Sachse, TX · Fire ants
A trail of small ants across the kitchen
A steady line of small ants along the backsplash, the window frame or the edge of the sink is a foraging trail. The nest is usually outside or inside a wall, and the ants in the kitchen are only the workers it sends out.
Texas pest control businesses are licensed by the TDA. The call carries no obligation.
Where they come in on a slab house
Through the edges. On the brick-and-slab homes common in Sachse, ants follow the expansion joint, the gap under the bottom row of brick, door thresholds and the places where plumbing and cable lines enter the wall. Indoors they surface at the sink, the dishwasher and window frames.
Mulch and irrigation feed the problem. A flowerbed piled against the brick keeps soil damp and gives nests cover right at the wall. On many newer lots the sprinklers soak that strip daily.
Not every ant is the same job. Some species take sugar baits, some prefer protein or grease, and a few — fire ants among them — need yard work as well as indoor work. Getting the species right decides the treatment.
What the visit involves
A technician follows the trail back out of the kitchen to where it enters the wall or the slab, checks outside along the foundation and flowerbeds, and identifies the ant. The treatment is matched to it — usually baits placed along the route and work at the outside entry points, rather than spraying the counter.
Tell the operator
- Where the trail starts and ends inside
- Size and color of the ants, and whether they bite or sting
- Whether you have already sprayed, and with what
- Whether you see the same ants outside along the foundation
Say what you found and where. Call to check whether a visit is available today.
(866) 204-1244Questions people ask
Should I spray the trail?
Spraying kills the workers you can see and leaves the nest. With several common house ants it also makes the colony split and move, so one trail becomes three.
Why do they show up after rain?
Wet soil floods outdoor nests, and colonies move to drier spots, which can mean inside a wall or under the bottom row of brick. A trail appearing right after a storm is common.
Can these be fire ants?
Sometimes. Fire ants do forage indoors, especially toward moisture and pet food, and they sting. If the ants are reddish brown, vary in size and sting when disturbed, say so on the call.
Other things people find
- Winged insects swarming inside the houseDark, small, many at once near a window — then wings everywhere
- Mud lines running up the slab or the garage wallPencil-width dirt tubes on the foundation, brick or sheetrock
- Fire ant mounds popping up after rainLoose dirt mounds across the lawn, ants that swarm up and sting
- Found a scorpion in the housePale yellowish scorpion in the tub, on a wall or in shoes
- A brown spider in the garage, closet or storage boxesPlain brown spider, long legs, found in boxes or clothes
- Big roaches coming up from the drain or the garageLarge reddish-brown roach in the tub, sink or garage at night
- Small roaches in the kitchen cabinetsLight-brown roaches with two dark stripes, near the sink or appliances
- Scratching in the attic or walls at nightScurrying overhead after dark, usually once the weather cools
- Droppings in the pantry or kitchen drawersSmall dark pellets near food, under the sink or in drawers
- Waking up with bites in a line or clusterItchy bites after sleeping, dark specks on the mattress seams
- Mosquitoes make the backyard unusableBites on the patio at dusk, or even in the middle of the day
- Fleas in the house even after treating the petsBites around the ankles, tiny jumping insects in the carpet
- Pests in a house that was just builtCrickets, ants or scorpions in a home that is a year or two old
ZIP codes covered
Mostly built since 2000
Older neighborhoods, 1970s–1990s