Can I use old soil that has small ants coming in and out?

[JohnHerer]

Old soil is about five years old. I see some small ants ALIVE.

[Deepsuthern]

it shouldn't be much different than outdoor soil... however it may be lacking in some sort of nutrient.. check the ph of the soil before use, i'm not really sure if ants is beneficial or harmful to the grow process.. i would assume that they are neutral unless you have a huge colony of them

[Storm Crow]

Ants often bring aphids! They love the sweet secretions that the aphids make. Aphids, needless to say, are not good for your plants. Some ants grow fungi to eat. They cut leaves to grow the fungi on. Again, bad for your plants. I would stick the soil in a black bag, seal it and let it "cook" in the sun for a few hot days, turning every now and then to "cook" evenly. - Granny:hippy:

[blink_inc]

I'd spend six bucks and get fresh new soil.
Bug of anykind = bad news.