Removal of carpenter ant evidence

[kurt]

Originally posted by Les

Worst infestations are in closed cell foam sheathing and there ain't no water in that material.

Interesting, because one of the larger infestations I've ever found was @ my shack in Michigan in the insulated garage door panels. They basically ate all the foam out of that thing.

[hausdok]

Originally posted by Chris Bernhardt

I can only think of a couple of times that I have seen huge and I mean huge amounts of shavings in crawlspaces. These homes were dry as far as I can remember. I couldn't see any damage directly but there had to be significant damage somewhere in the walls.

They do love that foam insulation out here also.

Chris, Oregon

Hi Chris,

That's the thing about carpenter ant shavings; it always looks worse than it is. A number of years ago, a friend called me to tell me that he thought he had a carpenter ant infestation. I drove over to his place and asked him to show me where. He took me around to his back patio, pointed to the corner of the entry at the daylight basement, and said that he'd seen some ants coming and going from a narrow gap at the door casing. I sat down to watch and, sure enough, within moments a carpenter ant moving at full gallop crossed the patio and disappeared into that gap, and then another, and another. I said, "Yep, you've got a carpenter ant infestation." He asked how bad it would be and I said I had no way to know until we did some poking around.

We went into his rec room and pulled off a piece of wood-grained paneling and found that the backside of the bottom 3ft. of it had a layer of frass about 1/2 inch thick behind it. We cut a hole in the drywall behind the paneling, looked into the first stud cavity and found nothing, and then the next, and the next, and the next, and so on, finding the backside of the paneling full of shavings each time.

Finally, after we'd gone around 3 sides of the room, about 35ft. away from the door underneath a window we heard rustling coming from the bottom header beneath a window. I stuck one end of a screwdriver into the top of the header, pried upward, and the top literally popped off the header and the thing erupted with ants. As it turned out, the only actual damage was to the top 2 by 4 used for that bottom header, which was completely hollowed out except for about 1/8 inch at the sides, and it was packed to the top and from end-to-end with egg sacs. We grabbed his show vac and spent about the next hour and a half vacuuming up all of those ants and egg sacs before the ants could move them. When we swept up all of those shavings, I bet that, uncompacted, they would have nearly filled a wheelbarrow, so we were amazed at how bad the amount of frass made things look when there actually wasn't that much damage at all.

Oh, by the way, there weren't any water leaks around this window and everything was dry as a bone. We found the main nest later that afternoon in a railroad tie retaining wall along one side of the yard. Apparently, those ants had never read the literature that says that creosote is a carcinogen!

The pictures below are from another house with an itty-bitty carpenter ant infestation. Dry walls this time too. Lots of ivy around the house and shooters had gone up behind the clapboard siding and into the exterior walls. this is what was found when the siding and the wall sheathing was pulled off.

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ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[Jim Katen]

You can't generalize about carpenter ants. There are too many different types. It's like saying, "Dogs like to swim." The next person says, "But my dog hates the water."

I've been studying carpenter ants very seriously for a long time and I'm still occasionally surprised at their abilities and their intelligence (the intelligence of the colony, not of single ants). My studies included "pet" colonies of both Modoc and Vicinus, the two most abundant species in my area. I've learned a great deal about how these insects live and the one thing that stands out is that you can't pigeon hole them.

There are lots of different types of carpenter ants and they have lots of very different and distinct behaviors. Even among the same species, you'll find different behaviors that depend on the age of the colony, the geographic location, the presence of competing species, the microclimate of the site and, sometimes, the simple preferences of that colony. For instance, Modocs in Portland behave very differently than Modocs on the Oregon Coast. Judging them only by behavior, you'd never guess that the two tribes were the same species.

There are few things that I can say with absolute certainty about the behavior of carpenter ants, but I know this is true: If carpenter ants were 12" long instead of half an inch long, they'd rule the world.

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[hausdok]

Originally posted by Jim Katen

If carpenter ants were 12" long instead of half an inch long, they'd rule the world.

