4 Ways to Identify an Ant Infestation

brad 0 Comments July 16, 2018 Ants Pests

If you have seen some ants crawling around your kitchen or pantry it may be not be big deal. Nesting ants enter your house to forage for food and usually aren’t too much of a problem. They can crawl up vertical surfaces and get inside through tiny holes and can easily be stopped by a professional. But if the ants you see in your kitchen came from a colony inside of your walls, that could be bad, especially if you are dealing with a carpenter ant problem in Pensacola.

What are carpenter ants?

Carpenter ants are a large species of ants that are responsible for millions of dollars in property damage each year in the U.S. If you see them crawling across your floor to get to the pet food dish you’ll know it. They usually are black but can sometimes have a reddish tint to them. They burrow in through wet rotted wood and chew through the wood structure of your home. If they aren’t dealt with right away they can cause you thousands of dollars in repairs costs.

Are these ants coming from my walls?

There are a few things you can do to determine if you have ants living inside of your walls.

• If the ants you have are carpenter ants, you most likely are infested. Carpenter ants prefer to live in wood so if you don’t have any rotted wood around your home there is a high chance they have a nest in your walls or flooring.
• Put your ear to the walls and floors. You can hear insect activity if you put your ear close enough to an active colony.
• Look for rotted areas on the exterior of your home.
• Hire a professional to do an inspection. This way you’ll know for sure what you are dealing with. We have the knowledge to find the nesting ants and keep them from destroying your property.

How can I deal with outside ants?

If the ants in your home came from outside, there are some things you can do to stop them from coming in.

• Keep things clean around your house. They’re looking for food!
• Protect the food in your cabinet by putting open food in sealed plastic containers.
• Put pet dishes down only during meal times and spray vinegar and water around the bowl (1 part vinegar and 3 parts water).
• If you see an ant trail, spray the entire trail with either soapy water, window cleaner, or the water/vinegar mixture. This will get rid of the trail pheromones ants leave behind. This scent is what allows them to travel in a path to where food is.

If you’re dealing with ants in your home, contact a reputable Pensacola Exterminator like Extreme Termite and Pest Control. We will help you get them out and keep them out. You have a lot invested in your home; we want to keep it safe from destructive pests!

Call us today! (850) 492-9225

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