People say about good people: "The ant will not offend." But sometimes these small, but very persistent insects force them to fight. This applies primarily to woodcarving ants. What are they interfering with, and how to force them to go away? How to get rid of wood carp ants in a house?
Description of ants
Wooden houses are environmentally friendly; they are warm in winter and cool in summer. But sometimes uninvited guests join the hosts. And if rats or mice do obvious harm, then wood-boring ants at first glance may seem harmless. But actually it is not. Usually representatives of this species live in the forest. There they do not bother anyone. But often these insects build their anthills near housing. And it doesn’t matter from which a man built his house - from brick, clay or concrete. Although most often ants settle and build their nests near wooden structures. They use wood as a building material for their home. A large number of moves machined inside the tree make it loose. Ants undermine the lower logs, as a result of which the house slowly but surely collapses.
The red-chested wood-ant is quite large: the body length of males reaches 12 mm, and the females are slightly larger - 15 mm. Body color is brown or black, chest is red. The body of the ant is divided into segments. The abdomen is oval, and the chest is thin, cubic in shape with smooth bends from above. A pair of antennas, antennae and large jaws are noticeable on the head. Females differ from males in the presence of wings, which they drop after mating. Sometimes males can have wings. The bulk of wood-boring ants are workers. They find building material and drag it into the anthill, are engaged in construction work.
Signs of the presence of ants in the house
Carpenter ants leave traces of life - a wooden dust that looks like flour. It is a building material for an insect nest. It is easiest to spot early in the morning or evening. That is when they begin the period of collecting building materials. Among the dust and sawdust, dead insects are often found.
Ants move through the developed territory one after another, so they are easy to spot on the floor or near the walls of the house.
Following these hard times, you can quickly determine the place they have chosen. The evidence that the woodcarving ants settled near the house are quite large white eggs hidden in the nesting place. If the dust is located next to a wooden building, carefully inspect the walls of the house, pierce the walls with a thin screwdriver. This will help to detect the moves inside the tree.
Sometimes woodworkers build a colony in the vicinity of the house. In this case, they make paths between the individual nests. Sometimes they can pass through the territory of the house. There they easily penetrate through microscopic cracks.
Where to look for ants
- Carpenters settle in a moist tree, because it becomes soft from exposure to water. In such a material, making holes is much easier. Therefore, investigate the place of exit of the sewer.
- Check existing door mats.
- Inspect the foundation and courtyards.
- Seekers of wood in the grass, lawns, under the bushes.
- Explore the area around young trees. Usually it is covered with a thick layer of moist mulch or leaves, in which ants like to settle. To find them, they rake the mulch and examine the ground.
- Carpenters can settle in compost heaps. Sometimes they settle in the floors, in potted plants.
How to prevent the appearance of ants
No need to wait for the appearance of ants in the house. All possible measures should be taken so that they do not appear.
To this end, cut branches that bend close to the windows. All flowers, vegetables and fruits are inspected and shaken so as not to bring insects into the house. You can not leave trash piles, branches, last year's leaves on the site. They can become a refuge for woodcarving ants.
Inside the house you need to keep clean, often wash the floors, cover the bin. Do not leave unwashed dishes. Windows should be covered with nets; doors should not be left open.
If there are ant heaps near the site, the danger of relocating them to the house increases. To scare away uninvited guests, you can sprinkle substances with a pungent odor. These are essential oils, peppers, turmeric, cinnamon.
Carpenters or termites
Outwardly, a black woodbear ant looks like a termite. In order to determine the type of insects, you need to carefully look at them and their actions. The presence of dust along the paths of their movement indicates that this is precisely woodworms.
Termites feed on wood, and woodworkers only dig tunnels in it. Ant roads are best sought early in the morning or evening.
How to find a nest
How to get rid of wood carp ants? First you need to find their nest. To do this, you need to track the movement of insects along their designated paths. Traces of trash that large black ants carry will appear on them. The woodworm lives in moist trees, lying pillars, boards, leaving noticeable winding passages on them. Near the nest, the amount of dust increases significantly.
In addition, you can search for places on the tree where the wood is most damp. It is there that woodcutter ants like to place their nests. How to get rid of them?
How to deal with woodworms
There are several ways to deal with woodworms. Which one to choose depends on several conditions.
Chemical and natural insect repellents can be used. Near the house it is better to use organic folk remedies. Especially if there are children and animals. But in some cases, in inaccessible places you have to use chemicals.
You can act radically and destroy the nest of ants. If you do this shortly after their settlement, they will leave. But they can move to another place or settle in several colonies, while creating new problems.
Special baits help in the fight against ants. Their action is prolonged and more reliable.
One must beware of getting ants on the skin of the hands. In a calm state, they do not harm a person. But in the event of an attack on the nest, they begin to bite painfully. The burning sensation is further enhanced by the fact that they inject formic acid into the wound.
The mechanism of action of toxic bait
If it’s difficult to get to the nest, toxic baits are installed near the dwelling of insects. It’s good to mix their contents with sweet foods. Ants, having discovered the "treat", try it themselves and bring it to the anthill. Brothers are infected there, as a result of which they die. Three days pass from infection to death.
Nowadays, gel baits are popular, for example, Anteater, Clean House, and The Great Warrior. They are mixed with jam or sprinkled with sugar. Near one nest set 3 bait. It is better to choose those that are slow. Then the ant will probably have time to get into the anthill and transfer the poison.
Gel lures are very effective. They help get rid of insects forever. Chemical treatment should be carried out in a respirator, making sure that they do not get on the skin of the hands and face, in the respiratory tract. After treatment, wash your hands thoroughly with soap.
Spray guns
An easy-to-reach nest can be destroyed with spray guns. They put a special powder - a remedy for wood ants. In stores that specialize in pesticides, there is a wide selection of such drugs. You can use ready-made sprays: "Dichlorvos", "Regent", "Raptor". Direct a stream towards a nest. Processing is carried out several times. It is better to do this in the evening, when all the ants return home.
You can not spray the paths along which insects move. The drug will scare away worker ants, who will soon build another pathway for themselves, and the uterus will remain and will continue to multiply further.
Remember: such products are highly toxic. Therefore, applying them to fight wood-boring ants in the house, you must follow the instructions for using the drug. Do not spray sprays in places where children or pets can get.
Use chemicals in a respirator and protective suit. Hands protect with gloves.
Boric acid use
Boric acid is used to combat various insects, including wood-boring ants. To do this, mix it with sugar in a ratio of 2: 1. The resulting mixture is laid out in small dishes and set around the nest. Ants go for sugar, along with it, boric acid also enters the body. It dissolves the insect from the inside. Working individuals bring boric acid into the nest. So she will get to the females and other inhabitants, destroying them.
Folk ways of struggle
If chemical methods cannot be used, try to use folk remedies:
- Pour boiling water or vinegar into the nest. In this case, a significant part of the ants die.
- Arrows of garlic are used (they are thrust into the anthill). Insects are afraid of this strong smell.
- Near the anthill set dishes with a bait of sugar syrup. Ants crawl into it to feast on and drown there.
- Yeast is mixed with water and sugar or coffee grounds, from which insects die.
- Black soap is prepared by mixing 400 g of laundry soap, 200 g of kerosene and carboxylic acid (2 tbsp. L.). Dilute with warm water and fill the anthill. Repeat after 2 days 3 times.
- To destroy the anthill, this method is only suitable if it is away from home. They fill it with kerosene and set it on fire.
You can use one or more different methods to get rid of wood-boring ants.