- Jim Katen, Oregon

Yeah, that's probably true. What was that novel in the 60's? Joseph Conrad, I think, Leningen Vs. the Ants or something like that. Foot long carpenter ants would be waaaay too creepy to contemplate.

One morning back in 1986 I went for my morning run on Ft. McClellan out on the range roads and witnessed a deuce-and-a-half run over a rattler. I figured that I'd swing by later, pick it up and show it to my platoon so they'd have an idea what a rattlesnake looked like from up-close. Well, by the time I got back there 2-1/2 hours later, fire ants had swarmed all over the carcass and completely stripped it to the bone. Even every bit of stuff from inside the skull was missing. It was as clean as if it had been soaking in acid for a week and there was nothing in sight except a few straggler fire ants looking around to ensure that nothing was left behind. Brrrr, spooky!

ONE TEAM - ONE FIGHT!!!

Mike

[Brandon Whitmore]

I have a carpenter ant problem at my house right now. I just purchased the home this last winter, so I am unsure how well they are established. I found activity when I purchased the home, but decided to wait until they became active to treat, etc.

I believe I have located a main nest outside at one corner of my house, and 2 satellite colonies in the home. The activity is limited to the S. side of my home.

There is no plumbing in these areas, just bedroom's.

I can find absolutely no moisture, rot, or damage anwhere in the home. I believe they are getting the moisture from the exterior.

I am trying to decide whether I want to have a pest control professional treat the home, or if I want to just set out bait in these areas and see if I can kill the buggers off that way. I prefer not to spray as I don't want a bunch of chemicals in or around my home.

I may try to mix some boric acid with some sugar and peanut butter and set bait in the areas of activity.

Anyone have any better ideas for treatment,or advice?

[Jim Katen]

Originally posted by Brandon Whitmore

I have a carpenter ant problem at my house right now. I just purchased the home this last winter, so I am unsure how well they are established. I found activity when I purchased the home, but decided to wait until they became active to treat, etc. . . .

Is that the house on College? I thought I saw your rig there the other day.

When I had carpenter ants in my house, I cut little holes in the walls and installed plexiglass windows over them so that I could watch the suckers at work. It was pretty cool till the ants relocated and I had to do it againg . . . and again. My wife was really very tolerant of this for a while.

One night one of my kids, then 2 years old, woke up screaming in the middle of the night. He was covered in carpenter ants. We'd brushed his teeth before bed and there was toothpaste on his lips. The carpenter ants were clustered all over his face to get at the toothpaste. (I suppose they were afraid of cavities in their mandibles.)

After cleaning up the boy, my wife turned to me and said, "Tomorrow, we put your 'pets' to sleep."

First I dusted -- no good.

Then I drilled and sprayed -- no good.

Then I heard that Laurel Hansen was looking for test houses to try out a new carpenter ant bait. It worked beautifully. (And it was free.)

I believe that it was based on a mixture of corn syrup and boric acid. You could probably make it yourself. The trick is to inclulde enough boric acid to eventually kill the ants, but not so much that they won't take it.

- Jim Katen, Oregon

[Chad Fabry]

I cut little holes in the walls and installed plexiglass windows over them

Thanks for that Jim. I now have a reply when my wife tells me, "you are the craziest husband out there"

[Brandon Whitmore]

Is that the house on College? I thought I saw your rig there the other day.

That's the one-- did the ants wave on the way by?

I believe that it was based on a mixture of corn syrup and boric acid. You could probably make it yourself. The trick is to inclulde enough boric acid to eventually kill the ants, but not so much that they won't take it.

I'll try both tonight and see which one they prefer. If I let the little guys live so I can watch them, I'll end up sleeping alone.

Thanks

[John Dirks Jr]

This product worked for me. It took a few weeks but eventually they disappeared. It's been a couple of years and they havn't returned. The stakes are what I used.

http://www.grantsproducts.com/ant_contr ... trolstakes

[Brandon Whitmore]

I have a pest control guy that swears by Termidor. All that is required is a perimeter treatment. There is no need to drill into the siding or perform other intrusive work, and best of all there will be no chemicals inside the home.

Any of you guy's have any experience with the stuff?