If you frequently get ants in your home, it might feel like there's almost nothing you can do to stop them. Keeping ant invasions to a minimum requires keeping ants away and uninterested in coming inside rather than trying to kill as many as possible; they are as numerous as they are persistent. But a little work can go a long way toward keeping ants away.

Remove Avenues of Entry

With as tiny as ants are, they can move just about anywhere. This makes keeping them out completely nearly impossible, but you can take some steps to remove some of their major points of entry.

To start, look for anything touching the outside of your house like tree branches and leaves or utility lines. Even if you keep the area surrounding your house clean, they can still come in from above, so make sure your trees are trimmed. If they're using utility lines to get in, see if they're using any gaps nearby that you can seal to keep them out. Otherwise, use deterrents to keep them away.

Next, check for cracks or gaps in your foundation, the surrounding concrete, windows and window seals, doors, and floorboards. Sometimes the ants will lead you right to gaps if you follow their trail. This likely won't keep all ants out, but it can take away easy access and make them decide that another food source is more appealing than whatever is inside your house.

Reduce Moisture Inside

Like most creatures, ants need to drink, and one thing that can draw them inside -- especially during hot summer months -- is the availability of water. If you have water glasses sitting around, sinks and counters that are constantly wet, a leaky faucet, or plants you water regularly, this can draw ants inside looking for a drink.

Do your best to keep things dry. There may be some sources of water you can't get rid of, like toilets or the soil for your plants or even water for your pets, but you can make them less accessible by sealing nearby gaps or setting dishes and plants higher up or away from walls and corners.

Remove Potential Ant Homes

Many ants make themselves at home in places you can't quite reach, like under your foundation and concrete walkways, but you can keep any other ants from making an easy home nearby. Remove any tree stumps and piles of brush near your home that can provide shelter for ants. If you have patches of dirt in areas surrounding your home, you can make it less hospitable by sprinkling diatomaceous earth over it. If you have an outdoor air conditioning condenser, make sure the area around it is clean and dry, as the moisture that drips from it may attract ants.

Also, take care to keep any potential temptations away from your home's immediate vicinity. For example, if you have a large trash, keep it farther away from your home, off any concrete, and away from anything that is touching your home. Contact a local pest control company today to learn more.