Carpenter Ants are one of the largest ants we have in the United States. Their range is throughout our country. Typically you’ll know you have carpenter ants because you’ll start noticing large, black ants foraging randomly on, in or around the home.
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WHAT DO CARPENTER ANTS LOOK LIKE?
In general, carpenter ants are large and black. But there are two variations of the species which are quite different.
The second most common species is the Florida Carpenter Ant. These ants are a bit smaller, travel less than their cousins, and have a wide range of colors including yellow, red, light to dark brown and black.
Another variation of is the Yellow Carpenter Ant. Like their black cousins, the yellow carpenter ant is large. Regardless of which carpenter ant you have, their behavior will typically include:
1) Scent trails which may be hundreds of feet in length (expect to see only a few ants on this trail at any given moment).
2) Nocturnal activity (mostly active at night).
3) Chewing on wood structures and in wall or ceiling voids for nesting. Though they don’t eat the wood, they will readily damage it with the result being long hollow cavities, sawdust (aka: frass) and weakening of structural members.
4) An ability to identify leaky, damp wood and spaces.
5) An ability to avoid chemically treated areas and find new ways into a structure when traditional sprays are used.
6) Networking of nests so there is no “main” nest but instead, a series of linked nests making control of the problem a bit more complicated.
WHY ARE CARPENTER ANT NESTS HARD TO CONTROL?
Unlike most ants, carpenter ants will set up a series of nests which are all “linked” together. This network of nests can be in series enabling foraging workers and scouts to have a place of safe haven when out and about doing their chores. This structure also helps to preserve any one colony because it’s rare that all the members will ever be in one location at one time. Should any one “satellite” nest be destroyed, the other nests will usually have enough members left to enable the colony to move on and survive.
This nest characteristic is also why controlling carpenter ants can be a challenge. If you only get 1-2 of their nests but miss even one satellite colony, they will typically try to rebuild by either repopulating the affected nest or by moving close by to a “safer” location. This is why a thorough and complete treatment is needed when implementing a carpenter ant program.
The following video gives a quick view of trailing carpenter ants and how you can treat them.
ARE YOU SEEING CARPENTER ANTS WITH WINGS?
Another sign you have a carpenter ant infestation is if you happen to find a lot of large black ants with wings. Like most any ant, carpenter ant colonies will generate “swarmers” also known as “kings” or “queens”. These winged reproductives purpose is to leave an existing nest to fly away and land somewhere to start a new nest.
Swarmers tend to be released during the spring but may be found at any time. If you are finding these in the home, chances are there is a nest located somewhere on the structure. And when located on the home, swarming can happen at any time, any season in the year.
The following video shows an actual carpenter ant nest that was created in a deer feeder just outside a home. From this nest the ants could invade several homes due to the proximity of the nest in this residential community. More importantly, if left untreated, these carpenter ants would undoubtedly create many more nests. Watch carefully and you’ll be able to see swarmers, the ones with wings, as well as all different sized worker, scout and nurse ants.
HOW TO TREAT CARPENTER ANTS
If you suspect you have a carpenter ant problem, try to determine the magnitude of the issue. Getting answers to the following questions will help in deciding where you’ll need to treat.
If in the home, are the ants active in just one area or throughout the structure?
Are they originating from a nest in or on the building or from a wooded lot alongside the structure?
Does your regular pest control program (whether you do it yourself or use a service company) include perimeter treatment of the ground and/or foundation of your buildings?
With answers to these questions, you can take the next step and treat using either one or more of the following options. The general approach is to use a direct nest treatment when you know where nests might be located. But if you have no idea of nest sites, the use of bait and non repellent spray will be the best approach.
BEST CARPENTER ANT TREATMENT FOR INSIDE THE HOME
Although most people are compelled to spray when they seen ants, the use of a traditional active won’t work. This is true for several reasons.
First, ants only send out a small amount of active workers so even if you spray them directly and kill them, their nests will just keep sending replacements.
Second, ants can easily detect traditional actives and will merely avoid where you spray. This will cause them to form new scent trails, nests, etc. which will only complicate the problem.
To avoid this scenario, you need to use a stealthy approach. And the best materials for this is a special bait and a unique spray found in very few products.
The spray is the first material you need to apply. For most homes, our ADVION WSDG. It uses an active ants cannot detect. This means they’ll readily walk over the treatment, pick up some chemical and over a few days, bring it back to their nests and share it with other members of their colony. Advion should be applied to all baseboards, around door ways, windows and basically any crack or crevice around any room.
Mix 1 pack per 1/2 gallon of water and spray all baseboards. One treatment will do it but if you find them still active on carpets or some areas you didn’t spray 2 weeks later, spray again.
