Easily one of the largest ants that you can find in the United States, carpenter ants are well known to invade homes and buildings and cause damages to them.

There are many different types of carpenter ants, but, the most common is the black carpenter ants. It is about one-half inch or more in length and shiny black; whereas, the other kinds of carpenter ants are usually as small as one-quarter inch and are reddish brown or two-toned. However,  one consistent characteristic of all carpenter ants is the smoothly rounded outline of the thorax when viewed from the side.

Carpenter ants can take many types of food. They can eat honeydew from aphids, sweets, meat, fats as well as living and dead insects. Many people thought that they eat wood as well since they hollow and damage it, but, in reality, they don't eat wood. They damage the wood as they want to nest beneath it.

Nests are made by chewing an interconnecting series of tunnels and cavities. Wood is removed as coarse sawdust-like material that is pushed from the nest. The sawdust may include other debris such as dead ants, parts of insects and other food.

Carpenter ants found indoors in the winter usually come from nests somewhere within the house. Ants found indoors during spring or summer could be invaders wandering in from outdoors or they may be foragers from a nest in the wall or ceiling.

Locating the source of carpenter ants is as important as it is difficult. It is especially difficult if only a few ants are seen at one time. It is good that you spend time observing ants to see if you can detect a pattern of movement and trace back to their nest.

Quite an significant amount of time may be needed observing the carpenter ants, but, it is necessary as any delay may lengthen the potential damages to your home.

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Technorati Tags: Ants, carpenter, Understanding

Termites are every homeowner's nightmare, but there's another insect that should also achieve terror into the sympathy of the homeowner. Carpenter ants basis millions of dollars a year in injury to houses throughout the country, but they're not as well known as termites. If you live in a region that regularly has wet or damp conditions, or if there is a damp whitehead in your home, your house could be at venture from carpenter ants.

What Is Carpenter Ants? Carpenter ants are insects that live in hives. Their life rounded is related to that of any other typeface of ant - they have queens that lay eggs. When the eggs emerge, some of the ants will be drones, some will workers and some will be queens. What makes them a menace to your house?

Despite admired belief, carpenter ants do not eat copse, but the do tunnel through it. They move through impose and form tunnels and galleries in their seek for food and to fashion nests. In the method, they agree and eventually trash the coppice in which they are nesting. If that covert happens to be a part of your house, your house is being ruined. It's not useless of for nests of carpenter ants to spoil structural hold beams on which your house depends. The longer a carpenter ant colony remainder in your house, the worse the injury they can do to your house.

How do you tell if you have carpenter ants in your house? The most palpable intimate that you have carpenter ants, of course, is since them, but it's not forever a reliable initial that you have nests of carpenter ants in your house. Since the damage to your house is caused in tunneling to figure nests, your principal bother is about whether there is a nest in the house. Carpenter ants nest both inside and slim a house, and they'll travel as much as 100 yards from their nest in their hunt for food. If you're only seeing the occasional carpenter ant in your house, particularly if it'd during the deferred Spring or Summer, there's a good unplanned that it's just a hand wandering far from his nest.

On the other hand, if your seeing carpenter ants inside during the chill or early Spring, it's an almost effective bet that you have at slightest one nest within. Carpenter ants typically go hidden during the iciness. If the nest is indoors, it may be welcoming enough to stir up the ants, or thwart them from leaving into dormancy at all. Since ants are most active at night, it's not uncommon for a homeowner to penetrate an extent, excursion on a light and see ants scurrying for shell. The most general seats to find carpenter ants places that are soggy - cabinets, sinks, rolled up towels, tubs and areas around the toilets.

How to Keep Ants Out of Your House Prevention is always better than annoying to therapy a riddle that has set in. The best conduct to keep carpenter ants from location up collect in your house are: Eliminate high humidity conditions that interest them. That means fans in bathrooms, and dehumidifiers in rooms that have a high damp share, especially in regions that are tacky to start with. Replace humidity-spoiled and rotted woodland before ants are attracted to it. If you store wood or lumber near the house or in a garage, be definite that you keep it dry. Stack firewood away from the house slight to inhibit ants from migrating from the woodpile to the house. Remove hierarchy stumps and roots.

