There’s Nothing Sweet About New Jersey ‘Sweet’ Ants

They’re called “sweet” ants because they emit a nauseatingly sweet rotten coconut odor when they’re crushed; but if odorous house ants  invade your New Jersey home, experienced Monmouth County NJ ant extermination professionals warn that you’ll find the experience more sour than sweet.

Odorous house ants have become the most common and most difficult to control ant species in New Jersey. About 1/16 inch long, or about the size of a single letter on this webpage, they live in massive multiple colonies that can number in the hundreds of thousands. Their minute size, prolific numbers and swarming behavior make odorous house ants a formidable foe when they invade Ocean County NJ homes.

To get an idea of the invasive force of these small insects, imagine every letter on this webpage suddenly turning into a tiny dark brown ant and swarming en masse over your kitchen counters and into your cupboards! Odorous house ants are so tiny that they can easily slip into sealed food boxes and plastic containers, fouling the contents; although you’re more likely to see them swarming in a writhing mass over dropped food or plates of food left on kitchen counters.

Should you discover a trail of odorous house ants snaking across your kitchen floor and into the trash can, your first instinct may be to reach for the insect spray. Don’t! While household sprays will kill a few dozen ants, you’ll force the colony to relocate, making it even harder to eliminate. Expert Monmouth County NJ ant exterminators  have the knowledge and tools to get rid of odorous house ants and keep them from coming back.