You’ll need a good PUMP SPRAYER to apply the Advion. Just make sure your sprayer is clean, odor free and contains no remnants of herbicide, etc. Advion needs to be in its natural odorless state if its to be undetected by target pests.
After you spray, let the treatment sit for at least one day and then set out CARPENTER ANT GEL where you see them foraging. In general, this will be up above where the spray was applied. Usually around countertops, in pantries our around windows, carpenter ant gel uses honey dew as its main attractant which is something carpenter ants cannot resist. They need this for their young and will readily grab up any they find.
Typically harvested from trees, flowers and bushes, honey dew is essential for carpenter ant nests. Carpenter Ant gel also contains a non-repellent slow working active that will kick in once the feeding ants pass the active out as feces. Generally this will be done by the feeding young which in turn will kill them and the nurse ants handling their feces. Like the slow working spray, the bait will take several days to do its job so its common to see ants foraging for 5-7 days following the application. And if you still see them walking around 7 days after you apply some, renew the placements.
To treat, you only need to make small dabs about the size of a grain of rice. These placements should be placed along ant trails and spaced about 2-3 feet apart. Do not place the gel on or close to a foraging ant; its best if you keep it close but not exactly on them. This way it will be something they “find” and more natural.
This gel is packed in a small syringe like tube with a plunger and tip allowing you to disperse it in small amounts and then reseal it until you need to treat again. The 1 oz tube is usually enough to treat 1-2 rooms making 20-30 placements along the way. Renew placements once a week until you don’t see any activity.
To protect your gel from dust and other contaminants, use REFILLABLE BAIT STATIONS.
The following “short video” (less than 60 seconds long) shows why using these stations is a good way to apply the gel:
These stations come apart easily, measure just 2.5″ wide and will protect both the gel above and the granules below if you want to make clean placements which can be easily removed once the problem is resolved.
HOW TO TREAT CARPENTER ANTS ON A HOMES EXTERIOR SIDING
If you’re seeing ants on your home exterior siding, they could be using some sections as part of their trail way or worse, for a nest. These areas should be sprayed with the PROTHOR detailed below. Use 2 oz per gallon and plan on spraying the home with 1-2 gallons once a week until the trails end and no longer active. This usually happens with just one treatment.
HOW TO TREAT CARPENTER ANTS IN THE YARD
If ants are mostly active out in the yard around a fence, railroad ties, trees, pine straw, etc., there is most likely nesting going on and to stop them from coming onto and into your home, you’ll need to do some yard spraying and baiting.
To be successful treating large areas, you need to saturate the foliage, mulch, lawn, dirt and basically all surfaces ants can be trailing or nesting. The best spray for the job is PROTHOR. Like the Bithor, its another non-repellent which ants can’t detect so you won’t cause them to scatter or re-route their trail ways when you spray. The difference is that is that Bithor is for use inside and on the home whereas the Prothor is not labeled for use inside but instead, over turf, mulch, etc.
Prothor can be applied anywhere outside and you’ll need .5 oz per 1000 sq/ft. The 27.5 oz jug can treat 1.6 acre and should be applied twice to ensure the problem is controlled.
Use the Hose End Sprayer below adding 2.5 oz to the sprayer and some water to treat 5,000 sq/ft.
The following short video shows this being done in our Green Topped Sprayer but the setup and mixture rate is the same for the Yellow Topped sprayer featured below.
What’s great about Prothor is that it will affect any ant foraging into your yard from neighbors, trees, etc. And it works on a range of pests, not just ants.
To get the most of your treatment, add SPREAD-X BOOST to your tank mix along with the Prothor. Boost is an adjuvant, also known as a wetter spreader or spreader sticker. It basically makes water and the mixture more “slippery” so you get better coverage. Treatments will spread 2-3 times wider and penetrate deeper.
The following short video summarizes why Boost can help deliver your treatment to where it matters the most. And this is extra helpful when treating homes with siding like vinyl, aluminum and stucco where carpenter ants are likely hiding.
Add no more than the rate you’re applying the Prothor so in this case, if you’re adding 2.5 oz of Prothor to the hose end sprayer, add 2.5 oz of Boost too before adding water. If you’re adding Prothor to a pump sprayer at the rate of 1 oz per gallon, use 1 oz of Boost.
And don’t spray in the middle of the day; treat late in the day close to sunset so the treatment can dry without direct sunlight. UV light on the Boost can stress plants if the temperature is 85 degrees or higher so treat 2 hours or less before sunset to reduce sunlight stress.
This HOSE END SPRAYER is easy to use and good for making the application. As detailed in our video above, use 2.5 oz of the Prothor to treat up to 5,000 sq/ft. The sprayer can disperse up to 20 gallons so you can treat up to 1/2 acre with one filling.
One treatment will generally control the problem but if expect to be spraying a few times annually to ensure new ants don’t come back. In general, once every 3 months will keep them under control. Remember, by keeping the population of carpenter ants down around your buildings, you will keep them from foraging inside.
