Ant Pest Control – How to Get Rid of Termites, Carpenter Ants, and Harvester Ants
If you have an ant infestation, you should seek professional ant pest control Islington services immediately. There are many things you can do to get rid of ants, including getting rid of Termites, Carpenter ants, Acrobat ants, and Harvester ants. If you are not sure which ant species you have, consider reading this article. It will give you tips to get rid of these pests in no time. It will help you determine a treatment plan that will work for your property and also save you a lot of money.
Termites
Professional services are necessary when termites or ants are causing damage to your home or business. While ants can be controlled by eliminating the conditions that attract them, the termites and ant control methods should be handled by professionals to prevent future infestation. To identify ants or termites, you can collect a sample of the insects and compare it to graphics and photos online. Your pest control professional can determine if you are dealing with a termite problem or a winged ant.
Subterranean termites usually maintain a nest underground and create mud tubes that connect to their food source. These tubes are the thickness of a pencil and are composed of digested wood and soil. In the spring, winged termites swarm, dispersing to establish new colonies. You may have noticed ants flying around your property and noticing their nests. Swarmers also look for the light.
Insects that are active underground, such as subterranean termites, are in constant danger of dehydration. They feed on wood and build mud tubes to protect themselves. When these tubes are damaged, they can continue eating the house. Termite control professionals will eliminate these threats and help you enjoy the peace of mind that only comes from knowing your home is safe. These pest control professionals have years of experience and are trained to identify and eradicate these types of infestations.
Carpenter Ants
If you want to use carpenter ants as ant pest control, you must first understand how they behave. Carpenter ants are active during the evening hours, so if you notice carpenter ants around your home, you should use nontoxic bait, which is available at pet stores. When you have a carpenter ant infestation, you will notice that they leave behind sawdust, excrement, and frass.
Keeping an eye out for nesting activities is important. You can use awls, spatulas, and screwdrivers to probe for ants. Thermal imaging is also an effective way of locating nests inside a building. Carpenter ants prefer wood that comes into contact with soil, vegetation, or decaying wood building elements. It is therefore imperative to repair soft decking and replace window sills in affected areas.
Generally, winged carpenter ants emerge from underground nests during spring. They are larger than other species of ants and are darker in color. They are often confused with termites, so if you’re wondering which one to use as ant pest control, you’ll need to understand their habits. Carpenter ants have a thin waist and one rounded back. Unlike termites, their wings are veiny. They usually emerge from nests in wood at the beginning of spring.
Acrobat Ants
If you suspect that your property is infested with Acrobat Ants, there are several ant control methods that can be used. One of these methods is to use liquid baits. These can be placed in outdoor bait dispensers and work in two ways: they provide outdoor ants with food, and they kill them long-term. If you want to kill Acrobat Ants once and for all, you can use insecticide sprays, but these require reapplication, and one application rarely is enough.
If you’re concerned about Acrobat ants, the best ant pest control method is to prevent an infestation from happening in the first place. Sealing cracks and other entry points will help prevent the ant population from establishing a colony in the first place. You should also be wary of water damage, as acrobat ants prefer damp environments. Keeping your home free of water damage will keep them out.
During the summer months, you should take steps to reduce the amount of moisture inside your home. Adding a layer of waterproof paint to the walls and roof will help prevent the ants from nesting in these areas. Using a moisture meter can help you determine if your property is damp. If you find ant colonies, try to seal any openings that may have water damage and use caulk to stop moisture in those areas.
Harvester Ants
Treating harvester ants with a mixture of granular baits and residual dust insecticides can be effective in killing this type of ant. These ants normally reside outside, eating seeds and other organic matter. They may enter a home through cracks or gaps but are not usually destructive to human health. These ants can spread throughout the yard, so harvester ant treatment methods need to be targeted in the yard as well.
