Carpenter Ants Aren’t Building, They Are Destroying

In America, there are about 24 pest species of carpenter ants. For this reason it can be very hard to figure out the kind of ant or even if it’s actually an ant. Many get confused with ants and termites. The color and size can vary from black, brown, yellow, red or orange.

What is it then?

Carpenter ants have 6 legs, a narrow waist, three distinct body regions and a circle of hairs at the tip of the abdomen and have an elbowed antenna.  However, termites have a straight antenna, a broad waist and both pair of wings is in similar length. If you have ants in your home, check out our page to learn more!

Workers for Who?

We all know, if we could just work efficiently like any ant, our world could do wonders. These ants work hard to excavate wood not to eat, but rather to create more space for the colony. They excavate the wood thoroughly that it will cause significant damage to structures and woodwork. They thrive in decayed wood for their nesting places because it gives them constant humidity. When their nesting place has remained in one place for several years, you will need to replace the wood. You will have to destroy their nesting place to beat them.

 

How Can You Find the Nest?

You can find the nest by following the trails of the worker ants. Look for a clean and smooth area in the infested area or slit-like windows in the wood structure. You can follow the trail and it will lead you to a pile of wood shavings below the opening. Right there is the start of several satellite colonies.

Doesn’t Hurt to Try

One way to get rid of them is by luring them with a natural pesticide that has sugar content. You place them near the trails and when one worker comes and takes a bite, they bring it to the queen. From then on, the queen will distribute it to the larvae and the other workers. The colony after a few days will die. However, one thing to keep in mind is that when satellite nests have been made in other locations, it can take a longer time to get rid of them.

 “The Boyz” the one and only.

These hard workers literally never end until they are killed. For this reason, only the professionals know how to get the best out of them. We may have been able to kill one colony, but we could only imagine how many more exist. As you kill one, in the same time they have made another colony. The best solution is the Southern Maryland Boys Pest Control. They can get rid of these pests and assess the wood structure if it needs to be replaced or not.

We totally want to imitate the values of these carpenter ants, but unfortunately they are working for the other team.