BEST CARPENTER ANT BAIT FOR THE YARD
After spraying the yard, let it sit for at least one day and then for added protection, apply SCATTER BAIT around trees where they’ve been seen, in mulch piles, turf, etc. Basically anywhere after the Prothor treatment has had a day to dry and settle. This bait works well on carpenter ants but will also impact roaches, crickets and any other bait.
Scatter Bait should be set out where the ants have been active. Sprinkle out 2 oz for every 100 sq/ft of area where they’ve been trailing.
As long as you allow the Prothor to dry a day prior to baiting, the bait will not be affected by the spray so use it to intercept foraging carpenter ants that are coming from adjoining properties, trees, etc.
HOW TO TREAT A CARPENTER ANT NEST
If you know where the nest is located, a direct treatment can be quite effective. The key here is knowing where to treat because this approach though fast acting will only work if you have the exact location of their nest.
To help locate the nest, spend time being a detective. And remember, there could be several nests. Rare is the time when only nest exists; most activity will involve 3-6 locations all working together.
So if you spot 1-2 spots on a tree where you see them trailing and then disappearing, it would most likely mean you’ve spotted at least one nest. But don’t quit there.
Instead follow the trailing ants to see where else they go. True, this will involve spending time around the outside of the home just watching them forage but it will be time well spent.
The following video explains how to best inspect and figure out where ant trails go and nests might be lurking – even in direct sight.
BEST WAY TO DIRECTLY TREAT A CARPENTER ANT NEST
So after spending some time watching trailing ants and locating where you think they might be nesting, a direct treatment with XEMPT DUST could prove to be an effective way to proceed.
Xempt D works as a “dehydrator” on insects taking away vital moisture by cutting through their exoskeleton and allowing water to quickly escape. Xempt is fast acting and long lasting and when puffed into cracks, crevices and voids, it will quickly penetrate in all directions filling their nest sites and killing all ants it touches.
Xempt D features two qualities that make it more efficient compared to ordinary insecticide dusts.
First, like insecticide dusts, it will agitate insects and force them to leave the dusted area or else they will die. And once they start moving, if they have dust on them they will die by dehydration.
Directly treated pests will succumb to the dust within a day BUT even as the active ingredient wears off in 1-2 months, the remaining base ingredient will keep working by making pests uncomfortable. So where ordinary dusts break down after 1-2 months and have no way of impacting pests, Xempt’s base lasts and keeps active by retaining its dehydrating feature.
The second most important part of this feature is that Xempt D CAN GET WET BUT WILL STILL WORK! This makes it quite unique and why its so well suited for both dry AND moist environments. The only way it won’t keep working is if you have water moving which causes it to wash away. But when left in place? Xempt dust will keep working!
You’ll need a HAND DUSTER to apply it and the following short video shows how its used.
It will hold 2-3 oz of dust which is generally enough to treat one nest.
Remember, do not use liquid material on nest sights as it will certainly fail to reach all sections of the nest. Dusting is generally the best only choice and should be used in conjunction with the sprays and baits listed above.
CARPENTER ANT TREATMENT SUMMARY
1) If you are in an area where there are a lot of carpenter ants active around the home, you should address the outside turf with PROTHOR and SCATTER BAIT. Bait alone usually isn’t enough to kill off nests but when used with Prothor, treating 1-2 a year will generally keep them from getting established.
2) If you occasionally see one or two ants in the home throughout the warm season and into the winter, be sure to bait and spray the outside as listed above but to be sure they aren’t in the home, apply Carpenter Ant Gel and Advion WDG.
3) If you know the exact location of a nest either outside or in the home, treat it directly with Xempt Dust. This product will knock the nest out immediately and provide the fastest results possible.
Carpenter ants are a major pest in the United States. If left untreated, they will chew through wood causing untold damage. Since carpenter ants forage great distances and typically maintain several nest locations, it’s not easy to control local infestations unless you follow the treatment outlined above.
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Linda Bee says
Terrific article on the treatment of carpenter ants. I read through information on other sites but found none that are so thorough and understandable for a layman as yours. Thank you.
Gene Barta says
Very informational site. I have done much of my own spraying but am concerned with the possibility of ants inside my garage door frame exterior wall. There is a white dust that looks and feels almost like plastic and when I clean it up I quickly find more. I have seen ants with and without wings but not lately, I assume because I sprayed fairly heavy. The dust seems to be coming from a space between the drywall and the door frame. There is either dry rot or ant damage in the bottom 8 inches of the garage door frame. No ants are seen when poking in the wood. Any recommendations from the limited information I provided? Should I get professional help. Will it be necessary to remove part of the drywall to physically confirm if there is damage?
Thanks.
