Common Signs of Carpenter Ants Infestation

Carpenter ants are pretty fascinating insects, and if they didn’t cause thousands of dollars in damages inside your home, they wouldn’t be such a nuisance. They’re very beneficial in wooded areas as they help with natural decomposition, but to your family, they’re a very unwelcomed guest.

Carpenter ants are not your typical ground ant, as they need wood to make their nests, which they call colonies. Many people believe that they eat the wood in the foundation like a termite, but they actually don’t consume it. Rather, they like to create tunnels through wooden structures.

Source: University of Central Florida

If you’re concerned that you have termites, you can always tell the difference in the borrowing style of the ant. Ants don’t have mud tubes that are visible on the outside, as their evidence is smooth to the touch. They leave patterns of tiny holes where they’ve chewed their way to the inside. The termite’s mud tubes are quite visible as they’re on the surface of the wood.

Nesting Habits

Source: Palomar College

Their nest-building capabilities are where they got their name. The reason they need large spaces for their nests is the sizable nature of their colonies. Shockingly, they can have up to 50,000 ants in a larger group, and in that grouping, there will be anywhere from 15,000-20,000 workers. 

They rival the largest manufacturing company with their repetitive labor and diligent workers. Ants are certainly one of the busier insects, as they like to stay active. It takes a great deal of strength to build a nest by burrowing through the wood. They’re stronger than their size, as they can carry anywhere from 10-50 times the weight of their body. 

The ant has a reputation for being strong, and they’re 100-1,000 times more powerful than other insects in their size category. They also have powerful jaws, allowing them to eat anything, including your home’s structure. So, there’s no reason to doubt their ability to chew through your porch beams or any other wood in the house. 

Their nesting habits are unique, as they will build two types. Scientists call them colonies, and they have both a parent and satellite. The queen and all her workers live in the parent nest, which is where most of the action takes place, and each colony has only one queen. The second colony, or the satellite, is where the worker ants live, and their job is to oversee the mature larvae as well as the pupae. 

Reproduction

Figure. Carpenter ant queen  Source: NC State University

A carpenter ant is known for its longevity, as it can live up to 20 years. Most insects die within a few months or a year at best. The queen is wingless, but they can swarm when the colon reaches an age of maturity, which is about two years. You will see these winged ants come out in the spring, usually around May. They can swarm until around August.

Swarming is a term used for ants to gain their wings to take flight and find a mate. Without the wings, they wouldn’t be able to get far. If you see an ant flying around your windows, it’s probably a swarmer that got inside by mistake. Like most bugs, they’re drawn to the light in hopes of escaping back to the great outdoors.

The lucky few are sent from the colony to grow the family. An ant must be at its sexual peak to take the nuptial flight. Sadly, the males sacrifice themselves for the process, as they perish soon after they mate.

While the queen doesn’t die, she does remove her wings and prepares for motherhood. Just as in life, the queens are very picky about their mate, as only the best male will do. Once they’ve mated, the sperm of the male is stored in the queen in an area called the spermathecal.

Oddly enough, this is the only time the virgin queen will mate, as she will receive enough sperm to lay millions of eggs with just one mating session. Loaded with sperm, the queen will seek a new location to build her colony.

Eating Habits

Figure. Carpenter ant damage. Carpenter ants are attracted to areas where wood is moist or constantly exposed to rain or leaks, such as near doors, windows, roofs, etc.  Source: NC State University

Since you know that ants don’t eat wood but only use it to burrow, you probably want to know what they do eat. Please make no mistake, ants are both vultures and predators, despite their small size. They prefer to dine on dead insects, but they’re not against hunting for live ones and killing them to eat either. 

Inside your home, they will dine on table scraps, things from the trash, and any crumbs they can find. Therefore, it’s so crucial that you keep things clean and tidy during the times when they’re swarming. Any insect that finds food in abundance will frequent this location, and possibly set up a new home. 

Ants like to do their busy work at night, so you may not identify a problem until it’s become an infestation. Once they locate nourishment, they use their mouth to extract the fluids from the dead body. Did you know that ants like flowers, fruits, and one of their favorites is honeydew melon? 

