Ant Control
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Ant Extermination Services
Stride Pest Control provides ant control for homes and businesses across Central Texas, where fire ants take over yards and carpenter ants, odorous house ants, and crazy ants push their way indoors. Ants are hard to beat on your own because the ants you see are a small fraction of a colony that can hold tens of thousands more, with a queen you never reach.
Stride treats ants through the Stride Forward integrated pest management process, and the first step is always identifying the species. The right treatment for fire ants in the yard is completely different from what stops odorous house ants trailing across a kitchen counter.
Every treatment is backed by a same-day service option and a satisfaction guarantee, and the products we use are odorless and colorless once dry. Because carpenter ant damage is easy to mistake for termites, Stride also handles termite control, along with general pest control for the wider picture around your property.
Common Ants In Central Texas
Central Texas is home to several ant species, and telling them apart matters because each one calls for a different treatment. These are the ants Stride treats most.
| Ant | What To Know |
|---|---|
| Red imported fire ant | Builds dome-shaped dirt mounds in the yard and stings aggressively when disturbed. The biggest ant threat to people and pets. |
| Carpenter ant | Large and dark. Tunnels into moist or damaged wood to nest and leaves sawdust-like shavings behind. Does not eat wood the way termites do. |
| Odorous house ant | Small and brown. Trails indoors for food and water and gives off a rotten-coconut smell when crushed. Colonies split easily, which makes them persistent. |
| Tawny crazy ant | Moves fast and erratically in huge numbers. Swarms outdoor electrical equipment and overwhelms yards. |
| Acrobat ant | Raises its abdomen over its head when disturbed. Nests in moist wood, wall voids, and foam insulation. |
The red imported fire ant is the one most Central Texas homeowners deal with, and it takes a different approach than the ants that trail indoors, which is why Stride identifies the species before treating.
Stride treats every ant species in Central Texas. For the ant you are dealing with, see our dedicated pages: carpenter ants, fire ants, acrobat ants, odorous house ants, pavement ants, pharaoh ants, tawny crazy ants, rover ants, and leafcutter ants.
Signs You Have Ants
Ants leave clear signs once a colony settles in or around a home:
- Trails of ants moving to and from a food or water source, often along baseboards, counters, or the foundation.
- Dirt mounds in the yard, the telltale sign of fire ants, which can appear overnight after rain.
- Sawdust-like shavings near wood trim or window frames, a sign carpenter ants are tunneling nearby.
- Winged ants indoors, which means a colony has matured and is sending out swarmers to start new ones.
- A faint rotten-coconut smell when a small brown ant is crushed, which points to odorous house ants.
Are Ants Dangerous?
Most ants are a nuisance, but a few carry real risk. Red imported fire ants are the main concern in Central Texas. Their sting leaves a burning welt and a white pustule, and for people with an allergy it can trigger a serious reaction. Fire ants are especially dangerous to small children, the elderly, and pets that disturb a mound.
Carpenter ants pose a different threat. They tunnel through moist or damaged wood to build nests, and over time that weakens the wood around windows, doors, and rooflines. Their presence also signals a moisture problem worth fixing.
Ants that trail through a kitchen contaminate food as they go, walking across counters and into pantries. Tawny crazy ants add another problem, packing into outdoor electrical equipment in numbers large enough to cause shorts and failures.
How We Get Rid of Ants
Stride treats ants through the five-step Stride Forward process, and because ant species differ so much, identification drives everything that follows:
- Inspect. We follow the trails, find the mounds and nest sites, and check the moisture and entry points that draw ants in.
- Identify. We confirm the species, because fire ants in the yard, carpenter ants in the wood, and odorous house ants on the counter each need a different plan.
- Recommend. We point out the moisture, gaps, and food sources feeding the colony, and the fixes that keep ants from returning.
- Treat. For fire ants we use the Texas A&M AgriLife two-step method, broadcasting bait across the yard and treating mounds directly. Indoors we use baits and non-repellent products that ants carry back to the queen, rather than sprays that scatter a colony and make it worse.
- Evaluate. We monitor on recurring visits, because a single treatment rarely reaches every satellite nest.
Our GreenPro certification guides this reduced-risk approach, and every product is pet-safe once dry.
How to Keep Ants Away
Keeping ants out comes down to cutting off the food, water, and entry points that draw them in:
- Seal entry points around doors, windows, pipes, and the foundation where ants trail inside.
- Clean up food sources by wiping counters, sealing food, and taking out the trash, since ants forage for crumbs and spills.
- Fix moisture from leaks and poor drainage, which draws odorous house ants and carpenter ants.
- Trim plants and branches touching the house, which ants use as bridges to the roofline.
- Move mulch and wood piles back from the foundation and keep firewood off the ground.
- Treat fire ant mounds early in the yard before they spread and split into new colonies.
Ant Control Frequently Asked Questions
Why do I have ants when my house is clean?
Ants come inside for food, water, and shelter, not because a home is dirty. A little moisture or a few crumbs is enough, and during heat or heavy rain ants move indoors no matter how clean the house is.
Why do ants come back worse after I spray them?
Over-the-counter sprays kill the ants you see, but they signal some species, like odorous house ants, to split the colony into several new ones. The queens survive underground or in walls, so the trail returns larger. Baiting reaches the queen instead of scattering the colony.
How do I tell carpenter ants from termites?
Carpenter ants have a pinched waist, bent antennae, and push sawdust-like shavings out of their tunnels. Termites have a straight body, straight antennae, and build mud tubes while eating the wood itself. Carpenter ants tunnel through wood but do not eat it.
Does knocking down a fire ant mound get rid of the colony?
Knocking down a fire ant mound does not kill the colony. The mound is only the surface of a nest that runs deep underground, and the queen keeps producing workers. Disturbing a mound often just makes the ants move a few feet away and rebuild.
THE STRIDE FORWARD PROGRAM
Our Strategic ECO-BASED Protocol
Stride Forward is our Integrated Pest Management program where we partner with our clients in the long-term removal and prevention of pests. Keeping your property free of unwanted insects and rodents works best when we work together.
The program combines habitat manipulation, biological control, cultural behavior changes, and the targeted use of products designed to repel or eradicate pests. Our approach follows five steps, with non-chemical methods prioritized before any product application.
Our Certifications & Awards
Stride Pest Control holds QualityPro and GreenPro certifications through the NPMA’s Foundation for Professional Pest Management, and fewer than 3% of pest control companies nationwide hold both. QualityPro requires background checks on every service member, a drug-free workplace, and 16 standards that exceed state and federal requirements.
Our Austin and Round Rock office operates under Texas Department of Agriculture license TPCL #667951, with Burton Johnston as Responsible Certified Applicator. Our San Antonio office operates under TPCL #827449, with Alex Randall as Responsible Certified Applicator. Our office manager, Michael Honeycutt, is an Associate Certified Entomologist through the Entomological Society of America.
Founded in 2013, we have served nearly 12,000 customers across Central Texas and hold a 4.9-star rating across 2,400+ reviews with an A+ from the BBB.
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Stride Pest Control received an average rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars
based on 2,400+ reviews.
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4.9 stars across 2,400+ reviews | QualityPro certified | Satisfaction guaranteed