any poisons
as im finding dead (and live) ants in the water bowls

 

[AM Pythons]

thorny devil or an ecidna...

 

[marcmarc]

You can lay "ant sand" wherever the trails are, ants take it back to the nest, eat it, die. You can use talcum powder, doesnt poison the ants but does irritate them. There is also the various barrier type sprays that you spray round your house perimeter. Also ant baits, traps etc. I'd say try out a flea bomb but definitely not if you have any tanks in the room. All this stuff available from the shops.
Lots of things to try out, I wish my suggestions were as fun as the previous!! Goodluck.

 

[Misha]

Providing it does not harm the snakes. Use lemon. They hate the smell / taste of it. They have a very good sense of smell so hopefully they smell it from the nest and leave your house alone! Squeeze lemon in all the cracks and places you think they are coming from.

Our house used to back onto the bush and this worked for us. Never saw the little buggers again!

 

[grimbeny]

chase them out
starve them out
build them out

 

[Kurto]

I find Ant-Rid works well if they're only coming in at a couple of spots. After a few dose's they'll get the message.

 

[slim6y]

No poisons... I hear peppermint oil in their trails makes it difficult for the ants to find their way.... keep dobbing small amounts in their trails. I have tried it and it does work - and unlike lemon lasts for a long time.

The downsides are - I am not sure if peppermint smell will upset your snake(s).... Which is why Kurto's idea is possibly the best.

Although boron based ant poisons are poisonous - they're much safer to use in small quantities than many of these 'organic' remedies.

Ants are highly attracted to peanut butter as well - you can often 'lace' the peanut butter with poison if they won't take the poison directly.

 

[Midcoaster]

bi carb works aswell

 

[pyrodarknessanny]

thanks for the suggestions guys, ill try the lemon thing first, my main concern was that im finding the ants inside the click clacks with the hatchlings, so i don't want to risk the ant poison getting in the water and then poisoning the snakes
what about the electronic beeper things? do they work at all? and would there irritate my reptiles?

 

[slim6y]

I would say your concerns are justified - but generally speaking an ant carrying food won't detour through a click clack. But for temprary measure you could move the click-clacks perhaps (they're most likely very portable) for maybe 2 - 3 days while the poisons take effect.

I have major doubts about any electronic device other than an UV zapper - but unfortunately - ants, unlike moths, are not attracted to UV (ashame really).

Stick with the tried and true