? for JasonJ (or another bug killin' expert)

[Dave Abrahamson]

Hi Jason,<br />I noticed in another thread(didn't wanna hijack it), that you are an exterminator. Just to pick your brain for a minute, I have a carpenter ant problem. I have already dug a trench around my house and applied DemonTC, and then dusted my attic with a cocktail of Borid and Delta dust.<br />I still see them in the evening flying around the lights and on the TV. I'm just wondering, is there more to be done to rid myself of these flying pain in the a$$e$!!?? I can't tell where they are coming from. Do I have to locate the nest in order to kill them all? HELLLLPP!<br />Sorry for all the questions, I just figured that while I have the attention of an expert, might as well get some solid answers.<br /><br />Thank you in advance<br />Dave

 

[mellowyellow]

Re: ? for JasonJ (or another bug killin' expert)

"I still see them in the evening flying around the lights and on the TV"<br />u need serious help dude! hire a professional, fast!!!!

 

[JasonJ]

Re: ? for JasonJ (or another bug killin' expert)

I would say get a pro, but if you really want to try to tackle this yourself, you'll have to get dirty. If you have a crawlspace, you have to get down there, and you have to examine the entire perimeter of the foundation where your sillplates/rimjoists meet. You are looking for sawdust, insect parts, spiderwebs with a lot of dead ants in them. You have to pull back the insulation if there is any. If you are lucky enough to actually expose the colony, you need to kill it directly. Doing that, combined with a residual treatment, and the elimination of any carpenter ant colonies within a 300 foot radius of the house should help. The way I do it is locate all interior/exterior colonies and destroy them. Sometimes you never find the colonies. Then I inject Tim-bor though holes drilled under all electrical outlets on all levels on all exterior facing walls. Ants use wiring and plumbing to move around a house. I spray the entire cralwspace, the entire exterior, and all baseboards throughout home. If the problem is not solved after 2-3 weeks I switch to a bait. If the bait proves ineffective I switch back to an alternate chemical that is used as a last resort as it is very expensive and must be used in limited amounts due to EPA regulations.<br /><br />Finding the colony is key, if possible. Sometimes you have to spend hours following ants to see where they are going. Look for ants carrying things, those are the ones going to the colony. Following foraging ants can drive you insane so look for trails and that sort of thing. Think about if you have any moisture problems with the house, past or present. They will be near moisture problems. They also like to infest in the juncture of an addition for some reason (often the roof develops a leak at the point of new meeting old).<br /><br />Once again, Carpenter ants can be very difficult to deal with, and after a lot of time and money on over the counter chem, you could have just got a pro and would have a warranty. Good luck..

 

[Dave Abrahamson]

Re: ? for JasonJ (or another bug killin' expert)

Thanks for the very informative lesson Jason.<br />I live in Fl. so therefore, like a lot of homes around here, my house is of block construction and sitting on a slab with no crawlspace.<br />I'll try to follow the critters to see if I can see where they are headed. They have wings so it can be a pain. I am lucky(I guess)that Florida is one of the few states that allow commercial strength insecticide to be sold to the homeowner directly.<br />Thanks again<br /><br />Dave

 

[JasonJ]

Re: ? for JasonJ (or another bug killin' expert)

Following the winged reproductives will not help. They are leaving the colony to mate with the small winged males (the only males that exist in an ant colony, the rest are all female). They mate, the males die, the larger fertilized females fly off, land elswhere, drop their wings, and search for a suitable colonization site. 90% of the fertilized females die before finding a site, the rest develop small colonies. <br /><br />You want to look for wingless foragers, ignore the winged unless you see the area they are exiting from. Usually the reproductive exit point is not that far (depending on structure) from the colony. <br /><br />Are you sure that is commercial grade you can get? Pesticide regulation is done at the federal level, the state cannot alter that except to further restrict use. The EPA has been very hard on the pesticide industry due to abuse by the public. Diazinon and Dursban was banned for pulic use a few years ago. You can buy whats left on the shelf, but once that is gone, thats it. Licensed individuals can buy the profession versions, but there are better chemical available than those. It is the "more is better" mindset that has caused all the restrictions. People turning their homes into toxic waste dumps. I won't even treat a house if I know that excessive over the counter product was used. I can usually tell because the homeowner will say "I sprayed the snot out of the house with 30 gallons of THIS", and produce some product that they bought from Wal-mart. It is scary what people are doing to their house, then they ask me if our product is safe. The saddest part of all is that the profession products are safer than over the counter because the pro applicator is exposed to it all day every day. It has to meet more strict safety levels than the over the counter product because of that. Just remember that when applying storebought product. Good luck....

 

[dennisrhall]

Re: ? for JasonJ (or another bug killin' expert)

I was once an exterminator back in the 70's i pulled out my hair trying to find the ant colony, but i found it. guess where> they were travling down an old clothes line from an old old tree attached to the back porch post in the back yard about 50 feet away. i was a hereo to the customers and my boss was was amazed because he had helped out on this problem , check tree limbs, clothes lines, maybe power lines but be careful.