How to Get Rid of Ants With Chalk?

Getting rid of ants with chalk is a natural and effective way to help keep ants away. Chalk is made up of calcium carbonate, which is believed to repel ants when they come across it due to the unpleasant taste. To use chalk to get rid of ants, simply draw a line of chalk around the area where you’ve spotted ants and they should avoid the area. Additionally, you can also try sprinkling baking soda or cayenne pepper near the ant activity as these are also believed to be irritating to ants.

It happens every year, late spring, early summer-the ant brigade returns to my garage. Last year I researched how to get rid of ants without killing them. Vegan here! Hey, hi! Yes, even ants deserve to live.

Besides, ants are actually crucial to our ecosystem! I found several articles with ant deterring solutions, but I found one recurring theme very intriguing. It said that you could get rid of ants with chalk.

Why chalk? What’s in it that ants don’t like? Can I use it without killing them? First, let’s discover what chalk is made of.

What’s in Chalk?

Chalk is made mostly of calcium carbonate or calcium sulfate. Of course, colored chalk will have some dyes included. Sidewalk chalk, the type I used to send my ants marching, is typically made out of calcium sulfate. Calcium sulfate is gypsum, a mineral found in the layers of sedimentary rock. The gypsum is finely pulverized, mixed with a binder and water, and then formed into cylinders and baked.

How Does Chalk Get Rid of Ants?

At first, I thought that ants hate chalk and that’s why they stayed away from it. However, after seeing some ants attempt to cross the chalk line and seem perfectly fine, I knew there must be another explanation. Although it is unclear exactly why ants tend to star clear of chalk, it is thought that the chalk disrupts the scent line or “pheromone trail” for the ants.

For instance, if I had a piece of food in my garage that one or 2 of the ants found, but the other ants are not able to pick up the scent of the ones that found the food, they will have no reason to cross the line.

Does a Chalk Line Actually Work or is it a Myth?

When you search Google for ” How to get rid of ants with chalk”, one of the first articles that pops up is about how using chalk is a myth.

I can only speak from my experience, but it definitely worked for me. I don’t know what the ants found in my garage that they liked. There was nothing visible that I could see that they would be attracted to.

But 2 years in a row, they showed up in masses to the same location. And 2 years in a row, I wrote “No Ants Past Here!” in bold letters and underlined it. It took about 2 hours for the ants to go away and they have not returned yet.

The pictures below are not great quality, but in the first one you can see the ants congregating, and in the 2nd picture, they are completely gone. (If you zoom in you will be able to see the ants more clearly).

I have read that drawing chalk lines to deter ants is a myth because they will just find another way around.

In my experience, this was not the case. Maybe they were just incredibly respectful ants that wanted to follow my rules!

What are Other Natural Ant Deterrents?

If chalk doesn’t work for you, or the ants are starting to come inside your house, there are plenty of other natural ways to get rid of ants.

Clean Your Home

First of all, it is imperative that you keep crumbs off the floors and countertops if you have ant problems in your home. Ants are drawn to food and they make sure to tell all of their friends about it!

Lemons or Vinegar

Ants don’t like sour or bitter smells. You can spray lemon juice or vinegar around the ants and even clean the countertops or floors with a vinegar solution. If your home is free of crumbs and smelling sour, the ants will have no reason to stick around.

Black Pepper or Cayenne Pepper

Sprinkle black pepper or cayenne pepper where the ants are congregating or by entryways to your home. Ants can’t stand pepper.

Mint

Like pepper, ants can’t stand the smell of mint. You could use mint plants around the entryways to your home or place peppermint essential oil on cotton balls near where the ants are gathering.

How do You Get Rid of Ants!

What has worked for you to deter ants? Are there any natural remedies that you swear by? Let us know in the comments! Don’t forget to subscribe below to get vegan tips and tricks straight to your email box!