How to KILL carpenter ants? Damn ants!

[$uperman]

I got a bucnh of carpenter ants arond my house anyone know how to kill them for good?

Pest control comnpanies are charging a fortune for it with only a limited guarantee that they wont be back.

[synaptech]

I saw it on TV recently, wish I recall the show, but they said the nest is always in a tree nearby. However they will travel a good distance as well. You must find the tree/nest and kill them there.

[AMDr]

I had them in my first house about 25 years ago, hope you find them real soon. The nest was in the wall and they must have been there for a long time because the studs and top/bottom plates(?) were virtually gone. They were filled with tunnels where the ants ate their way through and the 2x4's weighed ounces instead of pounds. :eek: They destroyed the whole wall across the back of my house. I killed them with a few cans of Raid but I had complete access to them. You might need some kind of poison they will take back to the nest and feed the rest of the colony, but I don't know where to find it. You might end up have to tear out a wall or part of it to find them...
All the best with your efforts, they're NASTY critters and do alot of damage :evil:

[UrbanPoet]

i waged war against the ants.. it wa sa tough battle. but the guys are all dead. They still come once in a while... But they cant handle teh wrath of my army.

check my thread.. i had pictures of casualties.

[fozzey]

There is a kind of poison my mom found to help attack them. Its a slow acting poison so that they carry it back to the next and store it. Normal poison will not work as they send an ant to test the new 'food' and if they die too fast the rest leave it alone.

[$uperman]

I had them in my first house about 25 years ago, hope you find them real soon. The nest was in the wall and they must have been there for a long time because the studs and top/bottom plates(?) were virtually gone. They were filled with tunnels where the ants ate their way through and the 2x4's weighed ounces instead of pounds. :eek: They destroyed the whole wall across the back of my house. I killed them with a few cans of Raid but I had complete access to them. You might need some kind of poison they will take back to the nest and feed the rest of the colony, but I don't know where to find it. You might end up have to tear out a wall or part of it to find them...
All the best with your efforts, they're NASTY critters and do alot of damage :evil:

My house, which is a sixplex is made outa concrete so i will prolly take them a while to eat it :)

[$uperman]

So anybody know any good places to buy my ammo to combat the little suckers?

[cjpark]

Not sure about a good way to get rid of them. I had some in my old appartment, on the 10th floor...what the hell were they doing there?

[gaurav_fhs]

http://www.kmantpro.com/images/product/kmantprosmall.jpg

The AntPro ® Ant Control System, kills and destroys entire ant colonies, not just individual foraging ants. Its patented round-the-clock, feed-on-demand, liquid bait delivery capability is proven effective against carpenter ants, imported fire ants, Argentine ants, white footed ants, crazy ants, as well as, numerous other ant and insect species. The most important fact to keep in mind is that AntPro accomplishes its task without broadcasting pesticides that sacrifice your health and our environment.

[me!]

I've got ants in and around my house too. Not carpenter ants, but big suckers of at least 1/4 inch or bigger. I've been using a chemical solution bought in stores made of borax and someother chemical. It could take several seasons to get rid of them. But if you have a big pile of them, the quckest way to get rid of them (but not the colony) is just plain soapy water in a spray bottle. Kills them on contact. and good for the environment too.

[ZeeTX]

I got a bucnh of carpenter ants arond my house anyone know how to kill them for good?

Pest control comnpanies are charging a fortune for it with only a limited guarantee that they wont be back.
Any "Boric Acid" based product should work well in controlling/killing ants (Carpenter Ants (http://gardening.wsu.edu/library/inse004/inse004.htm)) - (All kinds..)
Get one of these from HomeDepot or local shops - "Raid" - Ant, Roach Killer.
http://images.canadiantire.ca/media/images/GardenPatio/FertilizersPestControl/PestControl/0593574E_450_CC_d416.jpghttp://images.canadiantire.ca/media/images/Assortments/PrimaryAssortments/GardenPatio/InsectPestControl/0593537E_450_CC_43da1.jpg

[me!]

isn't the one on the left diatomaceous earth?

that works well.

[Tiberius]

I was going to suggest a magnifying glass... but... I don't think it will do the trick in your situation... ;)

Best of luck!

[cipher]

This will work...

http://www.secretarmies.com/images/day_flame.jpg

[$uperman]

I've thought of that, unfortunately it's gonna be hard not to burn down the house itself in the process.

Everybody tells me that NOTHING that is old at Home Depo, Canadian Tire... will work. People say i need a store that specializes in killing the little bugers.
Is there one in Toronto?

