Pete Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 My place is inundated with carpenter ants. Could someone please inform me how to get rid of these critters? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Plastic Cup Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 KEEP STOMPIN' !!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erynthered Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 http://www.pestproducts.com/carpenterants....%20Applications Usually not more than 2 to 300 in a mound. And they dont eat wood BTW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gflande1 Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 Wife and I had the same problem. We called Ehrlich and they came and sprayed. Hasnt been a problems since. Oh by the way, we signed up to their year plan, so they come by once a quarter or whenever we call them. It costs a bit, but its well worth it. Carpenter Ants Camponotus pennsylvanicus 1/2" - 3/4" These large black ants can cause serious structural damage, yet long avoid detection. They start nests in moist wood and spread by chewing trenches throughout. Unlike termites, carpenter ants do not eat wood. They may enter homes while foraging for food. Signs include sawdust, wet wood, or unusual noises coming from the walls. Control usually requires eliminating the nest. Covered under the Ehrlich Year ‘Round Protection Plan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crap Throwing Monkey Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 My place is inundated with carpenter ants. Could someone please inform me how to get rid of these critters? Thanks! 350736[/snapback] Tell them you're from UBC Local #24 and demand to see their union cards... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BB27 Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 Move to a house made entirely of concrete...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Darin Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 Tell them you're from UBC Local #24 and demand to see their union cards... 350803[/snapback] Brutal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Coli Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 "Ladies and gentlemen, uh, we've just lost the picture, but what we've seen speaks for itself. The Corvair spacecraft has apparently been taken over -- 'conquered' if you will -- by a master race of giant space ants. It's difficult to tell from this vantage point whether they will consume the captive earth men or merely enslave them. One thing is for certain: there is no stopping them; the ants will soon be here." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BB27 Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 I'm going downtown today to see the parade for the "inannimate carbon rod". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted June 3, 2005 Share Posted June 3, 2005 run up to them, and scream "boogity boogity boogity!!!!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erynthered Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 "Ladies and gentlemen, uh, we've just lost the picture, but what we've seen speaks for itself. The Corvair spacecraft has apparently been taken over -- 'conquered' if you will -- by a master race of giant space ants. It's difficult to tell from this vantage point whether they will consume the captive earth men or merely enslave them. One thing is for certain: there is no stopping them; the ants will soon be here." 350832[/snapback] I really have to party with you. Timothy Leary's dead, so you're next on the list. I've got something in my eye Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fake-Fat Sunny Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 For non-synthetic toxic approaches call the group Beyond Pesticides in DC at 202/543-5450. The first intelligent they will probably say is do not panic (ala Hitchhiker's Guide). Carpenter ants can do some serious structural damage so you definitely need to solve this problem and defend your home. However, as is pointed out above they often can go undetected for years and if it takes you a couple of months to do research on this and take some time to figure out the size and location of the problem it can be done. Folks usually panic because bugs are around and seeing garage size silhouettes of bugs on TV, magnified pictures of insect jaws and pincers you might not even feel if they chose to attack you (which they won't) but based on what we see on TV would snap you and your kids clean in half we have been trained to want to kill these bugs. The key is to find the nest in your home (often difficult to do) but as pointed out above they like moist wood and actually the leak in your home may lead to a bigger structural and/or health problem than the ants who took advantage of this. If you have an old home, having a house inspection may not be a bad or too costly idea to identify leaks in your home which may be leading to unseen water damage (a potential structural issue of which ants are but a symptom), mold build-up (which if bad can be a real health threat) or a route for heating or cooling leakage which may be costing your big bucks over time. House inspections are done all the time for realtors and usually when ownership changes hans. Its a competitive field so prices are usually fairly competitive/ If you know a local realtor they can probably be give you several recomendations of inspectors they work with and trust. Be sure the inspector is separate from a home repair person as this eliminates them trying to create business by giving you a horrible report. If your or your spouse are freaked out by the presence of bugs (when one pest company use modern animation to do a fake commecial with a bug crawling across the screen several folks destroyed their TVs throwing heavy objects at the bug because they somehow thought this crisis merited the use of lethal force) just wait a few weeks. Most carpemter ants prefer the secretion of aphids to food they find indoors. When the weather is warm enough for in-wall hives to become active, but there is not enough leaf cover outside to create alot of aphids the ants will forage inside for food which is why you see them. As better food becomes available they will disappear becaise they are outside, but the nest is still there so continue your research. Some pest companies will try to bulldoze you into an immeidate application because they know that the bugs will disappear even if they do not get the nest. Annual treatments are usually a rip-off. The problem may not reappear not because they are killing them off but because it is the job of the insects not to be seen. At any rate, don't psnic. Carpenter ants can usually be killed off with a less toxic boric acid treatment and if you must a lesser toxic barrier treatment around the outside of your houe rather than poisoning yourself and your kids with an indoor treatment of category I or II pesticide. Give Beyond Pesticides a call and good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VABills Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Claymores, there not just for the neighbors dog anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Before you go paying money to anybody, try a product called "Terro". We get ants down by the river here every few years and its the only thing I've found that actually gets rid of them. Put a little around teh areas where they travel and in a week or two they'll be gone. If you can't find the stuff the first couple places you look, don't give up. It can be hard to find but it's worth it when you do. Cya Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo_Stampede Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 My house had huge carpenter ants and we didnt know what to do. We didnt call anyone, we just went and baught the RAID ant bait things. They look like little houses for ants. You can buy them anywhere. The ants go in, then take all the poison back to the nest. They all died. We had a new shower put in, and there were hundreds of them dead. Just put the ant bait where you see them most. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stussy109 Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 The old wives tales i used to hear about ants, especially carpenter ants... was that they came indoors looking for water. SO when its hot and dry outsiude, that's usually the case... Maybe leave a bowl of water for them outside Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
/dev/null Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 are they karen carpenter ants? if they are, just leave abunch of food out and they'll disappear as fast as lindsay lohan's boobs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfladave Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Burn the house down, if that doesn't work, move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnTheRocks Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 pay for an exterminator. we had the problem two years ago. there is a real science to doing it right. if you have a real "inundation" as you say, save your money by not spending it on some stuff from Home Depot. The exterminator can find exactly where they are nesting and clean it up for you for aprox. $200. a good exterminator will give you a written guarantee that they will take care of the problem for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crap Throwing Monkey Posted June 4, 2005 Share Posted June 4, 2005 Maybe leave a bowl of water for them outside 350872[/snapback] A tiny little canopy for them so they don't get to warm, some nice comfortable lounge chairs...maybe a miniature hibachi pool-side...live band for the entertainment... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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