If ants have taken over a corner of the worktop, start by working out where they come from. In Old Basford's older buildings, the nest may be under the yard.
A procession of ants is a supply line. Workers are carrying food from your kitchen back to the nest, and each one lays down scent as it goes. Cut the line by wiping and it will be re-laid within hours, often a little further along. A better first move is to note where the ants enter and where they leave. Mark the spot with a small piece of tape.
Garden ants, the common black type, usually nest under paving, patios or at the base of walls outdoors. They come inside for sugar, grease and moisture. Some other species are different and need different treatment, which is why identification matters.
Old Basford is a north-west district of older Victorian terraces and former industrial premises. Yards, cobbles, old brick walls and cracked concrete are all good places for a colony to settle, and in a conversion there may be gaps where old pipes and services once ran. Kitchens at the back of a terrace are often right next to the yard where the nest sits.
Where a former industrial building has been divided into units or flats, trails can cross between properties along ducts and joists, so a neighbour's food waste can be the draw.
Ants are often worst in warm, dry spells, when they look for water indoors, and again when summer winged ants emerge to mate. Winged ants appearing together indoors are a sign that a nest is close.
If trails keep returning, or you have found winged ants indoors, call for help. A technician will identify the species and treat entry points and nests, often outside the building. Our free pest prevention survey helps close the gaps that let them in. How many visits are needed depends on how large the colony is and where it sits.
Free advice comes with every treatment, including how to store food so the trail has no reason to return.
If you share a yard or an alley with neighbours, it helps to compare notes. A colony does not respect boundaries, and it may be feeding on food waste from several kitchens at once. A single sealed bin and a rinsed yard can reduce the pull from the whole row. Poor drainage that leaves damp patches by the back door also helps ants thrive.
Call 0115 937 5117 and we will arrange a visit to suit you.
Winged ants are the reproductive members of a colony, and they leave the nest together on warm days. Seeing a group inside suggests a nest is close, perhaps under the yard or in a wall.
Shop-bought powders and sprays rarely reach the nest and may spread contamination near food. It is safer to seal food, follow the trail and ask a technician to treat the nest or route.
Tell us what you have seen and where, and we will come back to you. Prices are fixed and there is no call-out charge.