So, while the fruit bowl sitting on your counter looks pretty, it may be very attractive to pests. They drain the liquid from these items to take back and feed the colony. If you’ve ever complained about a 5–10-minute commute to the grocery store, you should know that ants love to travel. In fact, they can make their specific hunting area the size of a football field, which is an astounding 300 feet. They’re certainly not lazy. 

While the colonies are large, they only send out about 10 percent of the workers at a time. Since there’s a significant risk that these ants won’t return due to their demise, the colony must be sure they don’t send out too many of these vital workers of their community at once. 

Identifying the Carpenter Ant

Source: NPS

When you see a winged creature hovering around your windows, the first thing you will do is panic and things termites. However, the ant and the termite have some similarities, but it’s easy to tell them apart when placed side-by-side. The ant is black in color, whereas the termite is clear. 

The carpenter ant is quite giant compared to ground ants and other species. They can get up to a half-inch long. The color combinations they come in are pretty vast, as some will be black while others will take on a reddish-brown hue. Their abdomen is divided into three distinct sections, and you will see tiny, golden-colored hairs that form little rings on them. 

The jaws of the carpenter ant are pretty massive for their size, which makes it easy for them to chew through wood and kill other bugs for nourishment. They also enjoy sweet nectar from flowers, especially the peony. Their body is dull and matted in color, and their legs are almost always a red hue. 

Carpenter ants are not aggressive, and they don’t have a stinger. However, they can bite you if they feel threatened, but this is often not the case. Even if they bite you, they don’t carry any disease, so there’s no risk to you from the nip. However, it certainly will hurt.

Signs of an Infestation

Source: University of Maryland

Are you rolling out the welcome mat for these pests? If you’re leaving food about or have woodpiles near your home, you’re welcoming all sorts of critters. Having a small leak in your basement can create the perfect situation for such an infestation. 

The carpenter ant is very predictable, and they have specific areas they like to frequent. They love to linger in:

• Eaves 
• Gutters
• Patios and decks
• Any wooden structure attached to your house
• Places where moisture collects, like a basement or under sinks, and attics
• Wood piles
• Tree stumps
• Decaying wooded areas

One of the most telling signs of an infestation is during the swarming season. Additionally, you may find sawdust in areas of the home where they’re borrowing. Termites can cause sawdust too, but by looking closely at the bug, you can tell the difference. 

You might also see some wings lying around where they’ve shed them after mating season. Since a colony lasts for many years, it can be lurking in your home for a long time without you noticing a thing. Oddly enough, if something happens to the queen, the entire nest will die within a couple of days.

Getting Professional Help

Did you know that the carpenter ant is one of the most destructive species in the world? Part of the reason why they’re so dangerous is that they can go undetected for long periods, so their colonies grow pretty significant. The sheer volume of these nests makes them one challenging pest to tackle. 

Getting rid of the carpenter ants can require many approaches. A trained New Jersey pest professional will place a bait product in the infested areas. The ants will take the bait back to the colony and kill the others. Preventive measures are also beneficial.

You must take some steps to keep your home from looking cozy. If you have a leak or moisture problem, then you should take care of it immediately. Eliminating the leak/moisture issue can help reduce the risk of an infestation. 

Check around the foundation of your home for any openings that make access easy. These openings should be sealed off to prevent entry. Once the ants set up a colony inside, it can be a massive cost, much less than using preventive measures. 

It’s sad to consider that people in this country spent more than $5 billion last year fighting carpenter ants and termites. On average, a carpenter ant infestation can cost anywhere from $5,000-$15,000 to eradicate and repair the damage. These are not the tiny ants that drive you crazy but cause no real damage, as these large critters can chew through your home and leave behind a trail of destruction, costing you thousands.

Look for signs in your home like sawdust, wings, and tiny holes where a bug has bored. Call for help immediately. Don’t just trust some chemical from a local store when you’ve got the probability of a massive problem on your hands. You need to ensure it’s taken care of right the first time, as they’re causing major damage. Don’t delay, call your New Jersey pest control company today!