Keep plants and bushes near the house pruned and trimmed to eliminate 'highways', that provoke carpenter ants into your home. Where are they nesting? Before you can eliminate a nest of carpenter ants, you have to find it. The easiest way to find the nest is to grasp an ant home. One way to make it easier to grasp the ants home is to give them food. They're particularly fond of tuna packed in water. Set out little flakes of tuna, and then stalk for ants. The tuna would actually make it easier for you to trail the ant back to its nest. Controlling

Carpenter Ants While it's possible for a homeowner to restrict carpenter ants on their own, it's not a tranquil charge. It's better to exchange a professional. A homeowner can still play a critical part in eliminating carpenter ants by providing, as much information about the infestation as possible.

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What can I do to get rid of carpenter ants, any safe home remedy other than glue boards. I really don't have the $ to have Orkin come and drill holes in my walls. Please help!

I know of 3 good solutions but the link posted below has more detailed helpful information. It explains how ants leave a scent trail for their buddies when they find food. The hardest part is to not kill them and leave the bait and watch them all come to get food to feed the queen.

The best one is to mix some diluted honey or sugary water with boric acid (Borax found in detergent section of grocery store). If the insect is a carnivorous (meat eater) you mix the borax with cat food. You can also sprinkle boric acid along baseboards etc.

Another cool solution I've heard of for most insects is to mix a half and half of baking soda and icing sugar. Place small amounts of it in areas you know they hang out. They will eat it. An interesting fact is that insects can't fart so they 'pop' instead.

Another product you can use is called diatomaceous earth (fossilized microscopic sea creatures that look like spurs). It's a white power sold at most garden centres called fossil flour or Insectigone. This can be sprinkled along baseboards and around the house foundation. When they walk on it it pierces their bodies and they dry up and die.

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Tracking carpenter ants can help identify nest locations so you can directly treat them for fast control. Carpenter ants will commonly have several nest sites and if you watch them foraging you can almost always find key locations that will need treatment. Remember, an active ant is either walking away or back to a nest so there is at least a 50% chance watching it will provide valuable information.

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Technorati Tags: carpenter, nest., they, track, Trails

Termites are every homeowner's nightmare, but there's another insect that should also strike terror into the heart of the homeowner. Carpenter ants cause millions of dollars a year in damage to houses throughout the country, but they're not as well known as termites. If you live in an area that often has wet or damp conditions, or if there is a damp spot in your home, your house could be at risk from carpenter ants.

What Are Carpenter Ants?
Carpenter ants are insects that live in hives. Their life cycle is similar to that of any other type of ant - they have queens that lay eggs. When the eggs hatch, some of the ants will be drones, some will workers and some will be queens. What makes them a danger to your house?

Despite popular belief, carpenter ants do not eat wood, but the do tunnel through it. They move through wood and create tunnels and galleries in their search for food and to create nests. In the process, they weaken and eventually destroy the wood in which they are nesting. If that wood happens to be a part of your house, your house is being destroyed. It's not unheard of for nests of carpenter ants to destroy structural support beams on which your house depends. The longer a carpenter ant colony remains in your house, the worse the damage they can do to your house.

How do you tell if you have carpenter ants in your house?
The most obvious signal that you have carpenter ants, of course, is seeing them, but it's not always a reliable sign that you have nests of carpenter ants in your house. Since the damage to your house is caused in tunneling to build nests, your biggest concern is whether or not there is a nest in the house. Carpenter ants nest both inside and outside a house, and they'll travel as much as 100 yards from their nest in their search for food. If you're only seeing the occasional carpenter ant in your house, particularly if it'd during the late Spring or Summer, there's a good chance that it's just a worker wandering far from his nest.

On the other hand, if you're seeing carpenter ants inside during the winter or early Spring, it's an almost sure bet that you have at least one nest indoors. Carpenter ants typically go dormant during the winter. If the nest is indoors, it may be warm enough to wake up the ants, or prevent them from going into dormancy at all. Since ants are most active at night, it's not uncommon for a homeowner to enter a room, turn on a light and see ants scurrying for cover. The most common places to find carpenter ants are places that are moist - cabinets, sinks, rolled up towels, tubs and areas around the toilets.

How to Keep Ants Out of Your House
Prevention is always better than trying to cure a problem that has set in. The best ways to keep carpenter ants from setting up shop in your house are:

-Eliminate high moisture conditions that attract them. That means fans in bathrooms, and dehumidifiers in rooms that have a high moisture quotient, especially in regions that are moist to begin with.

-Replace moisture-damaged and rotted wood before ants are attracted to it.

