Ants can enter any warm, dark, and moist place in the house, and the bathroom is one of the most suitable places for them to enter and live.
Why Are Ants Eating My Toilet Paper? Ants are attracted to toilet paper because the binding tape or glue contains sugar or protein ingredients. The moisture, leakage around the toilet, and the fragrances attract them, and they chew the toilet paper to get inside it. They can get inside its holder from the walls, cracks and holes, or windows.
People often complain about having hundreds of ants crawling over its roll. However, different types of insects can enter the bathroom, hide inside the roll, and get adequate moisture from this place.
Why are ants attracted to toilet paper?
They are attracted to the toilet paper inside your bathroom for many reasons.
Sugar-containing glue
Toilet paper is attached to the roll using different types of Kraft tape or glue, which can cause various insects to crawl over the paper roll.
These binding tapes or glue contain sugar or protein ingredients, attracting ants, as they love to eat sugar or protein-rich products.
The last sheet of the tissue is attached to the cupboard roll using animal-extracted gelatin.
It contains protein and sugar from collagens in animal bones, skin, and ligaments, which causes the insects to attract to the roll hanging on the holder.
Attracted to moisture
They can absorb moisture, as they are made using wood pulp, which is soft and prone to moisture absorption in humid environments.
The moisture and humidity level near the toilet area is high, and the chances of water splashing or moisture on the tissue roll when you flush the waste are also high.
This causes its soft texture to become damp over time due to poor ventilation and attracts many ants searching for water towards the holder.
They need an adequate amount of water or moisture to survive, and they also store it for their eggs and larvae. They suck moisture from the soft cellulose fibers used in manufacturing and return it to their colonies.
My friend often says that the ants are obsessed with toilet paper and are always present on or around the holder. We conclude that the reasons for their constant presence are moist or damp tissue rolls in the holder.
Leaks around the toilet
The plumbing pipes around the plumbing fixture can get leaks or cracks, which cause different insects to enter this place and find a suitable and moist environment to live in and survive.
You often notice them in your bathroom where excessive moisture or leaks occur because some ant species are the habitat of damp places.
A damp environment is their favorite, as they thrive in moist environments and prefer to lay eggs in warm and moist places. Therefore, the leaks around the plumbing fixture or near this area attract these insects.
Chew the toilet paper
They are made using wood fibers, pulp, and cellulose, which attract many ant species. They can chew it or make tiny holes in the sheets.
They cannot eat and digest the wood cellulose but can chew it to dig deeper holes inside to hide.
People often think they eat toilet paper because of the tiny holes they make inside the roll, but they spit the pieces out after digging inside it.
Fragrances inside the toilet paper
Manufacturers use different fragrances in toilet paper manufacturing to create a clean and pleasant environment inside the bathroom.
These fragrances can attract different bugs and insects, such as ants. They are attracted to it due to the sweet and fruity smells used in their manufacturing.
Therefore, you often notice these tiny insects on your clothes because of the perfume fragrance.
I put a sweet fragrance inside the holder, which caused hundreds of ants to roam around this place in search of food.
How do ants get inside the toilet paper?
They can enter any place, and toilet paper holder or dispenser is not an exception. They can get inside it by crawling through the wall where the toilet roll is present.
An outside opening above the wall can cause these insects to enter this place and get into the holder because they are always searching for a moist and warm place to reproduce and make colonies.
A window around this area can also cause them to get inside the toilet paper because of the sweet fragrance and moisture.
They can have a colony outside the window opening and enter this place to get water or searching food for the teammates and larvae.
The cracks on the walls when installing the holder or the dispenser can also cause them to make colonies in the holes or cracks and crawl over it.
Poor plumbing connections and cracked water supply pipes are other reasons to get ants inside this place and hide in the tissue roll.
Which types of ants eat toilet paper?
Different ant species are attracted to it, such as sugar, moisture, carpenter, and little black ants. Sugar ants are attracted to the sweet odors, and the sugar gum is used to stick the tissue sheet with the roll.
They have a strong sense of smell towards sugar-containing products and rapidly run to get food from such sources.
Carpenter ants and moisture ants can crawl over and chew the cardboard and tissues to get inside, as moisture attracts them.
I found little black ants on my toilet paper weeks ago, and panic to see many tiny insects coming out of the roll and sheet layers. Little black ants get attracted to different fragrances in the bathroom.
How to get rid of ants on your toilet paper?
You can use different methods and tricks to get rid of ants on it. Some tricks and techniques, which can help you, are listed below.
Store it inside a plastic bag
People often place or store toilet paper inside a ziplock or plastic bag to prevent insects and moisture from entering or damaging it.
The ziplock will keep the ants at bay and not allow the dampness and moisture to wet the roll, which also causes mold and fungus to grow.
Different types and sizes of plastic bags are available in the market, and you can select the one that fits the size of the roll.
Wipe it with a wet cloth
Professionals recommend wiping the area around the holder or dispenser with wet clothes to remove debris or dirt particles.
The dirt can cause the ants to enter this place and get inside it. Therefore, it is better to dry the area after cleaning it with a wet cloth to minimize the chances of ants returning to this place.
Fix the cracks and leaks
You can prevent them from entering this place and crawling over this roll by fixing the leaks and cracks around the plumbing fixture.
You can use silicone caulk or other sealing materials to fix the leakage problem or replace the leaked pipes to reduce moisture and humidity.
Fixing the cracks and leaks will block their entrance and existing ways and keep them away from this place because they do not find moisture or food source to thrive there.
Spray a natural ant repellant
People also use ant repellants, such as tea tree oil, vinegar, and chemical insecticides, to keep them away from toilet paper or the holder.
Pour vinegar inside the spray bottle and spray it around this area because vinegar is a natural repellant to keep these insects at bay.
Tea tree oil has a fragrance that can repel them and does not contain toxic chemicals to harm the user and the holder.
You can also use chemical insecticides after consulting the professionals or call them to inspect this place if you observe infestation around this area.
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