The average home mortgage today is somewhere between 15 and 30 years. This is a long period of time. We pay on our homes for such a long part and majority of our lives that it’s important to make sure that our homes are protected from damage. The worst kind of damaged to your home that you can experience is pest damage. When we talk about wood destroying pests, most people think of termites. And termites are a huge issue and very dangerous. They can damage structural timbers in your home and cause all sorts of issues. But when we talk about wood boring insects, most people don’t think of ants. But the carpenter ant is an ant that bores into wood. Their use for wood is a little different but still they can damage your home extensively. This article will delve into the intricacies of the carpenter ant. 

CARPENTER ANTS AS AN ORGANIZATION

Carpenter ants, like many other kinds of ants are considered a eusocial insect. This means that they live in large colonies, and divide the workload up amongst many thousand of their individuals. Carpenter ants use a caste system in order to divide up the workload. At the bottom of the cast system, you’ll find the workers. Worker ants are the ants that are highest in population numbers. They do most of the menial work. They forage for food, collect that food and bring it back, feed the young and other ants, build and repair the nest structure and much more. These are the ants that actually do the damage to your home. Your Tulsa pest control company will have more details.  

After the workers, we have  soldier ants. Soldier ants are much larger than the worker ants. These ants will protect the colony in case of invasion. Other ants, spiders and other predators will try to attack the colony and feed off the larva, or adult carpenter ants. Soldier ants protect the colony from these predators. And then we have the queen. She’s responsible for laying eggs. Most queens have a long life cycle. They lay thousands and thousands of eggs in their lifetime. Pretty much all day that’s all they do. Lastly the reproductives are there to reproduce the colony as a whole. There are both male and female reproductives, and they are unique in the fact that they have wings. These reproductives will fly from the nest, find other reproductions from other nests, and create a brand new colony somewhere else. 

NESTING

Carpenter ants get their name because they prefer to nest inside of wood. The way that they do this, is that they bore into dead and dying wood, creating pathways all through the wood for them to live it. These galleys are polished to a smooth finish. They do this to make sure it’s easy to maneuver through the nest galley ways. If you were to compare them to termite galleys, you would see that the inside of the termite galleys are very rough. This differs from the carpenter ant because termites are actually consuming the wood from the walls of their galleys. So they want the surfaces to be rough so that they can easily pull more material from their galleys. 

Carpenter ants are very good at making sure that those pathways stay clear. Worker ants work hard to push frass out of the nest. Frass is any kind of trash or excrement that’s found inside the nest. These ants will create small holes in the wood to push that frass out of. This is often a telltale sign of carpenter ant issues. If you’re seeing a hole with dust particles being pushed out of it, this could very well be from carpenter ants. Its time to call your Broken Arrow exterminator.  

WHAT TO KNOW WHEN BUYING A HOME

When buying a new home, you will need to get a wood damage insect report. This report will be done by a certified pest control technician in order to see if you have any kind of wood destroying insects in the home. They are mostly looking for termites but carpenter ants are on the list as well. If you’re buying a home, and carpenter ants come up on the wood destroying insect report, then it is a good idea to make sure that that problem is dealt with before you purchased the home. Your pest control technician will have a perfect Tulsa pest control service to eliminate carpenter ants in your new home. This usually can be done in one service, and it is often not too expensive. 

Carpenter ants can find their way into many different places. Not only in your home, but sheds and fences can also be attacked by carpenter ants. These insects tend to be fairly black in color, and can be multiple sizes. These ants can bite humans, so care needs to be taken when dealing with them.  But you will still need to be deal with them so that your home, fence or other structures are protected against damage. 

PROPER TREATMENT OF CARPENTER ANTS

Carpenter ant colonies can splinter if not treated correctly. Some ants, when separated from their colony, will break off and create a brand new county. One of the worker ants will become a queen and a new colony will be started. Carpenter ants can do this. This is why the correct pesticide must be used.  If the wrong one is used, these pesticides may have the negative affect of creating two colonies where you had one. Obviously this is a bad idea. Call your trusted Tulsa exterminator for help.  

HOW TO ELIMINATE CARPENTER ANTS FROM YOUR HOME

If you’re having trouble with ants your home, especially carpenter ants, then it may be time to contact your Broken Arrow pest control company. They will have the perfect service to deal with carpenter ants or any other ants that you may have. Here in TermMax Pest Control, we specialize in ants and other pests. We service the greater Tulsa area including Owasso, Broken Arrow, Sand Springs, Sapulpa, Coweta, Claremore, Catoosa, Sapulpa, Prattville, Turley and much more. Call today for a free estimate. We’re here to help!

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