Last night while working at the kitchen sink I had two ants appear.  They were not tiny either.  I think they are coming from behind the dishwasher.  I put out two ant traps, and will go thru my cupboards today (I have very little processed food in my house).  Anything else I should try?

  I don't want to google ants as I know photos will come up and I will have nightmares.

There are lots of home remedies.I use those little antraps that you can get at the hardware store or Home Depot or wherever.

 I HATE those ants!!! I too freak a tad when they appear, I have had success with the Raid Ant Baits which I distribute in corners and under the radiator in my kitchen.

 

Ours are behaving themselves and staying for the most part out on the deck.
If they are big black ants these are carpenter ants ( Carpenter ants can be as small as one quarter inch or as large as three quarters of an inch) and the Raid bait traps and liquid stuff will not work on these. 
Seriously, if you have carpenter ants an inspection by a professional exterminator is needed. They can cause expensive damage to your home.
If the pest control guys cannot find the nest they have baited traps for this species that do work.  
Until you call them, try sprinkling little piles of regular laundry borax wherever you've see them.
Terro is effective for all types of ants (carpenter too)- you'd have to call around to see if your hardware stores sell it.

I used the glue traps because I have kids and a cat.  They usually emerge around baseboards etc I think, so I put one trap near the back of the stove and one on the baseboard under the dishwasher. 

The ants disappeared so I thought the traps were working, then they reappeared.  Then they disappeared for good so something worked!

Ants don't like mint so if you want a natural solution to use in the kitchen, try dried mint.  It can be messy but it works. I have used it to keep them away from the sugar bowl (now I keep the sugar bowl in the fridge if I have visitors who take sugar in their tea).  I have also used essential oil of peppermint on a scrap of papertowel, pushed into corners where I thought they might be coming in. 

If I see one running across the counter, I squish it with my hands (quickly, yuck!) I have become (nearly) immune to the yuck factor. I also use vinegar spray and make sure they don't get the news back to the nest.

Good luck with your problem.  Hope your traps work. 

After you squish em you wash down the counter with vinegar and make sure they don't get the news back to the nest? what news? that there's a mass murderer near by?   lol

Never heard of this before.

You are brave killing them with your bare hands, I always a tissue or paper towel corner to help with the deed.

 

 

That describes it well!  I guess I am a mass murder, given the chance.  You made me laugh with your reply!

Yes, there is a theory that the ants leave a trail behind for other ants to follow.  Also, they do take the news back to the nest (umm, maybe the news about mass murderers, if they live!)  

Squishing them by hand evolved out of the necessity for speed.  Yuck for sure, but the biggest thing is to watch that their dying act of revenge is not to bite me!!  I dump them in the sink or garbage as quick as I can.  They have very sharp hooks on their arms and legs, it seems, that allows them to hold on, even to skin. 

 

And small browns amassing on by curb beside the driveway. I was cruel outside - I poured boiling water to the nest and ended up killing a small patch of nearby grass; for  inside I just threw some mint leaves from my garden (I found some still growing) underneath the kitchen sink which is where they seemed to be coming from and they went away eventually. I used a small piece of scott towel to wipe off the counter - they were to big for me to squish with my bare hands!