The granular product is easy to apply and has excellent residual properties for exterior treatment. This means that it can easily fall into landscape materials and target the problem ants. Harvester ants do not like to be disturbed, and they often enter through cracks in foundations, window frames, and pipes. So it’s important to spray these areas regularly with an ant-killing agent. After spraying, make sure the granular product reaches all of the nests.
Harvester ants are generally large, double-node ants. They range in length from 3/8 inch to a half-inch, and they have two nodes between the body sections. They have long hairs on the head and thorax, and some species have large jaws. They are also very damaging to lawns and vegetation. Harvester ants have been responsible for destroying more than a few crops in North America, including apple orchards and many varieties of berries.
Carpenter Ant Nests
If you’ve been noticing ants in your home, you’re probably wondering how to get rid of them. While they are generally not aggressive, they may be difficult to locate. In order to identify a nest, you’ll need to look for moist wood where the ants can find food. Look for holes in wooden structures, such as wall voids and wood-covered rafters, and then treat these areas with a carpenter menticide or insecticide. Carpenter ants often build their nests in the dead parts of standing trees and wood siding.
Carpenter ants build two types of nests: parent colonies and satellite colonies. Parent colonies are typically outdoors, but they can be found inside in damp places as well. The parent colony contains the queen and her eggs and young. Satellite nests are branching off of the main colony and only contain workers and mature larvae. Satellite nests usually form indoors during midsummer, and these are where the ants emerge from pupae.
While carpenter ants do not eat wood, they excavate it for a nest. Their colonies may contain extensive networks of galleries and tunnels. These ants can compromise the structural integrity of buildings by expanding their colonies. In addition to nesting in wall voids, they also enter buildings through cracks around doors, holes used for wiring, and tree limbs. Whether a home is built on a previously occupied property or a newly constructed structure, carpenter ants will make a home in any area of the home they can find access to.
Carpenter Ant Larvae
The best way to control carpenter ants is to kill their larvae. To get rid of them, the first step is to find the nests and satellite nests. Many times, there will be more than one colony in the structure or property. To eliminate them, you can try physical removal, or use an insecticide dust treatment. To get rid of the nests for good, you have to kill the queen ant.
Carpenter ants spend the night foraging for food. Their food sources include insect honeydew, plant juices, and dead animals. They may also feed on live insects. The first generation of workers emerges about 15 minutes after dusk. They travel along foraging trails, establishing satellite colonies near their nests. They may also feed on your food, but only the foraging workers return. In the early morning, you can expect them to have already laid their eggs in the nest.
A nest may be located outside or inside the house. These nests are common on water-damaged wood, window boxes, crawl spaces, dishwashers, and even in Styrofoam insulation. Carpenter ants will also nest in wood siding and shingles. During the breeding season, they may even nest inside your refrigerator. If you find ants in your home, it’s important to take action as soon as possible.
Carpenter Ant Eggs
The nest of carpenter ants is usually connected with several other colonies. These colonies will extend several yards. Carpenter ants prefer to nest in wood and will build galleries and tunnels. Nests are active throughout the winter and the workers of the colony will search for food and moisture. Carpenter ant colonies can last anywhere from ten to fifteen years. However, they can avoid chemical treatments by using satellite nests. It is best to destroy the main colony first and destroy the satellite nests.
The most effective way to treat the carpenter ant nest is by eliminating the queen. If this is not possible, you may be able to use a liquid or dust residual insecticide. This will kill the queen and prevent the colony from reproducing. Alternatively, you can eliminate indoor satellite nests as they are often used as bridges for the queen ants. However, remember that once the parent nest has been destroyed, the ants that were inside will probably return later.
If you are not able to remove the ants from your home, you may have to spend some time locating the nest. However, you can find the colony with the help of winged ants or sawdust around wooden areas. In addition, large colonies of carpenter ants can infest indoors. These ants typically infest doors, windows, and sill plates. Regardless of the size of the colony, they can destroy thousands of dollars worth of damage.