Have an ant infestation in your bathroom — or just notice those unwanted creepy crawlies popping up in the bathroom from time to time? While the kitchen may seem like a hub for bug activity, the bathroom is often one of the most common ant hotbeds, attracting seasonal visitors or, even, long-term infestations.

The reason behind your ant woes? Bathrooms are a perfect storms for these insects, with two common draws virtually always present: stagnant water and moisture, plus dead skin and hair cells. Both of these odor sources send signals to ants and their colonies, pulling them pests in through cracks in walls and floors or, even, open windows.

While keeping your bathroom clean and disinfected is a great first step in keeping ants at bay, moisture and skin/hair cells are inevitable in bathrooms — each time you bathe or shower, wash hands or brush your hair, you’re triggering these ant draws. Seeing one or two fleas every now and then does not mean you have an infestation. But when you can see them hopping around your pet or on your furniture, you’ve got a problem

The good news? It’s easy to keep simple ant infiltrations under control, and prevent them from becoming major infestations. A mixture of water and white vinegar sprayed along ants’ entrance points and trails can confuse colonies — the strong vinegar smell will mask scents from water and skin cells, making your bathroom seem less desirable. Don’t want the vinegar smell? Bay leaves, cinnamon, peppermint and cayenne pepper can have the same impact.

If you’ve got ants in the bathroom you aren’t alone. Given the moisture levels, dead skin and hair cells and constant activity, bathrooms are among the most common in-home spots for ants and other pests. Keeping your bathroom clean is, likely, not enough to curb serious problems — but any number of simple, scent-driven solutions can help keep ants out in the short- and long-term. If these go-to remedies aren’t enough, tap into the ant control expertise of Foundation Pest Control. Not only will they be able to banish ants in the bathroom now, but they’ll be able to create a plan to curb these common problems in the future.