Carpenter Ant Control MN | Minnesota Ant Pest Control
Once again, it is a good spring for carpenter ants. Activity by these common, widespread and abundant ants is very noticeable in the springtime, as the wingless workers work (enlarge nests, forage for food, care for the larvae) and the winged swarmers swarm (fly off to start new colonies).
Control of carpenter ants remains a frustrating and difficult job. The easily-stated, straight forward theory of control is to put a small amount of household insecticide spray or dust directly into the ant nest. This would be much easier to do if the nests were conspicuous and easy to locate. Nests may be outdoors in stumps, logs, hollow trees, dead limbs or firewood and they may be a hundred feet or more from the house where the ants are invading in search or food. Nests may also be inside the house in sites as diverse as wall studs, window sills, wood flooring, rafters, roof sheathing and the interior spaces of hollow-core doors.
The standard ‘tricks’ for locating carpenter ant nests are:
- check areas of past or present moisture damage where ants are most likely to nest
- look for piles of coarse sawdust discarded from the nest
- patiently observe ants to see if you can determine where they are going to or coming from
Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ant foraging activity peaks at sundown during the spring, so the best time now to follow ants begins at dusk. Foraging activity in the summer peaks at sunup, and foraging by indoor colonies in the winter is highly variable with slightly more activity during the day. These types of ants will build their nests in the voids in walls and also in-between floor joists. The damage from carpenter ants will happen when they expand their nests, which will damage the surrounding structure. These types of ants are unlike termites as they do not consume the wood but look for food outside of their nests. The best time to look for carpenter ants is when the weather is warm, as you can see ant trails between your house and the outside when the ants are looking for food to bring back to the nest.
MN Ant Control Services
The potential damage of carpenter ants to a home, building or other structures may depend on the number of nests that are present within one area. Although the damage caused by carpenter ant nests is not as severe as that caused by termites, the longer the infestation remains untreated the more damage can result. For that reason, it is important to locate carpenter ant nests early.
If you positively identify a carpenter nest infestation within your home, it is best to contact a Minnesota pest control expert to assist you in getting rid of them permanently. They can also repair any damages they may have caused in a way that the pests will not be able to enter again.
