Handling Carpenter Ant Damage

While carpenter ants fall short of termites in terms of sheer destructive power, they make up for it by being resourceful and stealthy. By nesting and living in our wooden walls, carpenter ants are able to remain hidden while growing their colony’s numbers at the same time. The more they multiply, the more damage they have to do to sustain their population, so it’s important to know how to identify carpenter ant damage and quickly get them out of your building. If you think you’ve found carpenter ant damage in Eastern TN and don’t know what to do next, read on for advice from the ant exterminators at Johnson Pest Control.

Did I Find Carpenter Ant Damage?

It takes a bit of luck to catch a carpenter ant infestation early on. Carpenter ants tunnel through the wooden structures of our buildings to make nests and spread their colonies. When their numbers grow large enough, they’ll split off to form satellite colonies, making carpenter ant removal an even more difficult process. Keep an eye out for these signs of carpenter ants in your home:

1. Small holes and striated structures in wood
2. Little clusters of wood shavings in places you wouldn’t expect them to be
3. Faint sounds of rustling ants coming from your walls
4. Winged ants crawling out of cracks in your walls

Carpenter ants can be distinguished from other ants by the combination of their all-black bodies, large mandibles, and ¼-⅜” long bodies. Finding these ants crawling out of wooden walls is a sure sign of a carpenter ant infestation.

Getting Ahead of Carpenter Ant Damage

If you have identified signs of carpenter ant damage in your home or business, your next move should be to quickly devise a plan to get rid of them. There are a few DIY carpenter ant removal strategies that you may wish to consider:

• Flushing out ants from their nests using soapy water or window cleaner
• Mixing borax with sugar water to lure in the ants to a poisonous trap
• Spreading a citrus-based cleaner, lemon eucalyptus oil, or cinnamon around active areas to drive them out

The problem with trying to handle carpenter ant control on your own is that your problem will never end if you don’t attack it at the source, their nest, which may be deep in your walls. You may even have multiple nests to remove and not even know it.

Expert Carpenter Ant Control in Eastern TN

If you want to be sure that you’re doing the best thing for your property during a carpenter ant infestation, reach out to your local ant exterminators. Our team at Johnson Pest Control can conduct holistic ant removal services, including an exhaustive property inspection, safe and efficient ant removal services, and leaving you with advice to protect your home or business from carpenter ants in the future. Reach out today to learn more and receive a free quote!