[NDman]

If you have a serious infestation, you should just bite the bullet and call pest control companies. My parents house got ants problem once from outside. But the somehow found a way to come through in the basement. Had to call the pest control to take care of that.

[joo]

I used a product called Ant-B-Gone last year. They were gone for rest of the year but now they seem to be back. Thing is the bottle has a few hundred applications in it.. so I'll be using that again.

We also called an exterminator a couple years ago. Moved furniture aside, covered food, the whole works. Sprayed the whole house only to have them return two years later....

[hagbard]

1/2 suger + 1/2 Borax. Mix with water until pasty. Put in flat container that is easy for the ants to get into. They take this stuff back to the colony, have a feast, and die. Keep lots of them around from the next round from the eggs. You'll be rid of them in about a month.

[aquariaguy]

Import an "ant eater" animal :) Those guys can eat thousands of ants in an hour. They'll sniff them out and DESTROY THEM!!

[Jokez Guy]

1/2 suger + 1/2 Borax. Mix with water until pasty. Put in flat container that is easy for the ants to get into. They take this stuff back to the colony, have a feast, and die. Keep lots of them around from the next round from the eggs. You'll be rid of them in about a month.

Sweeeeeeeet IL try it

[Ms G]

I had an ant problem at my old place. I got this paste call Surekill at Canadian tire. it worked great.

[wiggy]

Something that's been left out of this whole discussion. Bugs and other critters often have their own "seasons".

Right now ants are everywhere as they leave the nest to forage and top up food supplies depleted over the winter and get ready to help the queen as she gets into egg laying mode for the summer. Even if you did nothing right now, they'd pretty much "disappear" in three or four weeks.

The borax baits work pretty well, but you need to be using them all year round (except for winter of course). Be persistent, because just laying down baits during the foraging season and thinking you've beaten the problem once they settle back in just means you've got the same problem all over again next year.

You need to become the intractable enemy. Like a hobby ...

[hammer]

where can you buy borax?

[me!]

where can you buy borax?
borax can be purchased at most pharmacies. but it doesn't work.

Use something from Later's called BugBan. It kills them dead (if you don't want to use soap and water).

I tried two full bottles of borax and just wasted my money. BugBan worked in just one application. I still have 90% of the the container unused.

[champ91]

what's with all the ants? I just found out that my house was infested with ants as well.

[me!]

what's with all the ants? I just found out that my house was infested with ants as well.
they usually come out in droves during hot spells, kinda like raves.

I have ants that are 10mm long!!!

[champ91]

i used that ant killer stuff and that didn't work. there was a whole pile of them under the fridge and the moved sand inside. now i got these ant traps by raid and they dont' seem to be working as well.

[me!]

i used that ant killer stuff and that didn't work. there was a whole pile of them under the fridge and the moved sand inside. now i got these ant traps by raid and they dont' seem to be working as well.
what "stuff" are you referring to?

If the ants are inside, then I would suggest you use something safe. Diatomaceous earth (sold at Canadian Tire) is safe. Soap and water is safe, but only kills ants you can see, not the nests.

the Raid ant traps are garbage. I must have bought over two dozen of them and they do nothing.

[DJXP]

boiling water in the crevices will kill a lot of them. the only ant bait that has ever worked for us is the Raid Ant Bait, they work really well. You just plant it near the ants, and they will take that back to the test wiping out the colony. We also used a liquid posion on them at first as there were too many of them.

[me!]

boiling water in the crevices will kill a lot of them. the only ant bait that has ever worked for us is the Raid Ant Bait, they work really well. You just plant it near the ants, and they will take that back to the test wiping out the colony. We also used a liquid posion on them at first as there were too many of them.
RAid ant bait also contains 5.4% borax in a "peanut butter" medium. The double bait ant traps, of course, have another active ingredient. I never found them to work.

[champ91]

what "stuff" are you referring to?

If the ants are inside, then I would suggest you use something safe. Diatomaceous earth (sold at Canadian Tire) is safe. Soap and water is safe, but only kills ants you can see, not the nests.

the Raid ant traps are garbage. I must have bought over two dozen of them and they do nothing.

i used the ant killer liquid. The ones that supposidly bring poison back to their nests. but it didn't work.

[DJXP]

... It kills them dead...


What else happens when you kill something :confused: ..kills them alive ?

[me!]

