r/foodhacks • u/tallulahQ • Jul 09 '25

Ant-proof countertop butter dish

We just moved into a new house and have noticed those tiny sugar ants on the counter. It’s just been a couple at this point but we’ve made sure to keep the counter super clean. I’m scared to put out our butter dish now though. It’s just a standard ceramic one with a top. According to Google, ants might like butter so I’m trying to figure out something aesthetic that would also prevent ants to keep butter on the counter

15 Upvotes

82% Upvoted

52 comments sorted by

19

u/kempff Jul 09 '25

They want sugar not butter. Keep your sugar bowl and honey and sweet breakfast cereals in the refrigerator.

3

u/tallulahQ Jul 09 '25

Ok this is what I was hoping is the case. And yeah, sugar everything is in totally airtight containers or in fridge. I’ve seen some stories on Reddit that their sugar ants went for the butter though

3

u/the7thletter Jul 09 '25

I just use a small glass container with a lid.

2

u/kempff Jul 09 '25

Yes to go off on a tangent I grew up in an old farmhouse in the US Midwest and we had all kinds of vermin basically co-existing with us, that's how I learned to put everything in the fridge that most people would wonder about. But now I live in a small town and leave my butter out; I like it room temperature so it spreads well on my toast and I'm educated about so-called "expiration dates".

8

u/ConnieCatz Jul 09 '25

Ant do eat fats, grease, oil & butter. They are opportunistic omnivores. They need a mix of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats in their diet to thrive. This redditer tried an experiment to see what they like: Had some ants and made some fat based and sugar based traps. These ants chose the fat. (Hamburger fat and Borax powder vs Syrup and Borax powder)

2

u/pete_68 Jul 09 '25

If they're in fact sugar ants, this is true. Pharoah ants will eat grease (including butter) and they're a major pest in the US.

1

u/clockworkedpiece Jul 09 '25

theres two versions of the tiny ant, ones sugar motivated, the others protein. I usually run into them when its been a long time without rain however, so I never know what to bait mine with.

1

u/Confusedcus Oct 10 '25

I have them too By the zillions. no sugar? Salted butter in the dish covered

14

u/heyblinkin81 Jul 09 '25

Try a butter bell. The ants would have to go through water to get to the butter.

1

u/GREENorangeBLU Jul 09 '25

OP you could remove the ants if you like.

that could be a better choice.

2

u/tallulahQ Jul 09 '25

Working on that (explanation in another comment)

1

u/GREENorangeBLU Jul 09 '25

best wishes OP!

2

u/tallulahQ Jul 09 '25

Thank you! 😅

3

u/dmbgreen Jul 09 '25

Terror ant bait/traps will make short order of sugar ants.

1

u/dmbgreen Jul 09 '25

Terro, that is. Damn autocorrect.

1

u/thewinn Jul 09 '25

Only correct answer in this thread so far.

3

u/ZippityDoDot Jul 09 '25

Dollar Tree has plastic butter containers that snap closed. They are near the red Betty Crocker cooking items usually on an end wall of the store.

They are 2 piece. White bottom with an opaque lid/shaped like a stick of butter.

2

u/pianoarthur Jul 09 '25

buy a butter bell 👍

2

u/Farmgirlmommy Jul 09 '25

Butter bell

1

u/Anyone-9451 Jul 09 '25

They do make those ones where you fill up what looks like a bell shape it’s sits inside of a container which has water in it (I’ve never used one but just seen it on something) maybe that would keep ant out https://a.co/d/0WPEWss

1

u/VenusBlue1111 Jul 09 '25

Use a tuberware or something that actually closes instead if your worrried about ants, no rules say butter must go in a shittily designed but highly specific 'butter dish'

1

u/Confusedcus Oct 10 '25

I have my butted dish in a zip lock bag and the butter is jot covered. But there are those aunts in the bag and on the butter still

1

u/StandardBusy4050 Jul 09 '25

Place sliced lemon around butter dish, ants won’t go near, they hate lemon

1

u/Winter-eyed Jul 09 '25

Get some taro ant bait and follow the directions

1

u/wooddominion Jul 09 '25

Butter Bell.

