Carpenter ants get their name from the fact that they will create their colonies inside of wood. They will usually pick dead or decaying wood, but once inside it, they will spread to healthy parts as well. They are very fast workers, and they will create their colony quickly. This is why it’s important to remove the infestation as soon as you notice. If a carpenter ant infestation happens inside one of the trees on your property, you will need to remove it in order to prevent the ants from spreading to other wood in your yard or home.
Recognizing the infestation
Before you determine which trees need to be treated, you first need to identify which trees are infested. There are several signs that indicate a carpenter ant infestation, and the first is seeing carpenter ants on or near a tree. These ants are larger than average, reaching up to one inch in length. They will also leave piles of sawdust near the base of a tree, which they evacuate from inside the wood as they tunnel through it. Infested trees will rapidly deteriorate, so if you notice a tree that has aged significantly over the weeks, there may be a carpenter infestation inside it.
Getting rid of the infestation
Getting rid of a carpenter ant infestation is not easy once it has progressed enough. First, you have to find the nest. It will be located either inside of a tree, some firewood in your yard, or the wood in your home. You can tell whether wood is infested or not by the presence of holes in the wood and sawdust near its bottom.
You then want to pick the right ant control product. There are plenty of options out there from liquid insecticide to dust and baits. Each of these has its strengths and weaknesses, but you want to go for a product that will spread throughout the colony and eventually reach the queen and kill it. Powders and liquids can work both as repellents and insecticides, and some will stick to the body of the ant and only become fully active once they are shared amongst the colonies. Baits in general are designed to be taken into the nest and shared along until they reach the queen.
If you are having problems with getting carpenter ant populations under control, contact us today, and we will help you get rid of the infestation as soon as possible.