We get many questions asking how to get rid of ants, in particular carpenter ants. You’d think that as a pest control business owner this would be a trusted secret, but in fact it’s not. I’d be more than happy to explain to the masses how to get rid of ants. If you’re a CT resident and have trouble you can always call us and we’d be happy to do it for you.
A few quick things you should know first before you try to get rid of ants:
- Not all carpenter ant nests are easy to find especially if they’re in a wall
- The ants may possibly just coming from inside
- If you see ants year after year there’s a good bet the nest is inside a wall.
Step 1. Make sure that what you’re dealing with is actually a carpenter ant. In CT we have several different kinds of ants. Our state is home to carpenter ants, pavement ants as well as odorous house ants and little black ants. In order to ascertain what type of ant you have you’ll need to examine the ant and look for a node. It’s triangular and located between the 2nd and 3rd body sections. If the node is present then it’s a carpenter ant. Next, the carpenter ant can be all black, black and silver or red and black. Last, carpenter ants range in size from 6-12 mm.
Step 2. Look for frass. The term frass is the technical name for the sawdust carpenter ants create when they chew through wood. It has the consistency of pencil shavings with bits and pieces of insulation and insect body parts mixed in. Once you find frass, the nest is likely not too far behind. For instance, if you find frass under a window the nest is likely located in the window frame.
Step 3. Look for water damaged areas. Carpenter ants build satellite nests in dry wall cavities, but prefer water damaged wood. Pay special attention to door frames, window frames and other areas that collect moisture.
Step 4. You found where the ants are coming from. At this point you have 3 choices on how to get rid of ants.
- Rip open the wall, door frame or window frame and vacuum the ants out.
- Purchase an insecticidal dust call Drione and inject it into the nest.
- Purchase a product called PT 565 and use the aerosol to flush and kill on contact all the ants.
Step 5. Spray the outside foundation of your home paying particular attention to the area where the siding meets the top of the foundation. Also, patrol the yard looking for trees within 300 ft of the house and look for ants going up and down. Treat the tree with and appropriately labeled insecticide. This method is sure to get rid of ants.
If you have problems, please call 1-888-879-6481. Envirocare Pest Control can help.