How to Get Rid of Ants
Ahh! Why are there ants in my home? One of our GEMS Owners had this very problem. Her home became a scene for Pixar’s A Bug’s Life movie… and not in a cute cartoon way.
When we sent our technician out to do the bi-annual ice maker service (yes, you are supposed to have them serviced 2x a year), he noticed ants coming out from under her ice maker. As she had lived in her home for years and the ice maker was located in the middle of her home, they wondered how the intruders were able to get into her home.
Hidden Problem
Our technician removed the ice maker. He discovered an abandoned floor drain underneath the ice maker that someone had left unsealed! Floor drains are similar to shower drains. Sometimes, installers place them under appliances (such as ice makers), so excess water can drain out of the house. In this case, the ice maker had a pump which pumped water into the adjoining sink drain. The floor drain was capped off but it not properly sealed off!
As you can see by the picture, the builder (not us – we did not build this house) failed to properly seal off the foundation penetration. Builder must concrete in floor drains to properly seal them. By not sealing in the drain, this allowed open access to the soil under the house. Once ants discovered moisture from the ice maker, they made a conga line to it, infesting the unit and the home.
Our GEMS team was able to seal up the foundation penetration which will keep future ant invasions from occurring. Plus, our appliance techs got the ice maker back up and running. Now our Owners can enjoy their scotch on the rocks without the extra protein.
Having a GEMS membership is not only about attending to preventive and care maintenance issues for your home; it is also about getting priority attention to issues that require sudden action. So, regardless if Garabedian Properties built your house or not, with a GEMS membership, we are there to support your family even when an ant army invades.
