How to Repel Ants with Cinnamon

You can use cinnamon powder, cinnamon oil or cinnamon sticks to repel ants. However, cinnamon does not kill the ants but only keeps them away and often the ants will find another route. ^{[1] X Research Source} Most other natural ways to repel ants work similarly, you can try several to find the one that works best.

Table of Contents

Chase ants with cinnamon

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Sprinkle cinnamon where there are ants. The simplest way is to take some cinnamon powder and sprinkle it on the places where you see ants entering the house. The strong smell of cinnamon will destroy the tracks left by the ants and they will not follow that path anymore. ^{[2] X Research Source}

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Create a barrier. Instead of spreading evenly, you can use cinnamon powder to draw a line so that the ants can’t get through. If you see ants entering in a specific location, you can dip a cotton swab in cinnamon powder and draw a long line to prevent the ants from entering that place again. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

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Use cinnamon essential oil. If you want a stronger remedy, try using cinnamon essential oil instead of cinnamon powder. Cinnamon essential oil has a much stronger effect. You can dip a cotton swab in cinnamon essential oil and apply it to areas where ants are present. ^{[4] X Research Sources}

Some essential oils can even kill ants. The simplest way is to mix essential oils with water and spray on ants around the house. ^{[5] X Research Sources}
You will use ¼ cup (60ml) of water and ¼ cup (60ml) of vodka. Vodka will help the essential oil solution dissolve better. However, if alcohol is not available, you can add an equal amount of water (¼ cup) and shake well before serving.
Add essential oils. You will use about 20-25 drops of cinnamon essential oil and shake well.
Try other essential oils. You will need 15 drops of tea tree oil, 15 drops of menthol and 7 drops of citrus essential oil (such as orange, lemon or lime essential oil) or you can substitute the citrus essential oil with 3 drops of essential oil. clove oil. Shake well.
However, if you use the solution in the place of food, you should replace the tea tree oil with more menthol.

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Sprinkle cinnamon sticks. A neater alternative is to use cinnamon sticks instead of cinnamon powder. You just need to spread cinnamon sticks around the entrance of the ants. In fact, you can leave cinnamon sticks anywhere ants appear. You can buy cinnamon sticks at the dry seasoning counter in the grocery store.

Use other natural ingredients

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Try white vinegar. Ants generally avoid the strong smell of vinegar. Put some vinegar in a spray bottle to use around the kitchen. Using vinegar is very safe. You just need to clean the kitchen table, then spray some vinegar on it and wait for it to dry. The vinegar smell will go away very quickly. ^{[6] X Research Sources}

If sprayed directly, vinegar can kill ants. ^{[7] X Research Sources}
Spray again if ants appear.

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Sprinkle with diatomaceous earth. Diatomaceous earth has been used as a natural ant repellent for many years. They do not contain harmful substances so they are safe for both children and pets. However, you need to use food safe, not the kind used to filter swimming pools, and just sprinkle around the area where the ants are. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

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Pour boiling water into the ant’s mouth. Using boiling water is also a way to reduce the number of ants. Boiling water will not kill the entire ant colony but only covers about ⅔ of the number of ants in the nest. You can use about 11L of water for a large anthill. ^{[9] X Research Source}

Be careful when using this method so as not to get burned by water or steam.

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Sprinkle bay leaves. Using bay leaves is a fairly old way of repelling ants. You can find bay leaves at a spice store, usually left whole (you can also buy powdered form). Spread this leaf where there are ants, usually the ants will not go to those places anymore. ^{[10] X Research Source}

Steps

Chase ants with cinnamon

Use other natural ingredients

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