What Do Carpenter Ants Look Like?
Carpenter ants are reddish-brown to black in color. They are relatively large, measuring 1/2 to 1 inch long. Carpenter ants have large mandibles used for chewing and tunneling through wood. Unlike termites, carpenter ants do not eat wood. Instead, they chew through it and deposit the debris outside their nests. Carpenter ants are the most common wood-destroying insects in Wisconsin. They have a heart-shaped head, bent antennae, and a round thorax with tiny hairs at the tip of the abdomen.
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What are the Signs of a Carpenter Ant Infestation?
Carpenter ants make their nests in damp, decaying wood. Homes with moisture problems due to poor ventilation or water leaks are especially susceptible to carpenter ant infestations. A clear sign of carpenter ants is small piles of sawdust (frass) that they produce while tunneling in the wood. If you see wood shavings mixed with bits of insulation, wings, and dead ants, it indicates nesting activity. You might also hear faint rustling or tapping inside your walls, which indicates ants working inside your wooden structures. During the mating season, winged ants may be present and often swarm around windows.
What Problems Do Carpenter Ants Cause?
When carpenter ants build nests, they dig tunnels in wood, weakening it from the inside. Ignoring a carpenter ant infestation could lead to serious structural damage and costly repairs. Carpenter ants may bite when threatened, but their bites aren’t dangerous to humans.
How Can I Prevent Carpenter Ants?
The following prevention tips will help deter carpenter ants from your property.
- Repair all moisture-damaged wood.
- Fix leaky pipes, faucets, and fixtures.
- Caulk openings around pipes and utility lines.
- Remove dead trees, limbs, and tree stumps from your yard.
- Trim shrubs and tree limbs away from the exterior of your home.
- Store your firewood away from the exterior of your house.
Carpenter Ant Control in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Advanced Wildlife and Pest Control offers professional carpenter ant extermination services in Milwaukee and southeastern Wisconsin. Our certified pest specialists provide reliable, long-lasting solutions to eliminate nuisance ants from your home or business. We offer one-time, monthly, and seasonal ant treatments to ensure your property remains pest-free throughout the year. Call us today and take the first steps toward resolving your ant problem.