How the Florida rainy season makes it harder to get rid of ants.

Ant baits work by attracting ants and using their food sharing behavior. The worker ants take the bait back to the colony to feed the other ants. When we start getting the daily deluges of rain in central Florida, it can dilute and even wash away the ant bait and make it harder to get rid of the ants in and around your home.

For Port Orange homeowners, pest control for ants requires knowledge of how ant baits work and which ones to use during the rainy season. The pattern is essentially:

afternoon rainstorms + irrigation + wet lawns + high temperatures = ant baits not working

Choosing the right ant bait makes a huge difference in how quickly you get rid of an ant colony. When granular or liquid ant baits get wet, they can easily wash away. If it's only a light rain, the moisture can cause the bait to spoil or get moldy. Ants will stop eating the bait because, like people, they won't eat moldy or spoiled "food".

Ant behavior before and during rainstorms also changes. Ants sense changes in humidity and air pressure that comes ahead of storms. Like us, ants will seal the entrances to their nests to protect the colony and, especially, the queen. This also means they change their behavior when foraging for food.

During the central Florida rainy season, choosing the right bait is only half the job. Timing matters. Granular bait spread into wet grass immediately before an afternoon thunderstorm may never get properly collected by foraging ants. When we're treating outdoor colonies around Port Orange, we plan ahead to consider rainfall, your irrigation schedule and whether ants are actively foraging before putting bait down. Ideally, we apply ant baits when no rain is forecast for at least 24-48 hours. And, we place them in a sheltered area to keep them from direct rain.

Our ant extermination treatment plans are based on established entomological guidance and 26 years of knowledge of Florida weather patterns.

If it's raining outside and you're looking for some light reading, check out this UF/IFAS Fact Sheet about ant behavior, how ant bait is designed to fit the foraging mechanism, bait formulations and strategic placement of bait stations from the University of Florida.