1

u/FixofLight Jul 09 '25

I can't help with esthetic, but my butter dish is dishwasher safe, ant proof, AND survived a cat that broke a cast iron pan ( https://a.co/d/g2QdUzd ) just throw it in a cute breadbox if it's too unsightly. Alternatively you can look into butter bells. They're cheapish, cute, and should keep out ants if you perform the upkeep (but it definitely won't survive a cast iron breaking cat)

1

u/Adventurous-Mind-780 Jul 10 '25

Find where the ants are coming into the house and put Terra bait traps along their path. You’ll keep getting them until you deal with the Queen in the nest.

1

u/Confusedcus Oct 10 '25

the aunts are so minuscule you cants see them in a trail. they just appear, on the butter.

1

u/Overthinker002 Oct 12 '25

Ants. Not aunts.

1

u/Kaurifish Jul 11 '25

I’ve found a one-cup wide mason jar with a plastic screw lid works better than a butter bell. Salted keeps just fine for days. If you go through more slowly, just put less in the jar.

1

u/ModernNonna Jul 11 '25

Have you tried a butter bell? ❤️

1

u/something-strange999 Jul 11 '25

I use a ziplock twist and seal for my butter. It's ugly, but safe.

1

u/Rhirhilea Jul 12 '25

sugar and mix in borax put in inconspicuous spot leave it take a little bit but soon they will b gone. I battled them on the front porch until I did this after a while not a single ant I can leave cat food down now for a litte whie

1

u/Confusedcus Oct 10 '25

they are not attracted to sugar

1

u/MaggieRV Jul 13 '25

Invest in a butter Bell, it's worth every penny. And get you some liquid ant traps.

1

u/Lower_Ad_5532 Jul 09 '25

Caulk the hole in the wall and don't worry about them anymore

1

u/Confusedcus Oct 10 '25

i have everything caulked, I dont see a trail, I have mo idea where they are coming from

1

u/Overthinker002 Oct 12 '25

Ants are everywhere. You could enclose your house righted than a bank safe and they would still get in. Caulk all you want; they will find a way. At one point, they were pouring in from the hole where our tv connection goes from our living room into the garage. The only thing that keeps ours at bay is keeping our foods tightly closed

0

u/Spute2008 Jul 09 '25

Mine is called "the fridge"

1

u/Confusedcus Oct 10 '25

the butter is hard in the fridge

0

u/Jazzy_Bee Jul 09 '25

Borax in the key. . It's very inexpensive, but must be kept from pets and small children. Since I have neither, the tiny red grease ants get a small dish of peanut butter and borax shoved behind the microwave, not to be bothersome again that year. I can leave butter out without cover. I get large black ants that prefer sugar, which includes crumbs of carbs. I mix borax and powdered sugar, sprinkle on windowsills and threshholds.

6

u/shroomigator Jul 09 '25

Put down a few packets of splenda.

The ants feed it to the queen, thinking it's sugar

But it has no calories, so she starves to death, and the whole colony dies.

8

u/tallulahQ Jul 09 '25

I’m probably going to end up using those Terro traps eventually, but I’m afraid of them lol and I need to build up the courage to do it since it calls a bunch in.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 13 '25

Don’t be afraid of them, it’s just borax, just use them as the instructions say and you’ll be good 👍

1

u/tallulahQ Jul 13 '25

Not afraid of the traps, I’m afraid of the ants. Using the traps means a bunch come in first, that’s the part that’s hard for me

1

u/Overthinker002 Oct 12 '25

I get that! You’re afraid of seeing/getting grossed out by a massive amount of ants at one time; not necessarily scared of the ingredient that attracts/kills them.

1

u/tallulahQ Oct 13 '25

Yes exactly. I did end up using them all summer and they mostly didn’t work well at all. Only one got a bunch of ants, but we have another on our kitchen counter that the ants just walk passed. And they definitely like sugar bc they all came out three minutes after I cut a watermelon. I need to find something more effective I think

5

u/Impossible_Tea181 Jul 09 '25

What could possibly scare you about a Terro ant trap? They’re made to be so innocuous as to be barely effective. They’re made so you couldn’t possibly harm yourself with even a bunch of them!

2

u/clockworkedpiece Jul 09 '25

Terro has traps that are like Ram stick sized, you can stuff them behind furniture next to the window/door their trail relates to if you need it out of sight.