Homemade Anti-Fire Ant Defenses That Work and Some That Don't Work

The black fire ant, accidentally imported from South America into Mobile, Alabama, was first reported in 1918. Its distribution is still confomed to parts of Mississippi and Alabama. The red fire ant was imported around the 1930’s and has spread to infest more than 260 million acres of land in nine southeastern states, including all or portions of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma (Source: Lofgren 1986, Sparks 1995). This species has become very abundant, displacing many native ant species when abundant. It has the potential of spreading west and surviving in southern Arizona and along the Pacific coast north to Washington (Source: Vinson & Sorenson 1986).

Now that we have had a brief review of the history of fire ants, I need to tell you straight up that I am far from being an expert on fire ants. The only expert I knew around my hometown was Bobby Wallace, our County Extension Service director. He was a virtual cornucopia of information about the menace: fire ants. I talked with him once about "remedies" for these annoying creatures whose stings can be very painful, and Wallace, a conservative, laughed until he cried.

I had my answer on if he knew of anything I could make at home to fend off the fire ants that used to build their mounds at the edge of my yard.

And to my surprise, more like my relief, there "are" some homemade anti-fire ant defenses. I am so proud to share them with you if you are one of the unlucky residents who live in the "danger" areas of where fire ants breed, multiply, and may be able to run "you" off of your territory.
So here we go with . . .

Homemade Anti-Fire Ant Defenses That Work and Some That Don't Work

• Dawn Dishwashing Liquid - - mixed with vinegar. Laugh if you will, this one sounds hokey "right out of the gate." I tried this one. To my dismay, it worked great. I just mixed the two liquids together, slowly poured it down the main entrance of a fire ant mound and stood in a safe area to see the results. A few fire ants did manage to crawl out of their mound, but soon they passed away. "That" mound was now disabled, but the fire ants never quit. They only move elsewhere and rebuild.
• Soda and Baking Soda - - sounds like something "Dr. Victor Frankenstein" would use to awaken his "homemade man." I read an article about this one and it does not work that well. A sidebar to this article said that just using baking soda would work better without the sweet-tasting soda. Baking soda, believe it or not, suffocates the fire ants. This is the extent of this anti-fire ant mixture.
• Scalding Hot Water - - mixed with washing powder or liquid detergent. Actually, the scalding hot water annihilate the fire ants and any other insect that may be caught in the "collateral damage," (been waiting for months to use that term) and the washing powder may be just for added insurance. I did not try this one, but read about it somewhere on the internet.
• Uncooked Rice - - the type that is thrown at newlywed's when they prance out of the church headed to enjoy their honeymoon. That type of rice. An elderly guy told me at our Walmart Supercenter two years ago that he just filled the main entrance of a fire ant mound with raw rice and in a day or two, the mound was dead. I would have tried this one, but my wife hates it when I waste food.
• Gasoline - - is what some people in my neighborhood use to kill fire ants. Now this has to be executed with a lot of safety measures. Simply pour the gasoline down the fire ant mound and sprinkle some around the mound and let it go. Gasoline kills fire ants almost instantly. The more daring fire ant "assassins" in my neighborhood light a match and throw it into the gasoline to watch the "poof" when the gasoline ignites. And yes, (if you are wondering), adding this step does kill fire ants a bit quicker. But if you do use this final step . . .please be careful.
• Brake Fluid - - yes, the fluid that allows your automobile to stop. The anti-fire ant article stated to just pour a cup of this liquid over the fire ant mound and in a day's time, the fire ants will be gone. I never saw this one in action, so use at your own discretion.
• Powder Found In - - common fireworks such as firecrackers has been known to remove fire ants. But you have to take some time and remove the powder from four packs of any brand of firecracker. If you have enough, fill the main entrance to the mound and pour a small trail of the powder leading away from the mound. Then light the powder and when the fire meets the powder inside the mound you could hear a loud "boom" and no more fireants. You could name this one: "Firecrackers For Fire ants." Cute, huh?
• Coffee Grinds, Used Tea Bags - - placed around flowers will get rid of aphids and other dangerous insects, but using these items on fire ant mounds is a gamble at most. To be honest with you. You can be my guest and try it. But let me know if it works.
• The Number One - - fire ant killer is this one. If you have a farmer's outlet near you, buy a bag of 13-13-13 fertilizer. Scoop out two heaping cups of the fertilizer, sprinkle it down the fire ant entrance, and then pour Clorox on the fertilizer. Wow! You can actually feel the heat generated from these two items as they act like a flame thrower used in World War II on IwoJima. This one does work. I also used this one. And between you and I, it was fun too.

Personal note: I hate to kill any living thing, but by the same token I am not going to sit around and allow my house, belongings, including our car, to be overrun by these heartless insects.