Bigheaded Ant Control

Bigheaded Ant Control

Most Effective Products

Supreme IT Insecticide
Suspended Concentrate
As low as $54.99
FiPro Foaming Aerosol
Aerosol
As low as $28.99
Ant-Trax Ant Bait
Gel Bait
As low as $21.99
Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules
Granular
As low as $32.99
Keith's Pro Tips

"A multi-pronged approach is a must for ant infestations like the Bigheaded Ant, which is known to create large supercolonies. When drenching ant mounds, it may not totally eliminate the big-headed ant problem, because you are only treating ants currently in the nest. There could be hundreds to thousands of Bigheaded worker ants out foraging for more food."

Bigheaded Ant Control: How To Get Rid of Big Headed Ants

This page is a Bigheaded Ant control guide. By using the products and methods suggested you will get control of Big Headed Ants. Follow this guide and use the recommended products and we guarantee 100% control of Bigheaded Ants.

Bigheaded Ants are one of the many species of ant that commonly infests homes and businesses. These ants are light brown to dark reddish-brown in color and have two distinct classes of worker ants.  The major worker ant is a 1/8th of an inch long and has an enormous head which is how the species got its name. Minor workers are 1/16 of an inch long and do not have large heads but can be recognized by their head shape, which narrows abruptly behind the eyes.  

This ant species often enters structures through cracks or seams in the foundation and around windows and doors. While they may not set up a nest inside homes, they do often enter homes while foraging for food and water.

Bigheaded Ants can be a problem for two particular reasons.  Firstly, they are persistent foragers and will scavenge for food both inside and outside the home. Secondly, Bigheaded Ants are known to leave piles of dirt and other debris inside homes and in trails leading to and from their colonies. 

While Bigheaded Ants do not sting or cause any significant structural damage, they are known to make supercolonies if there is no intervention. Read on to learn what you can do to address Bigheaded Ants and what professional products work best to eliminate them. 

Identification

Before you can treat you need to make sure you're dealing with Bigheaded Ants and not another type of species. Misidentification can lead to using the wrong treatment products, resulting in wasted time and money. Bigheaded Ants are unique from other ant species because of it's large-sized head in proportion to the rest of their body. Below you can find the common characteristics that set Bigheaded Ants apart.

  • Bigheaded Ants have two types of workers: Major workers and Minor workers.
  • Minor workers are usually about 2 mm in length.
  • Major workers, are usually about 4 mm in length and have huge heads.
  • Both Major and Minor workers are reddish-brown to dark to almost black.
  • They have segmented antennae.
  • Mainly found in Australia as well as in Florida and Hawaii.

Use the image and description above to help you to properly identify Bigheaded Ants on your property. If you are still unsure, you can contact us with a high-quality closeup photo of the ant and we will try to identify the species for you.

Inspection

After you have confirmed that you are dealing with Bigheaded Ants, you need to perform an inspection. During this phase, you need to locate the areas where Bigheaded ants are found or the places where they are infesting so you know where to focus treatment.

Where To Inspect

Since Bigheaded ants rarely make colonies indoors, so start by inspecting outside. Search your yard, near trees, under logs, stones, bricks, under yard debris, leaf litter, and general clutter. Also search around the foundation under the slab, close to the pavement, in driveways. Search your structure for possible cracks and crevices where Bigheaded ants might enter.

Indoor search in bathrooms, kitchens, attics, and basements. In the bathroom, search around and underneath sinks, and where moisture collects. In the kitchen, check on countertops, near window frames, door frames, under appliances, and where crumbs usually collect.

What To Look For 

You're looking for ant foraging trails and colonies. Inspect your property in all the places mentioned above, and look for their foraging trails, if possible follow them back to their source. Since Big Headed Ants usually nest under the ground, this might lead you to an object you'll have to lift to look underneath, or to the side of the pavement.

Once you have identified a couple of areas you believe are the colony, or their foraging trails, this is where you will focus your chemical treatment.

Treatment

Once you have confirmed Bigheaded Ant Activity it is time to apply treatment. Remember to read all product labels and follow the application instructions on these labels, and stay safe by wearing personal protective equipment (PPE).

For the greatest success in getting rid of Bigheaded Ants, you need to treat both indoors and outdoors. We have found the most effective program to include Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules and Supreme IT Insecticide for treating areas outdoors and drenching ant mounds while indoors a combination of Fipro Foaming Aerosol and Ant-Trax Ant Bait works best.

Step 1 - Outdoor Treatment with Supreme IT

Bigheaded ants treatment reclaim it

Supreme IT is a powerful insecticide that will be used to drench colonies and to create a perimeter barrier around the foundation of your structure. This product has a residual (or long-term effects) that will last 90 days. It also works to repel and kill insects like Bigheaded ants.

Determine how much Supreme IT you will need to mix in your sprayer by measuring the square footage of your yard and property (measure and calculate length x width). 1 ounce of Supreme IT with a gallon of water will treat 1,000 square feet. Mix the appropriate amount of Supreme IT with water in your sprayer, shake well, and you're ready to apply.

