Carpenter Ants
Simple, Easy, & Quick Carpenter Ants Pest Control for All in Minnesota & Wisconsin
Some people can tell carpenter ants apart from other types of ants. Some can’t. When you don’t know if you have carpenter ants or not, it’s best to ask a professional.
Carpenter ants are bigger than common ants (often called sugar ants) or pavement ants. Carpenter ants are always black, while other ants can be red or brown as well as black.
Carpenter ants build with wood so they always pose a threat to any structure with wood. People will often find them on decks or patios, but they could be hiding in your wall voids too.
If you have carpenter ants, it is important to treat them right away to minimize any damage they could do. Done Right Pest Solutions offers simple, easy, and quick carpenter ant treatment for any home or business in need of carpenter ant control.
If you’re looking for a carpenter ant pest control cost estimate, call now for a free quote: 651-342-4989.
Why carpenter ants are destructive
Carpenter ants build with wood, whereas termites eat wood. Either way, these pests are very destructive. So much so that annually Americans spend $5 billion on home repairs that carpenter ants and termites have caused. To learn more of the signs of carpenter ants in house and carpenter ant damage signs, check out this article: How to Spot This Devastating Pest.
PCT Magazine gives case studies where some homeowners paid $5,000 and $20,000 for structural repairs that carpenter ants caused. One specific example cited was a home in Grand Rapids, Minnesota! This makes carpenter ants pest control one of the most important regular pest control services to have put in place for your home or business.
You might not notice the carpenter ants as quickly as you notice wood shavings in your home or yard. Wood shavings made by carpenter ants looks like sawdust.
Areas around your home to check for carpenter ant activity
You may know you have carpenter ants from their activity, the evidence they leave behind. But there signs how to tell if you have carpenter ants.
Carpenter ants are nocturnal, so you may just find some sawdust in corners of walls or windows.
Many may learn of a carpenter ant problem when replacing windows or finding that there was once water damage. Carpenter ants love water damage because the wood has degraded and so it is easier to transfer and build their nests.
But because so many don’t know they have carpenter ants until it is too late, it is important to have preventative carpenter ants pest control put in place every summer. We also list some areas for you to inspect to make sure you don’t have carpenter ant activity.
Common areas to inspect for carpenter ant activity:
- around window frames and door frames
- under eaves and gutters
- near patios, decks, or other structures attached to a house
- around any additions made to a home or structure
- anywhere moisture collects naturally or if there has been a leak recently
- any areas in your yard where there could be colonies, like wood piles, tree stumps, etc.
To learn more about carpenter ants, including some FAQs, read our article Carpenter Ants: How to Spot this Devastating Pest.
How we treat for carpenter ants
Because carpenter ants are mainly an exterior pest that can enter your home or business, we start by treating the exterior foundation about 3 feet up and 3 feet out all the way around the perimeter.
The product we use is a direct kill for any carpenter ants and crawling insects that come into contact with it while it is wet. It also has a residual product that is clear and attaches to the foundation to work for the rest of the season (between 1.5 to 2.5 months). This is an essential piece to carpenter ant control.
The product has a micro-encapsulated component that attaches itself to the carpenter ant’s (or other insect’s) legs. Carpenter ants are very social, so when they touch each ant they come into contact with, the product rubs off on them and will kill them as well. This process takes a few days to 2 weeks or so to have a complete effect on the population.
This product works well for stinging insect nests too for that same reason: stinging insects are social while they build their nests, touching everyone they come into contact with inside the nests. Knowing how different pests operate is crucial to carpenter ant control
To have a wider radius, our technicians will often treat the base of a couple trees in your yard. This ensures that many satellite colonies and main colonies that are in your yard or slightly outside your yard are affected.
In some cases a liquid bait or dust powder may be needed to treat these pests. We try not to treat internally for these pests, however, because we don’t want to draw more carpenter ants inside with the bait. We simply treat the exterior of the home or business, and the activity on the inside of the structure is eliminated as well.
Done Right Pest Solutions’ one-time service comes with a 2 month warranty, so if you see more activity after 2 to 3 weeks, give us another call. This does occasionally happen depending on the size of all of the colonies being affected by our treatment or the weather’s effect on the exterior application.
For the best carpenter ant control for your home and yard, look no further than Done Right Pest Solutions!
Carpenter ants are included in our Peak Seasons Plan so if you’re looking specifically for Residential Pest Control, check that annual package out. If you’re looking for Commercial Pest Control, view our Commercial Flyer. Our Peak Seasons Plan or our Commercial Quarterly services will cover you for all of your carpenter ants pest control needs.
Call for a free carpenter ant pest control cost estimate today.
Conclusion & next steps
We hope you learned a lot on this page, including how we treat these pests. Carpenter ants are nothing to fool around with, as they can be destructive to your home or business. For the best carpenter ant pest control cost estimate, service, and warranty, look to the pros at Done Right Pest Solutions.
We want to keep your home protected, your family healthy, and your peace of mind safe. Give us a call if you are in need of a carpenter ant treatment around your property. For simple, easy, and quick carpenter ant control, call Done Right Pest Solutions: 651-342-9489.
We’re here to help.
Done Right Team