Ants are fairly innocuous things. They scurry about on the floor without caring what you are doing. But a colony of ants can be a real nuisance. For example the fire ant can make you seriously ill while the carpenter ant can tunnel through wood, potentially damaging the structure of your home.
It is worth noting that the carpenter ant does not actually eat wood like the termite does.
If you believe you have an infestation of carpenter ants you should get a professional pest control service to check out your home.
It is important to be aware that this type of ant does not usually bore into dry wood; they prefer damp or even dead wood. Here are the signs of a carpenter ant infestation:
Ants
If you have ants crawling round your home it is possible that you have an infestation. Of course it may simply be they have been attracted to some spilt food. But, the usual expectation is that they have invaded.
You’ll need to follow the ants to discover where they have their nest.
A further sign that you have an issue is if you find winged ants in your home or emerging from your walls. This is the stage at which the young ants have become adults and are ready to mate. The place they have emerged from is likely to be part of their nest.
Wood Shavings
As carpenter ants do not eat the wood they will leave wood shavings at the site of where they have been tunneling. If you see wood shavings below a piece of wooden furniture or the structure of your home then you need to check further for a nest.
This can be a good time to call the exterminator service as they will assess the issue, type of ants and can even sort the best treatment.
Carpenter Ants Vs. Termites
It is important to note that the carpenter ant does not eat the wood, termites do. This does not make the damage they cause any less as they are making holes in the wood that supports your home.
You can tell the difference between whether you have termites of carpenter ants by looking at the damage they have caused to the wood.
Your carpenter ant will clean and polish its tunnel while termites carry dirt with them; and leave bits of it in the tunnels. The difference is that the termites are simply feeding as they go while the carpenter ants are creating a home in your wood.
In general carpenter ants will make a colony and contain their damage to that caused making their nest. However, as the colony produces new queens which create their own colonies it is likely that the damage will become greater over time.
In general the process of causing the damage is slower than when you have termites; but it is still as dangerous in the long term. That’s why you need to get the issue treated promptly and effectively.