Apply the Supreme IT mixture all around the perimeter of your structure by spraying 3 feet up and 3 feet out from the foundation of your structure. Spray all around the perimeter of the structure in this manner, while also spraying around window frames, door frames, eaves, soffits, rain gutters, garage doors, electrical/plumbing penetrations, and cracks and crevices.

Step 2 - Broadcast Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules

Spreading Bifen LP Granules

Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules is a granular insecticide that is labeled to treat many different lawn insects, including ants. This product has a residual effect that can last up to 3 months and can be broadcast over your entire yard to address the Bigheaded Ant infestation.

The typical application rate is 2.3 pounds of Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules to treat 1,000 square feet of lawn. To broadcast the Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules, you could use either a push spreader or a hand spreader like the Plantmates Scatterbox.

While both styles are easy to use, a broadcast may be better suited for larger lawns as it holds more granules than a hand spreader and can cover a lot of ground in a short amount of time. If you need to spread granules on a flowerbed, around trees or are covering a smaller area and want to do it quickly yet precisely, the Plantmates Scatterbox hand spreader is ideal.

After measuring the square footage of your lawn (measure and calculate your lawn's length x width), add the appropriate amount of Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules to your spreader and then broadcast it uniformly over your entire lawn while walking at a steady pace. Spread the granules in flower beds, around trees, and places where you have noticed ant activity.

Step 3 - Drenching Mounds with Supreme IT

Drenching ant hill

To drench colonies or nests that you are able to find, first, you'll want to spray all around the perimeter of the opening of the colony, to kill any ants that try to escape. Next, aim the sprayer directly on the mound and saturate with the product until it is completely drenched.

Step 4 - Indoor Treatment with Fipro Foaming Aerosol and Ant-Trax Ant Gel Bait

For actively foraging Bigheaded Ants, indoor treatment is essential. You will use two products: Fipro Foaming Aerosol and Ant-Trax Ant Bait. Both these products are non-repellents that work slowly and work as bait, allowing the ants to carry back the poison back to the colony, where further extermination of the whole population occurs. 

Fipro Foaming Aerosol

Fipro Aerosol

Fipro comes in ready to use aerosol can and has a unique foaming effect that is great for reaching ant in areas other pesticides cannot go. To use, simply inject the straw tube and apply in cracks and crevices where you have noticed Bigheaded Ant activity. Apply close to window frames, door frames, under the sinks (where plumbing penetrates the wall), to baseboards, and any small crack or crevice where you have noticed Bigheaded Ant activity.

Ant-Trax Ant Bait

ant trax treatment ant bait

Ant-Trax is an attractive ant bait product that comes in a convenient syringe for easy application. Ant-Trax will not be able to resist the formula and will take the bait back to their nest to share with the colony, and eventually, the whole population will succumb to the poison.

Apply at the rate of a pea-sized drop in areas where foraging trails are gound, separate each placement by at least one foot. Apply near window frames, door frames, on countertops, behind appliances, and where Bigheaded Ants are found.

With both these products remember not to kill the ants that appear or clean the areas (using cleaning supplies) where Fipro and Ant-Trax were applied. The point is to let the ants come in contact with the products and to bring them back to nest.

Allow 7 to 10 days to pass by and do not disturb the ants that come in contact with both products. During this time do not use cleaning supplies or disrupt their foraging trails.

Prevention

prevention big headed ant control

After eliminating the Bigheaded Ants, you need to make implement preventative measures to kill the chances of any reinfestation. Making changes to the environment to make it less friendly for Bigheaded ants is essential. 

  • Big-headed ants only come indoors when they are looking for food and love foods which are oily and greasy. Keep your home clean and wipe up any spills immediately. Also, store away your food in tight containers and take out your garbage regularly.  
  • Eliminating any possible entryways into your home by sealing up with caulk, or with our Black Out Pest Foam, will reduce the entry points Bigheaded ants have into your home.
  • Clean up around your yard, pick up general yard debris, like woodpiles, leaf litter, lumber, logs, stones, bricks, and other possible harborage areas.
  • Trim vegetation back away from your property to block access to your home.
  • And finally, use Supreme IT around the perimeter of your property every 90 days to maintain a protective barrier that will repel and kill ants.

Key Takeaways

What are Bigheaded Ants?

  • Bigheaded Ants are a unique species of ant that are known for the major worker ants having abnormally large heads.

How to Get Rid of Bigheaded Ants

  • An indoor/outdoor treatment program using Supreme IT, Valar Plus Bifenthrin Granules, Fipro Foaming Aerosol and Ant-Trax Ant Bait are essential for complete control of Bigheaded Ants.

Preventing Bigheaded Ant Reinfestation

  • Prevent Bigheaded Ant reinfestation by modifying your home so it's less welcoming to Bigheaded ants. Cleaning up regularly and sealing their entry points will go a long way in establishing lasting control.
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    Supreme IT Insecticide
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    Solutions Electric Sprayer 1.5 Gallon
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