-If you store wood or lumber near the house or in a garage, be sure that you keep it dry.

-Stack firewood away from the house outside to prevent ants from migrating from the woodpile to the house.

-Remove tree stumps and roots.

-Keep trees and bushes near the house pruned and trimmed to eliminate ‘highways' that invite carpenter ants into your home.

Where are they nesting?
Before you can eliminate a nest of carpenter ants, you have to find it. The easiest way to find the nest is to follow an ant home. One way to make it easier to follow the ants home is to give them food. They're particularly fond of tuna packed in water. Set out little flakes of tuna, and then watch for ants. The tuna will actually make it easier for you to follow the ant back to its nest.

Controlling Carpenter Ants
While it's possible for a homeowner to control carpenter ants on their own, it's not an easy task. It's better to contact a professional. A homeowner can still play a vital role in eliminating carpenter ants by providing as much information about the infestation as possible.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/all-about-carpenter-ants-what-they-do-and-how-to-avoid-them-403291.html

Author: Stephanie Larkin

About the Author:

Stephanie Larkin is a freelance writer who writes about large businesses for home owners such as Orkin and Terminix

Technorati Tags: Carpenter Ants, Exterminator, Home Maintenance, Home Values, House Maintenance, Infestations, pest control, Pests, Termite Services, Termites

Carpenter ants can be a huge pain in the butt.  Unfortunately, this pain is unavoidable. However, there are steps you can take to get rid of these little buggers, and home remedies for carpenter ants are the first step in getting the problem under control. 

What is a carpenter ant?  A carpenter ant is a black ant that can range anywhere from 1/4- 1 inch in size.  Contrary to popular belief, this ant does not eat wood, rather they carve tunnels in wood.  An easy way to recognize damage from carpenter ants is if you have small piles of sawdust. 

 

Another way to determine you may have a carpenter ant problem or you may be at risk for one, is if you see flying ants inside the home.  Chances are they are looking for a new place to build a nest.

If you have a nest in your home, you will not see many ants at once.  If you see an ant, try to watch where he is headed- chances are he's either leaving the nest, or going back to it. 

 

Similar to termites, Carpenter ants can cause much damage to the structure of your home if they are building nests inside the wood frames.  Once damage is done, the repairs can be very expensive, if not unreversibl, so it's a good idea to treat the problem as soon as you think you may have an infestation.  

The best way to get rid of them is by treating the nest first.  Spraying with pesticide is the first step you should do.  There are many home remedies you can try such as boric acid and such, but if this does not solve the problem, you may need to call out a professional exterminator. 

Technorati Tags: Ants, carpenter, damage, problem

Carpenter ants are one of the most destructive pests in the U.S and like Termites destroy wood. Carpenter ants are black and red in colour and have a curved "thoracic dorsum" that is located at the rear of the insect. These ants are often found crawling along in lines around trees, fences and firewood.

Carpenter ants damage houses by establishing nests in the timber which leads to structural damage. They cause this by burrowing out tunnels in the wood expand their nest. A Carpenter ant infestation in a home is usually a satellite colony, with the main colony located within a hundred yards, usually in a stump or other decayed wood.

 

There are several ways to prevent Carpenter ants entering your home. They involve the following:

*Store firewood correctly as this is a favorite nesting place for Carpenter ants. To store wood correctly always keep wood off the ground and protect it from rain. As damp firewood piled up on the ground is an ideal nesting location. Old Stumps are common locations for nests.

*Always make sure that plants are not in contact with the house. As trees and plants provide paths for Carpenter ants as well as foraging sites.

* Like we mentioned earlier never allow wood to be in contact with soil. Wood should be stored on concrete. The only time that wood can be in direct contact with the ground is when it is pressure treated timber.

* Ventilation is necessary in attics to keep the moisture level of the room low as biogrowth (mold, mildew or fungus) thrive in rooms with lots of moisture and creates conditions that encourage Carpenter ant infestations.

*Always check for holes in the exterior of the house, especially doors, windows, foundation cracks, siding doors and pipes.

In conclusion, Carpenter ants are a huge wood destroying pest in the U.S. However, there are ways to prevent them from entering your house. Such as: storing firewood and timber on concrete, keeping plants and trees away from your house, ventilating rooms and checking doors, windows and holes in the wall.

Technorati Tags: carpenter ant, carpenter ant control, Carpenter Ants, Carpenter ants damage, pest control