Got ants? The Argentine ant is the one that most frequently invades Bay Area homes.

Because of these beneficial aspects, it is undesirable (and probably downright impossible) to eliminate ants from their outside habitat. The best approach to ant management is to try to keep them outdoors.

1. Find what ants are after (usually left-over food) and where they are entering the room (usually through a crack in the wall). Mark it so you can find it again. If you can't find an entry point, see Step 5.

2. Don't remove the food until after Step 3 because ants will scatter. They are easier to kill in a line.

3. Clean up lines of ants with a vacuum, or spray ants with soapy water and wipe up with a sponge. Soap washes away the chemical trail ants follow.

4. Next, block entry point temporarily with a smear of petroleum jelly or a piece of tape. Use silicone caulk to permanently close cracks in walls, along moldings and baseboards, and in gaps around pipes and ducts.

5. If you can't find an entry point, clean up the ants (Step 3) to a convenient (preferably out-of-the-way) spot. Place the bait station on the line the ants had been following. Always remove the bait station when the line of ants has disappeared so you don't attract more ants into the house (see "Tips for Using Ant Baits").

6. If ants are nesting in a potted plant, move it outdoors. Water it thoroughly and place it in a bucket filled with water that comes an inch below the rim of the pot. Using a stick, make a bridge for the ants to get out of pot and bucket without getting in the water. The ants will soon begin carrying their white-colored young to safety. When no more ants emerge, drain the pot and return it to the house.

Ant baits contain a pesticide mixed with an attractive food substance. Ants take small quantities of bait back to their nest to share with their nest mates. In this way the entire nest can sometimes be eliminated.

• Use baits with boric acid, hydra-methylnon, fipronil, or arsenic as an active ingredient.
• Keep several different baits on hand because Argentine ants change their food preferences frequently. If one bait is not working, try another. Wait at least a day to see if they take the bait.
• Use baits inside (outside you may attract more ants to the house and rain and sprinklers will wash away bait).
• Do not spray insecticide around the bait; it will repel the ants.
• When ants are gone, remove the bait so you don't attract more ants. If the bait you are using comes enclosed in a bait station, return it to its original box to save and use again. Put the box inside a plastic bag and seal it with a twist-tie.
• Baits may take several weeks to kill the ants. At first you may see more ants coming to the bait, but after a few days to a week you should see a significant reduction.

• Store food in containers that seal tightly or in the refrigerator when you notice ant activity.
• Keep things clean and dry and fix leaking faucets and pipes (ants need food and water).
• Caulk cracks where ants are entering the house. Weather-strip doors and windows.
• Put pet dishes in a soapy moat. Partially fill a wide, shallow container with soapy water and place pet dishes in the water.

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