Ant infestations are hard to control. If you suspect carpenter ants in your Omaha home, you need a professional Omaha pest control company to help eradicate them. They can cause serious structural damage to your home if you don’t get rid of them in time. In this handy guide, you’ll learn how to identify carpenter ants, the problems they can cause, the factors that bring them into your home, and why you should call Omaha ant control pros at the first sign of them.
How To Identify A Black Carpenter Ant
You need to know how to identify carpenter ants and how they look different from termites. Black carpenter ants are ½ to ? inches long and have a three-segmented body. All three segments are oval. They have six legs and two bent antennae. These ants are found throughout the United States. In the spring, you may see ants with wings – carpenter ants have two sets, and the front wings are longer than the back sets.
While they may look similar to termites, termites are light brown to tan, have straight antennae, and have no waist – their bodies are cigar-shaped.
One key clue that you have carpenter ants is that you’ll find carpenter ant frass in your home. Carpenter ant frass resembles sawdust with larger, more irregular shapes than termite frass. Termite frass is their droppings, which are pellet-shaped with six sides and rounded ends. Carpenter ant frass can also contain dirt and body parts of dead ants.
The Multiple Problems Carpenter Ants Create In A Home
There are many signs of carpenter ants in your house, and the problems they can create are considerable. They include:
- Bulging or dipping floors
- Holes in door jambs and window frames
- Doors that either stick or swing freely
- Windows that either stick or don’t stay up
- Damage to your siding
- Warping to the framework of your house
- Drooping ceilings
Carpenter ants in Omaha are a serious problem, and you need to call Quality Pest Control at the first sign of them in your home.
Factors That Attract Carpenter Ants To Your Home
Several factors could attract carpenter ants to your house, including:
- Tree stumps in your yard. If you have tree stumps in your yard, they are perfect homes for carpenter ants, especially if they’re rotting.
- Tree branches that touch your house. Tree branches that touch your home are an avenue for many different pests to access your house, including carpenter ants.
- Pools of water. Carpenter ants, along with other pests, are attracted to standing water around your home.
- Stacked firewood. Carpenter ants make their home in wood, and if your firewood is stacked against your house, that’s an invitation for them to move in with you.
- Cracks and crevices. Carpenter ants aren’t likely to chew their way into your home, but they will take advantage of existing entry points like cracked window sills, worn-out door sweeps, or torn screen doors.
- Lots of flower beds. Carpenter ants eat aphids, scale insects, and dead bugs, and they drink the honeydew aphids leave behind on plants. If you have lots of plants around your home, you need a professional pest control company like Quality Pest Control to help you manage pests around your home, including carpenter ants.
Those are just a few factors that can attract carpenter ants to your house. Now it’s time to learn how to get rid of carpenter ants in your Omaha house.
Call The Professionals At The First Sign Of Carpenter Ants
If you see large black ants in your house, flying ants, or small holes in your walls with piles of sawdust underneath them, you need to know how to get rid of carpenter ants. Call the professional service specialists at Quality Pest Control. We’ve been in business since 1996, and we know that for permanent ant control, you need a permanent solution. The products we use are designed specifically for ant control. They’re made to transfer throughout an ant colony quickly and efficiently. Call to schedule your consultation now and learn more about our residential and commercial pest control services in Omaha.
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(402) 534-1364