Why Do I Have Carpenter Ants On My Maryland Property?
08/06/2021
If tapping and gnawing sounds in your walls aren’t suspect enough, the presence of sagging walls and hollow furniture will be a dead giveaway...
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Carpenter ants on your Maryland property can be a major issue when it comes to your home’s structural support and food storage. Understanding how to prevent carpenter ants from entering your property is essential to keeping your home in good shape.
Recognizing Carpenter Ants
Carpenter ants are one of the more recognizable ant species. They tend to grow between 1/2 to 5/8 of an inch and have three body segments. Each ant will have a pair of wings and a narrow waist and can range in color from dark black and brown to dark red; they may also be a combination of these colors. Carpenter ants are generally much larger than other ants and have heads shaped like hearts, while regular ants have a rounder-shaped head.
Carpenter ants can bring several problems into your home, the most major being destruction to your home’s wooden internal structures and furniture. Carpenter ants earn their name by chewing and tunneling through woods to make a series of passageways for their colonies to live in. Once they make it into your home, they will continue this behavior, causing serious destruction over time.
Another problem with carpenter ants is their ability to contaminate food. This ant doesn’t eat wood (they only tunnel through it), so once they enter your home and begin scavenging in your food storage areas, they can leave behind bacteria and germs. These may make you sick if you accidentally ingest the food the ants have touched.
Carpenter Ant Prevention Tips
There are several prevention tips that you can follow to ensure that ants stay out of your home and off your Maryland property as much as possible:
- Carpenter ants love moldy or moisture-laden wood. If you have leaks inside or outside your house, you should fix them and ensure proper ventilation is around your home. This will deter carpenter ants from tunneling through your home in the first place.
- Make sure that all food and trash, especially storage that is kept outside, is properly sealed. The aroma from these items can attract scavenging ants, encouraging them to move onto your property.
- Seal up all gaps and cracks around your home’s windows, doors, and foundation. Carpenter ants enjoy tunneling their way into your home through wood, but they can also enter via small gaps and then get to work chewing the wood inside your home.
- Clean up any food spills or waste as soon as possible. Keeping a clean home and eliminating dirty areas will deter the ants from seeking food in your house.
- Keep your yard free of debris and ensure that all hedges and trees are trimmed back away from your home. This will help keep the property around your home dry and sunny, something that can deter carpenter ants. Plus, a clear yard will prevent the ants from hiding out around your property.
- Make sure firewood and lumbar are stored at least 20 feet away from your property. This prevents ants that may be attracted to the wood from easily moving into your home.
Professional Ant Removal
Carpenter ant infestations can be difficult to remove on your own as they are often widespread throughout your home and property. Contact the professionals at American Pest at the first sign of an ant problem for expert assistance for safe, affordable solutions. Call us today and maintain the integrity of your home.
