Carpenter Ants
CARPENTER ANTS - commonly called wood ants and termite ants due to their habit of nesting in wood like termites and Carpenter Bees. But like the Carpenter Bee they don't eat the wood, they just tunnel into it for nest building. This ant is pretty much found all over. It is another difficult pest because you need to find its nest for a complete kill and that can be difficult unless you use a bait product.
Biology - Workers are large, up to 12.5 mm long and are black or red and black in color depending on the specie. These ants are general feeders and do not eat the wood they are in but can still cause serious damage.
Nests and Habits - They build their nests in places like the dead heartwood of living trees, logs, house timbers, poles, and almost any other wood material. They are most destructive in soft woods. Their tunnels generally run parallel and lengthwise with the grain of the wood. Other shorter tunnels run in between to connect the longer ones. Evidence of an infestation is their powdery frass (wood shavings), dead ants or body parts expelled from the nest, trails of ants, or the damaged wood itself. They are generally nocturnal so inspecting at night with a flashlight usually works better to find them and follow them back to their nest.
Control - Try to keep trees and shrubs away from the structure so they don't use them as bridges. To help control ants baits are a good choice and there are a few to choose from. Advance Granular Carpenter Ant Bait is a real good choice. Maxforce and Niban granular baits are very good baits for ants and other insects. A residual dust such as Delta Dust and EcoEXEMPT D Dust is also a good choice for void and nest treatments if you can find them. You can also use an aerosol called PT-565 Plus XLO if you find the void or area of their nest, it is an aerosol that can be used as a fogger and as a crack and crevice injector so you can fill the void where you think they are. This will usually get to their nest and wipe them out. Another great choice is Termidor, a newer chemical that works differently. It is applied outside along the foundation and around any other entry point such as doors, windows, vents, pipes, and especially the joint where any siding meets the foundation. The ants walk right on through it because it is non repellent so they do not even know it is there. It gets on them and they take it back to the colony where it gets shared through grooming and contact, thus wiping out the colony. Liquid residual type insecticides and aerosols will also kill ants indoors and out but are usually only a quick fix. You seldom get the colony, unless you are lucky and find it, so the problem usually comes back. But these are good to have when you need that quick kill for instant relief. Some good residual concentrate choices are Onslaught, Talstar Pro, Demand CS, Suspend SC, Demon WP, and Cynoff WP. Some good residual aerosol choices are PT Cy-Kick, PT 221L, CB Invader, CB Intruder, CB D-Force, and EcoPCO AR-X. All are excellent with long residual activity and should work for weeks depending on conditions such as rainfall, temperature, etc. Always remember to read all chemical labeling before using.
Geographic Location(s): Found nation wide in homes, trees, or any wood structure.
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