An exterminator company like Milberger Pest Control can take care of carpenter ants in your home or business. Carpenter ants get their name from their nest building, where they will excavate the wood and form smooth tunnels inside of the wood. Carpenter ants do not eat wood, they only tunnel and chew through wood to create nests.
The western black carpenter ant colony, when mature, contains about 10-20,000 workers, with large colonies of more than 50,000 individuals. There is usually only one functional, wingless queen per colony. Swarmers are not produced until the colony is more than two years old. They are produced in the previous year and held over the winter in the nest for release the following year. Swarmers appear from May until August in the eastern United States and from February through June in the west. Spring is a good time to use an exterminator service like Milberger Pest Control to prevent the ants from coming into your home or business.
What do carpenter ants look like?
Carpenter ants vary in size and can be anywhere from ½” to ⅝” long. While black carpenter ants are common, these pests may be a combination of black and red, or completely black, red or brown.
Signs of an Infestation
The only external sign of a carpenter ant infestation other than the presence of workers and/or swarmers is the appearance of small openings on the surface of wood. Through these, the ants expel debris, which consists of sawdust-like shavings and/or fragments of insulation and insect body parts. The accumulation of this debris below the holes is a good indication of an active infestation. The gallery walls that carpenter ants create are smooth, with a sand-papered appearance. Active galleries are kept clean of debris.
An exterminator like Milberger Pest Company can tell you if the sawdust-like shavings are from carpenter ants or termites. Carpenter ants are most active at night, so evening inspections are best. The exterminator will do a thorough inspection in and around your home or business, from the ground to the roof peak. Once the colony or nest is located, the exterminator will locate the satellite colonies and nests, and drill and treat the entire colony.
Carpenter ants prefer to attack wood softened by fungus and are often associated with moisture problems, so homeowners should keep an eye out for excess moisture and soft, rotting wood around the home.
For more information about exterminator service from Milberger Pest Control, visit https://www.milbergerpestcontrol.com/insects-bugs-pest-control-kansas-city/ or call (816) 761-1313 in Missouri and (913) 384-6760 in Kansas.