Preventing ants

[HermansHermits]

Hello!

A few weeks ago I had an ant problem in my tank. I took care of it, new substrate, traps, etc.
Although I dislike putting traps out, there wasn’t anything that I could do. I have seen new ants around despite the traps. I took everything out of the room and deep cleaned the carpet and haven’t seen any since, but how do I prevent this from becoming an issue again in the future?

[JTKermie]

This has been a major concern of mine as well because a crabitat is such an enticing environment for them.

I've only been in the hobby about 8 months and so far so good, but with 4 kids, lots of other furry critters in the house and living mostly in the woods, we do get ants from time to time and I've had them set up shop in some of my aquarium equipment in the past.

IMO, best you can do is keep a close eye on the room your crab tank is in. Keep it free of crumbs and spills, etc. My hermit crab tanks are on a metal stand and the stand's feet are four 1" square tubes and a few inches off the floor. I could slather petroleum jelly around them and any cords and airlines that go up into the tanks if need be. Bad thing is, when you finally notice ants in your tank, it's very likely it's too late and you're going to be tearing the whole thing down.

[wodesorel]

Baiting is really the only preventative, as it will eventually kill the nest of any ant colonies close enough to send scouts that could find the tank. It's not a fast cure, they have to bring back enough bait where they all get poisoned. If it's a big nest it may take a few rounds. Treating around the outside of the house to form a barrier can also work, as it will ideally prevent entry.

I had an ant colony inside my crabitat several years back and it decimated my crab colony. I dislike baiting unless I have to (I do every summer in my bedroom for a couple of months ths because of wandering carpenter ants) and with my cats didn't feel comfortable going completely nuclear inside the main house. I've also been trying to go as organic as possible in my gardens so treating outdoors was also not something I was comfortable with anymore. My "cure" was moving my remaining crabs upstairs, which was enough as we've never seem more than a stray carpenter ant anywhere nearby.

[JTKermie]

In terms of baiting or insecticide use, the product I've used around or in my home for years is made by Bonide. It's called (or was called) "carpenter ant control" it's got big list of insects it works on. It's a liquid spray bottle product that is safe for indoor use. I've never had it not work on ants of any kind. I'll do a barrier around the outside perimeter of my house if I see some in the house, or spot spray the area I see them coming in/out from.

I didn't bring it up because the use of this type of thing tends to be highly frowned upon in the hermit crab keeping community. I understand why.