Carpenter Ant Facts

16 Dec Carpenter Ant Facts

Carpenter ants are a common home pest in South Florida. They can cause damage to your home, but they aren’t just annoying—they can be dangerous as well. Here are some facts about carpenter ants and how you can prevent them from infesting your house.

Carpenter Ants Facts

Carpenter Ants Facts

• Carpenter ants are the most common wood destroying insect in South Florida. Their presence can be a sign of moisture damage or decay. They can also cause serious structural damage to homes, especially if left untreated.
• There are many different species of carpenter ants, but they all look similar—about 1/8 inch long with black bodies and reddish-brown heads and legs. Some species have wings while others do not.
• The best treatment plan is preventative and involves regular inspections by a professional exterminator to detect any problems early on before they become more expensive to fix later on down the road when it comes time for repairs due to termites eating away at your house’s foundation or some other kind of damage caused by these pests such as chewing up your hardwood floors so badly that it ends up costing thousands (or even tens) dollars just replacing one bathroom tile alone!

Carpenter ants are the most common wood destroying insect in South Florida.

Carpenter ants are the most common wood destroying insect in South Florida. They are not just annoying, they can cause serious structural damage to homes and other structures. Carpenter ants are a big problem because they nest in damp and rotting wood. The females can lay up to 300 eggs that hatch into larvae, which feed on the same food as adults do (sap). A colony of carpenter ants often consists of several hundred workers with one queen laying eggs for reproduction purposes.

As mentioned previously, carpenter ants prefer to nest in damp and rotting wood but can also be found nesting indoors around plumbing pipes or electrical wiring; these locations provide them easy access to moisture needed for survival as well as warmth from sources like heaters and other appliances located nearby.

Africanized carpenter ants from Central America have infested Miami-Dade County and will reach Broward County within the next 10 years.

Africanized carpenter ants are a hybrid of the Asian and European carpenter ant species, which were introduced to Brazil in the 1950s. The first colonies were discovered in Florida in 1981, but they have since spread northward only as far as Miami-Dade County. In 2018, Broward County will be free of this infestation.

If a carpenter ant has found its way into a decent sized structure it will go unnoticed for years, creating extreme structural damage to the point of nearly collapsing.

If a carpenter ant has found its way into a decent sized structure it will go unnoticed for years, creating extreme structural damage to the point of nearly collapsing. Carpenter ants are not just a nuisance that can be ignored, they must be treated or they will cause serious structural damage and may even cause you to lose your home.

Insecticide dust is extremely effective for treating carpenter ants.

Dust is the most effective treatment for carpenter ants. It is safe for children and pets, it can be used in cracks, crevices and voids, and it can be used to treat ant infestations in homes, trees and shrubs.

Dust is applied by lightly sprinkling it into the areas where ants are entering or traveling through your home or business. The dust will stick to each worker as they walk through their tunnel system looking for food. When these workers return to the colony with food on their bodies from this food source (you), they pass out the poison that you applied so that all of them suffer together after consuming it!

An organic product called BoraCare can be used in place of pesticides once an infestation occurs.

BoraCare is an organic product that can be used as a replacement for pesticides. It comes in liquid form and must be applied with a duster.

BoraCare has no odor, so you don’t have to worry about your home smelling like a bug spray factory. It’s also safe for humans and pets, so your family doesn’t have to put up with harmful fumes or deal with the hazards of pesticides around your home or yard.

In fact, BoraCare can actually help repel other pests like spiders and ants because it contains borax, which is poisonous to insects but harmless to people (and animals).

The best treatment plan is preventative and involves regular inspections by a professional to look for signs of infestations such as mud tubes, trails of ants, excessive holes drilled in walls with no power lines running through them and ant swarms generally near doors and windows.

The best treatment plan is preventative and involves regular inspections by a professional to look for signs of infestations such as mud tubes, trails of ants, excessive holes drilled in walls with no power lines running through them and ant swarms generally near doors and windows. If you notice any of these signs, contact a professional pest control provider immediately.

Carpenter ants are not just merely annoying, they can cause serious structural damage to homes,learning the facts can help you eliminate them

Carpenter ants are not just merely annoying, they can cause serious structural damage to homes. If you are experiencing a problem with carpenter ants in your home, it is important to learn the facts and find an effective solution. Carpenter ants are the most common wood destroying insect in South Florida. They prefer moist hardwood lumber as their nesting material but have been known to use other materials such as softwoods and cellulose insulation materials for their nests. Carpenter ants will bore into dry lumber for food, moisture or shelter.

• The most common species found in South Florida is Camponotus floridanus (Florida carpenter ant).
• These insects are usually blackish-brown in color with pale yellowish legs and antennae.* Females can be about 1/4 inch long while males are about 1/8 inch long.* They have straight antennae which may be longer than their bodies when viewed from above with 13 segments or more.* There is one node between each pair of abdominal spiracles that expel air from their abdomens as gas exchange occurs during respiration through these openings located on either side of the abdomen.* Worker females lay eggs into a mass made up of wood shavings glued together using honeydew secreted by aphids feeding on plant sap

Conclusion

It’s important to remember that these insects are not just merely annoying, they can cause serious structural damage to homes. Learning the facts can help you eliminate them before they get out of hand.