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Blog: Ants in the Mailbox

Temporary ant nursery
Photo Credit
Heidi Stonehill
Heidi Stonehill
June 11, 2009
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A few weeks ago, I had a surprise one morning when I opened my mailbox to put in a letter. Inside were dozens of medium-sized black ants busily tending a nursery of a hundred or so cream-colored eggs.

Well, thank goodness for the Internet! I quickly scanned the Web to see if anyone else had this trouble, and sure enough, quite a few people did. They had recommended some courses of action and I tried several, just in case. Whether it was one method in particular or the combination of all that did the trick, the ants have not returned.

In case you ever have this happen to you, here is what worked for me:

  1. Clear out the ant nursery (Not a pleasant task. I felt sorry for the ants, but it had to be done).
  2. Wash the interior and outside of the mailbox, and upper part of post, with a liquid disinfectant.
  3. Wash with vinegar.
  4. Wash with soap and water (I used liquid hand soap).
  5. Place a fabric softener sheet inside the box, over any entrance holes (The mail certainly smelled fragrant the first day, but the scent faded after that).

Have you had an experience with ants in the mailbox? Share your tips with readers in the Reader Comments section below. Thank you!

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Comments

Donna Pandolfi (not verified)

2 years 1 month ago

Put a orange peeling in the mailbox. Worked wonders for me.

PETER J. MANN (not verified)

2 years 7 months ago

Spray the inside of mailbox with 409! Kills ants on contact. Wiped down the inside of mail box.

Jimmy friendricks (not verified)

2 years 7 months ago

I suddenly had ants and sugar in my mailbox and I whish whoever put them there had balls enough to just say to me there problem ...What Assholes.

John Nielsen (not verified)

2 years 8 months ago

I had them twice. Both times I simply used the garden hose and blasted them out. Never used any cleaners.

Sally (not verified)

2 years 11 months ago

I read this article first, and was disgusted by the thought of having to somehow remove the nursery, but ready to work myself up to it.

In the meantime, i read another tip that said, just make the environment unfriendly by leaving the mailbox open. They picked it because it was dark and secure. Change that.

I did this and checked back 2 hours later and there was NO TRACE of the ants or their eggs.

If you want to follow this up with washing the interior, then go for it, but save yourself the nightmare-inducing tasks of removing the ants and let them do the work for you.