Fuggin' Fire Ants!

[dg]

I need advice from any of our southern bros with experience dealing with these little bastards. We bought our house in part because our back yard opens to a 10 acre park. It's like having a huge lawn & ballfield that we don't have to mow. Great right? It was until our parks dept. bought a bunch of mulch from 'bama or wherever that had fucking fire ants in it. Now five or more parks have confirmed mounds, including ours. They flagged about a dozen & baited them today. They wait a few days & hope the bait gets to the queens, then they drench the mounds with poison to wipe them out.

From the reading I've done, this doesn't always work because the queens often bail out if too many workers start dying, so I just don't have faith that this is going to get them all. The nearest mound is about 40 yards from us, and I want to be proactive. Do any of you guys have recommendations for what products work well? We have two little guys (15-month-old and a 1-month-old) and we want our yard to be safe from the ants, but as non-toxic as possible, too.

[Joe_Steeler]

Down here in FL fire ants are a pain as well. One of my daughters is allergic to their bites.
I use my regular pesticide from Home Depot and on top I spread a nice coat of fire ant killer. This keeps them at bay and when dedicated mounds form I drop Amdro on to and 3 feet all around. Put water and wait.

My pest control guy tells me that you have to get your soil toxified enought for pests to not want to get in your yard. This deal works for me but my neighbor goes to a do it yourself pest control store where you can buy nasty stuff without having to show a license.
I haven't had to go that far yet.

[Joe_Steeler]

oh.. and one thing my wife learned somewhere is that if you get bitten by them fuckers, have some baking soda at hand. Mix some of it with a little water to form a thick paste. Place a splat of it on top of the bites and let it sit for 15-30 minutes.
This is supposed to neutralize the ant's venom and avoid the puss capsules.

Of course, a supply of Benadryl is a must around my household.

[SEEGERMANY]

dg,

I've been fighting those bastards for years. I've used just about every legal and non-legal means of treating them. Bottom line, you'll never completely kill them off, but you may run them off your property. The trick is to be diligent and accept the fact that they need to be treated often.

If I find a mound that is not near a plant or tree, I boil a huge pot of water, stir the mound and then pour the water on the mound. Between the water and the steam, it does a kickass job. Granted, it will turn that spot in your grass brown, but it will grow back.

If you go the chemical route, I would suggest broadcasting Diazinon. Watch your forecast and just prior to a rain, spread your property heavily. Keeps kids and pets off area until after the rain. It will kill some of the ants, but the main objective is to run them to your neighbors yard. I broadcast my yard about every other month, even in the winter.

I've only found two chemicals that will completely wipe them out. DDT and Chlordane. Both are illegal and have been taken off the market.

Since you have so few mounds, go the boiling water route. Be careful.

[thunderhead]

Feed a few of these bad boys in your backyard..

[mattsmusiccenter]

I got bit by a bunch of those things when I was in FL as a kid, I'll never forget it! Can an anteater eat fire ants? Seems like a good case of indegestion...

[Joe_Steeler]

Seegermany,
I thought Diazinon is illegal now as well. Few years back it was Diazinon and Dursban, I rotated between them two and got great results. But both were taken off the mkt. because of environmental reasons.

[Joe_Steeler]

I got bit by a bunch of those things when I was in FL as a kid, I'll never forget it! Can an anteater eat fire ants? Seems like a good case of indegestion...

Yeah, I'll bet its like eating fiery buffalo wings for them. Taste good and burn you on the way out, no harm done. A little soap and warm water to the brown eye and good as new.

C'mmon Matt?! why would they call it an anteater? because he eats bunny rabbits?
Those bites really did a number on you.

[Jayster]

probalbly the most expensive route , but soak the mound in gas\diesel - stand back wait 15 minutes and toss a match !!!It works for me..........

[Joe_Steeler]

yehawww!!!!!!

[Soap]

probalbly the most expensive route , but soak the mound in gas\diesel - stand back wait 15 minutes and toss a match !!!It works for me..........

Yep, very effective indeed.
Done it many times and it works great.
Instant results kills em dead.

[SEEGERMANY]

I thought Diazinon is illegal now as well.

You are right Joe. I just read that it was banned in 2004. I had several bags in my barn, so once it's gone, I guess I'll have to use Spectracide or Amdro.

[Joe_Steeler]

Spectracide is like spreading sugar compared to Diazinon.

[SEEGERMANY]

The best stuff I ever used was Ortho Chlordan. My mother's cousin owned a nursery/feed store and he used to keep it in the back under wraps. He would sell her a gallon of concentrate and she'd split it with me. That shit had something like a hundred year half life. When I built my new house in 1990, I sprayed the slab and the base of the foundation. Never had an ant, spider, roach, or any other creepy crawly. My dog had two heads, but that's another story.

[mattsmusiccenter]

Yeah, I'll bet its like eating fiery buffalo wings for them. Taste good and burn you on the way out, no harm done. A little soap and warm water to the brown eye and good as new.

C'mmon Matt?! why would they call it an anteater? because he eats bunny rabbits?
Those bites really did a number on you.