Ants In Dishwasher – How To Fix!

Last Updated on May 21, 2022 by

Any homeowner will be surprised to see ants in their kitchen. Finding them in your dishwasher might be an even more unpleasant surprise! Part of what makes the dishwasher such a surprising ant haven is that you’d think the whole flooding-with-hot-water thing would make it a bad place for them to stay. But how do you get rid of them?

To get rid of ants in the dishwasher, you must first locate and shut their access sites. The issue will be remedied by adding boric acid or vinegar and running the dishwasher on an empty program. Finally, place ant baits about the kitchen to eliminate the ant population nearby.

Why Are There Ants In The Dishwasher?

The major reason ants enter your dishwasher is because it functions as a banquet hall for them! When you put anything in there, it generally has some food residue. Because dishes normally remain in the dishwasher for a couple of days before you run a full load and empty it, it’s an excellent area for ants to plunder.

Because the dishwasher gets drenched with hot water every time you use it, you may imagine it would be a terrible and lethal feast for the ants. On the other hand, Ants may easily hide in gaps while the dishwasher is running, keeping them safe in the meantime. Ants may also sneak inside the dishwasher very easily. It has a lot of crevices and seams, making it simple for the ants to get in and out of their new favorite eating location.

How to Get Ants Out of the Dishwasher

1. Pour Vinegar And Baking Soda Down The Drain

Vinegar is a natural pesticide that may also be used to kill ants. It masks the odor of food, ensuring that ants are no longer drawn to your dishwasher. When baking soda and vinegar are mixed, a chemical reaction occurs, resulting in foaming. 

This will aid in the removal of any residue in the pipes that may bring sewer ants into your dishwasher. Begin by mixing 1/2 cup baking soda with 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar. After 10-15 minutes, flush the drain with hot water. This will complete the removal of the residue from the drain.

2. Clean Your Kitchen

Ants are unlikely to have come into your kitchen alone to use the dishwasher. Ants usually enter your dishwasher after seeing food nearby. Ants have plenty of places to live in kitchens. There are food scraps all around! Crumbs, spills, and other messes may easily sustain an expanding population. That is why so many people want assistance in removing ants from their kitchens.

You must follow a stringent cleaning schedule to keep ants away from your dishwasher. Remove any messes and anything else that can attract ants to the area.

3. Set Ant Trap

Ant bait traps will come in helpful whether you determine the location of neighboring nests or not. Bait differs from contact-based pesticides in how it acts. These goods entice ants to return to the colony by providing a consistent food supply. They have no idea that the meal has been loaded with slow-acting poison!

An ant that eats the meal might take up to 48 hours to die from the toxin. Bait traps may eliminate whole colonies over time. You have a lot of bait choices. If you prefer to keep things simple, commercial items are available. You may, however, create your DIY solution.

Homemade baits allow you to tailor the formula to the ant species you want to eliminate. Set up a couple of traps near the dishwasher and well-traveled scent pathways. Then wait for the ants to perish.

How Are Ants Getting In My Dishwasher

Ants do not need much room to enter; for example, a little hole or crack is all they need to go into anything, even your dishwasher. Also, look at the rear of the dishwasher for any crevices that ants may exploit as access opportunities.

They might be coming in via the plumbing holes, the dishwasher’s side vent, or the bottom kick plate. Not to mention that most people leave the dishwasher doors often open, making it simple for neighboring ants to detect the scent of food and follow it to the dishwasher.

What To Do If They’re Behind The Dishwasher?

You have to be concerned about more than simply ants in the dishwasher. These bugs might sometimes emerge from under the appliance. Finding ants beneath the dishwasher usually indicates an active nest within your house. They’ve taken up residence in your walls or flooring, making treatment more difficult.

Setting up several bait traps is the most effective technique to eliminate these ants. Use several formulae to guarantee that all of the ants in the colony perish. You may be more proactive in preventing future issues when the population has died down a little. Consider removing the dishwasher’s kick plate or moving the complete appliance temporarily. Taking the dishwasher away might show the ants’ access location.

Pharaoh ants are also somewhat prevalent. Because this species likes to make nests out of spit, any little hole or crack may be transformed into a bustling network of tunnels.

Remove any leftover ants and repair any structural problems before reinstalling the dishwasher. To maintain the space pest-free, replace any decaying materials and patch any gaps.

Is It Possible for Ants to Damage the Dishwasher?

Ant infestations are usually just annoying, and they don’t do much damage to the dishwasher. However, if you have carpenter ants in your dishwasher, they could be nesting in the void behind it or any moist or rotten wood nearby.

Carpenter ants eat through wood and leave handfuls of sawdust behind, and their colonies can quickly grow. If you don’t handle them properly, they can turn into a serious problem in weeks.

Types Of Ants You’ll Usually Find In Dishwashers

Ants are more complicated than most people believe. There isn’t a single species that finds its way inside dishwashers (and homes). There are many! Not only that, but each ant species has its distinct behavior.

To eliminate infestations, you must first identify the kind of ant. Here are some of the most frequent ones you’ll discover in dishwashers, along with some suggestions for getting rid of them.

Carpenter Ants 

Carpenter ants enjoy damp, humid conditions, which makes the area surrounding the dishwasher ideal for them. Carpenter ants build their nests in decaying wood and the heaps of sawdust that they leave behind make it easy to recognize an infestation.

Carpenter ants are huge, particularly when contrasted to little black ants. They are generally dark brown or black in appearance and range in length from 1/4 to 3/8 inch. If you have carpenter ants in your dishwasher, you must discover and eradicate the nest as soon as possible since their colony may rapidly develop in size. A carpenter ant colony may grow to 50,000 individuals in only a few weeks if left unchecked.

Black Ants

Black ants are black in appearance, as their name implies, and you can tell whether you’re dealing with small black ants or carpenter ants based on their size. The latter is much larger.

The dark brown to black colored little black ants are around 1/16 inch long. Their primary food source is other dead or living insects. However, they often enter homes in quest of food since grease and oil attract them.

Black ants are rather prevalent because there is so much oil residue within the dishwasher. Use the above-recommended techniques to get rid of black ants in the dishwasher, and maintain your dishwasher and kitchen clean at all times to prevent them from returning.

Pharaoh Ants

Pharaoh ants are three millimeters long and reddish-brown or yellow. They love to dwell in damp environments. Because of the closeness to the water, this species often establishes colonies beneath a dishwasher.

Pharaoh ants make tunnels out of their spit rather than sand and mud. Consequently, they may build nests in any space they come across. When it comes to pharaoh ants, you must be cautious. These bugs divide up into tiny colonies when treated with pesticides. If you use sprays or powders to kill them, you may unintentionally spread the infestation. Setting up traps is the most acceptable strategy for achieving achievement.

Argentine Ants

Argentine ants are 1/8 inch long and dark brown or black. Argentine ants like wet regions with mulch or logs to hide in. They devour delicious honey and insects such as aphids near fruit plants. They form many sub colonies and are difficult to manage. These ants are the most likely to climb inside your dishwasher down the drain.

Conclusion on Ants In Dishwasher

Ants will make their way inside your dishwasher in search of a free meal. Fortunately, several natural solutions should effectively repel or kill the ants infesting your equipment. It is preferable to keep your kitchen clean of any food residue or debris, regardless of the kind of ants you have. It is not recommended to use harmful chemical pest control such as Raid until all other natural options have been exhausted.