Gene
Tech Support says
Gene,
Is the garage door frame you’re talking about also known as the “door jam”? This would be the outside 2×6 or 2×8 frame that outlines the car door for the garage. Basically when the door is down, this frame can be seen surrounding it when looking at the door from outside.
If yes, this part of the garage typically has problems with ants, termites and other insects where the wood meets the ground. So for starters, I’d do a thorough inspection of this area (especially each jam where it touches the ground) to see if its rotting, if there is any sign of termites, ants, etc.
Next, I wouldn’t rule out old damage. I’ve seen many times where ants (and more specifically, carpenter ants) have chewed wood and then after the colony is killed, subtle amounts of dust start to appear for a good month or two following the initial control of the nest. This can “naturally” happen due to the garage door being opened and closed (the vibration and shaking when the door opens and closes can cause dust to release) or just the home settling can cause dust to drop. Also, abandoned nests tend to “dry” and fall apart leading to an accumulation of dust below where the nest was active.
The same can happen when termites leave an area. Their mud tubes will in turn dry up and fall apart that can be seen as a type of dust which is typically gritty, kind of sandy.
But to be sure there is nothing happening in the wall void, dusting it with Xempt D would be a good option. This dust will make the void unusable by any insect and is worth the time and effort to be sure the problem is resolved. Its easy to apply and lasts pretty much forever when applied to dry voids like a wall so its a one time treatment option. And dusting other parts of the garage that might be vulnerable is a good idea too.
Xempt D: https://bugspray.com/exempt/dust/pest-xempt-dust
Hand Duster: https://bugspray.com/equipment/dusters/crusader
Give us a call if you need more help. Our toll free is 1-800-877-7290 and we’re open 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM Mon-Thur; 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM Friday and 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM Saturday, Eastern Standard Time.
Jonathan
Customer Care
https://bugspray.com
1-800-877-7290
PS: Please show your support for our business by purchasing the items we recommend from the links provided. Remember, this is the only way we can stay around and be here to answer your questions and keep our web site up and running. Thanks for your business!
Gene says
Thanks for the advice. Yes, there is activity in the door jam. The dust was reduced for a time after I sprayed but now there is an increased amount and I saw ants again tonight. I do have rotted wood at ground level but have been reluctant to repair it until I got rid of the ants. Do I need to be concerned with the integrity of the frame? If I open the drywall to inspect will I just cause the ants to move further into the house? At this point I’ll try the dust.
Tech Support says
Door jams are not important for the garage (they’re only present for cosmetic reasons) so even if it was damaged a bit, if you can’t damage don’t worry about it. But if it has clear and distinct ant galleries caving in with soft spots throughout the wood, cutting out and replacing sections would be warranted. Of course if this was happening, it would be quite visible.
Next, definitely don’t take down any wall covering. At least not yet. This would cause them to relocate so it would be best to first drill holes into any such space and dust the void if you thought they might be living in the space. And of course, dust as much of the garage jam too by targeting every little crack you can find.
Now since the chances are high that where you see their frass (the saw dust you mention) is also where they’re nesting, dusting this area will probably be the key to the treatment and should prove to be the most important part.
Lastly, the Xempt D is definitely the way to go to insure you get any close by nests that aren’t producing dust or saw dust (hidden nests). And once you dust and don’t have ant activity for 1 week or more, you can then go about exploring wall voids, etc. as you wish without concern or worry that you might relocate a nest.
Cheers,
Jonathan
Customer Care
U-Spray Bugspray
http://www.bugspray.com
1-800-877-7290
Megan says
Hi there,
First off thank you for your website and your helpful advice. I have been a longtime member and have used your products in several of my houses. Most recently I just constructed a new house and we have a brand new pool in the backyard. I am seeing large amounts of carpenter ants around the pool decking area. While the pool decking is not wood, it is travertine. But I’m concerned that the ants will work their way into the house. What is the best way to get control over the ants around the pool area?
Tech Support says
Megan,
As our article details, Carpenter Ants will routinely forage great distances and so for now, its entirely likely the ants you see are nesting elsewhere on your property or maybe even a neighbors yard. For that reason, it would be wise to broadcast our Prothor over the pool decking in the evening. At the same time treat the rest of the yard as well. The goal here is to get the Prothor up top of all decking and turf they are using. If enough of them walk through the treatment, they’ll bring it back to their nests and kill them all so non will be able to find your home.
Prothor is quite unique in that it won’t be detected for ants. And it takes 2-3 days to kick in and start working so expect to see ants in the days following the initial application. That said, plan on treating once a week in the evening until all activity ends.
https://bugspray.com/catalog/insecticide/liquid/prothor-sc
Be sure to visit our newly updated article here for all the latest and greatest information on this pest.
https://bugspray.com/article/carpenter-ant-control
Tech Support