Ant Bait Station Placement

One of the first considerations when using ant bait stations is where to locate them and how many are required to do the job. Whether you are eliminating insects entering a home or office complex; invading a lawn or garden area; or infesting agricultural acreage, there are reliable guidelines to follow for successful pest elimination.

Its important to remember that only a select group of ant workers from a colony, are charged with the responsibility of finding and gathering food. They perform this task by initially foraging at random. Only after an attractive food source is found, do the ants create pheromone trails, chemically marked highways, from the food source home to their colony. This means that using unnecessary dispensers represents wasted resources, and having a well-planned placement strategy matters most.

Around home and other structures:

1. Install at least one AntPro ant bait station on each side of the structure, giving consideration to size, and the number of different connecting walls. For a small house or building consisting of approximately 1500 sq. ft., place one unit at each side. The following are additional AntPro dispenser placement considerations:

Instructions:

1. Key areas are by acute angles where insects converge from more than one direction to a common corner.
2. Place a unit, when possible, by the A/C condenser water overflow outlet. Water is always a primary insect attractant.
3. North-side with high shade and moist areas.
4. Where ants are seen trailing.
5. Most important, do not put bait stations directly over ant nests; do not disturb ant nests; and do not spray the area around them with insecticides.
6. Avoid locations where substantial water run-off will occur.

Lawn, garden and balance of property:

1. For full property protection, place additional ant bait stations spaced around perimeter of lot. Locate units where ants are most active and preferably in shrub or tree belts so as not to interfere with lawn maintenance. Avoid locations where substantial water run-off will occur.
   Depending on the ant species, each AntPro bait station covers an area with a radius between 30 feet average for White-footed ants to 75 feet of un-obstructed ground for Imported Fire ants.

Guideline to placement around property:

1. Up to one acre lot size, use a minimum of 4 units (1)
2. Greater than one acres, use 2 units for each added acre (2)

Agricultural Acreage:

The number of ant bait stations required per acre depends on the targeted specie (Argentine Ant, White-footed Ant, etc.); the degree of infestation; and the kind of acreage involved and whether it is a contiguous or non-contiguous area.

KM AntPro is currently participating in a broad variety of institutional and independent agricultural research projects. We are providing systems support to the Department of Entomology at the University of California, for Argentine ant control and eradication in citrus groves. We also providing support to the Department of Entomology at the University of Maine, for combating European Fire ants. In addition to universities, we work directly with nurseries, farms, and ranches, to develop cost effective and pesticide free strategies for the protection of livestock and crops.