Carpenter ants in Ogden are a huge deal. Though most Ogden pest control plans tend to deal with termites first, carpenter ants in your house are just as destructive. This ant species does a lot of the same damage as termites and is almost as tough to detect. Once carpenter ants get into your home, they will steadily damage it until it is rendered unsafe to live within. These factors make it crucial to understand how these pests behave and the damage that awaits a neglected, infested property.
How To Identify A Carpenter Ant Infestation
Carpenter ants in Ogden can be tricky to distinguish from termites. The signs of carpenter ants are often very similar to signs of termites. However, one easy way to tell the difference is to look for the actual bugs. Termites are cream-colored and seldom leave their nests for anything except to swarm during the breeding season. This is because termites eat the wood they infest and don’t forage for food.
Carpenter ants, on the other hand, don’t eat wood. They tunnel through it to make their nests but leave their nests in search of food regularly. If you have carpenter ants in your home, you will see them. These ants are usually solid black or dark brown and about 5/8 of an inch long. Seeing one or two of these guys is no reason for concern; however, if you spot them every day and in groups, you may have a carpenter ant problem.
The Extent Of Damage Carpenter Ants Can Create On Your Property
Carpenter ants may not eat wood, but that doesn’t mean they can’t destroy it. Instead of tunneling through the dirt like other ant species, carpenter ants excavate and burrow through the wood in your home. This behavior eventually weakens the structural integrity of the wood enough to put it at risk of collapsing. Bucked floors, bulging walls, and poorly fitting windows and doors are the first signs of carpenter ant damage. If you notice these, on top of spotting the actual culprits themselves, it means your home has had an infestation for some time.
Why DIY Carpenter Ant Control Often Fails
Carpenter ants colonies are complex entities. Mature colonies send out winged reproductive adults to create new nests, and these adults often don’t travel all that far from their parent colony to create new ones. That means there can be multiple nests and queens in a single infestation. This can make it impossible for homeowners to get rid of an entire infestation on their own.
DIY ant control solutions like granules or sprays often do little more than temporarily reduce the ant population on your property. These products, in turn, don’t do much more than make room for the surviving ants to keep breeding. That’s why you’ll need Ogden pest control professionals like the ones here at Mountain West Pest Control to help you eliminate your carpenter ant infestation for good.
The Most Effective Way To Get Rid Of Carpenter Ants On Your Property
It’s just shy of impossible for homeowners to get rid of carpenter ants on their own. That’s why you need to hire professionals as soon as you think you might have carpenter ants in your house. Here at Mountain West Pest Control, our carpenter ant control solutions are safe for the whole family and effective at permanently eliminating carpenter ant infestations.
If any of the signs resonate with you and your home, don't hesitate to reach out. The longer carpenter ants remain on your property, the more extensive their damage gets. Call us today and schedule your inspection!