Ant Control in New Jersey

Arnold’s Pest Control has been providing ant control in New Jersey since 1952. Ant infestations are the most common call we get, and it’s easy to see why. A few ants in the kitchen can quickly grow into lines crawling through walls, under foundations, and across countertops in a few days. Most homeowners don’t realize the extent of the problem until it is already out of control.

Seven decades of crawling through basements and tracing trails back to the source means our team knows where ant colonies hide, how they spread, and how to get rid of them for good.

We often hear: “I’ve sprayed, and they just keep coming back.” That’s because store-bought products only kill the ants you see. The rest of the colony, including the queen, stays put. We go after the source.

Schedule an ant inspection and get rid of ants for good.

Ant control starts with identification

A treatment for pavement ants may exacerbate a pharaoh ant infestation, so ant identification is important. Here are the species we encounter most often:

Carpenter ants: The large ones. They excavate moist and decayed wood near foundations, windows, and decks for nesting galleries. Left unchecked, they can weaken structural timbers over time.

Odorous house ants: Small, dark, and drawn to anything sweet. Kitchens and pantries are their usual territory. Crush one and you’ll be able to identify it immediately by the distinctive rotten coconut smell. 

Pavement ants: Very common across central and northern New Jersey. You can spot their mounds of sand in sidewalk cracks and along driveways. They nest under concrete and masonry, then push inside through foundation cracks when looking for food.

Pharaoh ants: These are particularly difficult. When tackled with spray, a pharaoh ant colony will fracture into multiple colonies, a survival strategy known as budding. They thrive in warm indoor areas, especially in multi-family dwellings.

Other regional species: Depending on your property’s location, landscaping, and soil conditions, you may encounter acrobat ants, citronella ants, or other less common species. Correct identification is what lets us choose the most suitable approach first time around, saving you time and money.

Signs you have an ant infestation

Catching an ant problem early saves money and headaches. These are the things we tell homeowners to watch for:

• Ants moving along baseboards, countertops, or window sills, especially around the kitchen and bathroom
• Fine sawdust or wood shavings collecting near baseboards, a telltale sign of carpenter ants chewing galleries inside your walls
• Small dirt mounds near the foundation, along the driveway, or in sidewalk joints
• More ant activity in the evening than during the day, which is typical of several NJ species

If any of these sound familiar, the colony has already settled in nearby. Acting early means a simpler, less expensive treatment.

Why ants keep coming back

This drives just about everyone who tries to tackle ants themselves crazy. A spray may kill the ants on a counter, but another line shows up within a day or two. Once a colony has identified a food source, it will keep sending more ants in that direction. The nest is still there, the scouts keep coming, and the moment one finds food again it lays a fresh pheromone trail for the rest to follow.

It can go from bad to worse. Certain species such as pharaoh ants can react to surface sprays by dividing into multiple new colonies. You may have started with a single nest, but now you have many, and they have moved to locations that you are unable to reach. Colonies located in wall voids, below a concrete slab, or buried in the ground can sustain tens of thousands of ants without you knowing.

Leaking pipes and poor drainage provide the sort of habitats ants thrive in. Getting rid of ants for good means removing the entire colony and dealing with conditions like these that attracted them.

How Arnold’s ant control works

First we do an inspection of the site, inside and out, top to bottom. We identify what species you are dealing with, where the entry points are, and where the nests are located. 

When we know what we’re dealing with, we address removal of the colony itself. This might involve slow-acting bait that foragers carry back to the nest, a perimeter treatment that ants track into the colony without knowing, or direct treatment of a nest we have already located in a wall void or under a slab. The best approach depends on the species and where the colony is.

We also guide you through preventive measures: where to seal, what to repair, how to manage your environment to minimize the chances of the ants coming back. 

And if they come back, we come back. That’s the Arnold’s guarantee.

Frequently asked questions

What will keep ants away permanently?

No single treatment keeps ants away forever. What works long-term is eliminating the current colony at the source, then removing what drew them in. That means professional baiting that reaches the queen and the brood, not just the foragers on your counter. It also means sealing foundation cracks, fixing leaks, and cutting back vegetation against the house. Remove the nest and the conditions that created it, and most homeowners don’t see them come back.

How do I get rid of ants completely?

Start with identification, because the treatment that works on carpenter ants will not work on pharaoh ants, and the wrong approach can make things worse. Next, locate the colony. Treating only the ants you can see leaves the nest intact and the problem unsolved. Over-the-counter sprays are rarely effective, and with some species they can trigger budding, where one colony splits into several. A professional inspection identifies the species, finds the nest, and treats the source rather than the symptoms.

What is an ant’s worst enemy?

Ants have plenty of natural enemies: spiders, birds, and rival ant colonies. For a homeowner, the most effective enemy is slow-acting bait. Workers carry it back to the nest, where it is shared with the rest of the colony, including the queen. That is how you end the cycle of infestations rather than just interrupt it.

Get a targeted ant treatment plan from Arnold’s Pest Control — call us or request your free quote.