Freakin Ants

[brian]

Hello all, and happy holidays.

Got a question, since the weather in southern Ohio has warmed back up above freezing, I've got these HUGE ants that are coming into the house. They all seam to die as soon as they get about 6" or 8" from the walls. But the problem is of course I don't want them coming in at all. I believe that I know where the colony may be, there is some loose dirt near a couple of bushes near the house, most of the ants that come in are near there. How can I kill the entire colony with out calling an exterminator? I have no small children or animals so that's not a concern. I just need to know what will kill the entire colony, my fear is that this spring they'll be everywhere.

Thanks, Brian

[ransley]

Get a bait they take back to the nest, they are maybe carpenter ants

[Oren]

Boric Acid outside.

or, barrow fuel, pour, let soak and then burn the colony.

Sweep the existing dead ones up inside!

YMMV

[Dan Espen]

If they are Carpenter ants (it's important to identify them), then eliminate the leak that is attracting them. They are drawn to places where they can find moist wood.

No amount of exterminator treatment will help.

[Norminn]

If they are carpenter ants, they generally nest in rotted or damaged wood (indoors or out). They start to forage near dusk, so I would take a look at where they seem to be entering the house....then put down some bait. Baiting inside will help, too, but you want the bait to be where their path is.

They can be in rotted roof deck, or tree limbs overhanging the roof. Cleaning up wood debris and repairing damaged wood will get rid of them more quickly than bait or poison.

[Lar]

Boric acid is a long lasting herbicide...not a good idea to contaminate the soil wit it.

Lar

[BETA-32]

Here's some info:

I bought Advance carpenter ant bait (I think that's what it was called), and it wiped them out.

[Lar]

Most carpenter ant issues have nothing to do with a leak at all...they can get plenty of moisture from the condensation off the copper pipes. It usually is a hollow area they have found to nest in when they are in a structure.

Lar

[brian]

They are actually winged ants as shown at this web link,

They are large, about 1/4" long, and it's weird as they all die after they get in.

Brian

[Lar]

Most large ants found in a home will be carpenter ants...doubtful the dirt you found outside has anything to do with the ants. Harvester ants can also be a large ant that would nest in the dirt, though I am not sure how far North they are found and I have never seen a harvester ant forage inside a house. There are a couple of carp ant baits on the market that work well even if you are not sure where the nest is located, though getting the ants identified would be the first action to do, so the problem could be properly handled.

Lar

[Lar]

All ants will have winged ones in the colony...they are the reproductives and even some of the small "sugar ant" species will have queens 1/4 inch or larger. Try to get them identified to get the best route for treating. Possibly they are male ants that at this time of year is not important to the colony so were not given food, died and then discarded as trash from the colony.

Lar

[Oren]

Yes a better term; other than HUGE would be a good indicator :)

[Dan Espen]

As another poster said, they can still be carpenter ants:

Someone else said they don't indicate a moisture problem.

Here's my experience:

We had carpenter ants show up each spring. We paid an exterminator for 2 years with no change so I got rid of the exterminator.

Then I found a place where water was leaking down an inside wall and there were ants there too. Fixed the leak, ants gone.

I'm in a wooded area in NJ. There are always carpenter ants around outside. They only came in the house when there was moisture available.

There may or may not be a leak somewhere in your house. Try finding the nest.

[Lar]

Dan Espen wrote: ter said, they can still be carpenter ants:

Actually it was "most carp ant issues have nothing to do with a leak at all". Probably should have prefixed it with the carp ant work I have dealt with over the years. 85%-90% of all carpenter ant work I do is not even located in wood, much less wet wood..I'd guess another 5-8 percent of my work with carp ants are in wood, but nothing wet...hollow core doors...behind crown molding...in cardboard shoe boxes...then I'll come across one a couple of times a year maybe that is located near wet/deteriorating wood. They will move into water damaged wood, so it is always good to be on the look out for any leaks for sure. But when they are in

Lar

[Stormin Mormon]

Only thing that worked for me. Log onto

and buy liquid ant bait. Put out bottle caps or other small containers, and let them drink as much as they want. They will belly up for a drink, and not come back.

Such is my experience.