What else happens when you kill something :confused: ..kills them alive ?
ha ha ha. you're funny :|

[me!]

i used the ant killer liquid. The ones that supposidly bring poison back to their nests. but it didn't work.
the active ingredient in them is borax. It doesn't matter if you buy Raid, or Wilson or any other brand. Even the sales guy said those were garbage and recommended NOT to buy them.

[champ91]

borax can be purchased at most pharmacies. but it doesn't work.

Use something from Later's called BugBan. It kills them dead (if you don't want to use soap and water).

I tried two full bottles of borax and just wasted my money. BugBan worked in just one application. I still have 90% of the the container unused.

bugban? does this kill ants right away or is it the killing colony type of poison? cuz i want one that can kill the entire colony. These ants are really annoying.

[me!]

bugban? does this kill ants right away or is it the killing colony type of poison? cuz i want one that can kill the entire colony. These ants are really annoying.
well, I applied it on Friday night, and woke up Saturday morning to see them all lying there, dead like soldiers in a battlefield. There were more dead there than I saw alive crawling around the night before. Must have been about 500 -1000 of them. I haven't seen signs of them yet, but it is only Monday.

This was outside though. I don't know about inside usage.

[champ91]

well, I applied it on Friday night, and woke up Saturday morning to see them all lying there, dead like soldiers in a battlefield. There were more dead there than I saw alive crawling around the night before. Must have been about 500 -1000 of them. I haven't seen signs of them yet, but it is only Monday.

This was outside though. I don't know about inside usage.

oh i see. Cuz I dont' know where they are exactlly. They are under the carpet and orginally they were in the kitchen but now they are in the living room. perhaps I'll go to CT today and see what other weapons I can pick up for the fight

[ferkel]

i have ants too.. tiny tiny little red ants. They're so small they can crawl under the gap between the sink and countertops.

[me!]

oh i see. Cuz I dont' know where they are exactlly. They are under the carpet and orginally they were in the kitchen but now they are in the living room. perhaps I'll go to CT today and see what other weapons I can pick up for the fight
I think half the battle is finding out where they are comming from. Most likely from foundation cracks ,so you might have to start looking outside first and tackle the problem from there.

I have a few soldiers coming into the house, and one crawled up on my blanket before. this season is much better than last. I found out their outside location, but couldn't get a grasp at killing them. so far so good, but you definitely need to find the outside source first.

[nomaansikandar]

carpenter ants?

outsource their jobs to India ..

problem solved ..

[champ91]

damn....they emerged in another side of the room....they have us surrounded. maybe i'll go with the soap and water technique.. soak up the living room a bit? will that work.?

[pandaharo]

I just got rid of the ant problem I had at my house, I used Ants-b-gone, works like a charm. Cost me $30 for 3 spray bottles (650ml each i think) at HD. Best $30 I spent this year. The whole colony disappeared eventhough I only sprayed the surface, it might work for you too. :)

[m77m7]

I just got rid of the ant problem I had at my house, I used Ants-b-gone, works like a charm. Cost me $30 for 3 spray bottles (650ml each i think) at HD. Best $30 I spent this year. The whole colony disappeared eventhough I only sprayed the surface, it might work for you too. :)
What part of the house did you have this problem?

[fishlips20]

Smoosh them.

Simple yet effective solution.

Or call your local Orkin guy

[hammer]

If your wife is/will be pregnant, I would not use Bug-b-gone or ant-b-gones...because MSDS below:


active ingredient: Carbaryl


Possible teratogen. Harmful if swallowed. Skin, eye and respiratory irritant.

[Scrooge]

what's with all the ants? I just found out that my house was infested with ants as well.


So far we must have spent like $50 on ant baits and nothing has worked. I was at home depot and there were at least 5 other people buying ant killers. Seems like lot's of people in BC is having this problem. Must be this years weather........... We didn't have this problem last year >:( Now like clockwork they come out in hordes under our front door.........

[Scrooge]

I think half the battle is finding out where they are comming from. Most likely from foundation cracks ,so you might have to start looking outside first and tackle the problem from there.

I have a few soldiers coming into the house, and one crawled up on my blanket before. this season is much better than last. I found out their outside location, but couldn't get a grasp at killing them. so far so good, but you definitely need to find the outside source first.


Yup, they seem to be coming out of the foundationi crack and I started sealing it up with cement and seems to work oK but I can't seem to get the crack that's right under the front door. Very hard to see where the crack is and hard to reach.......... :mad:

[m77m7]

Don't waste your money on those poisonous products like RAID. You can use some simple (and cheap) household products. If they are in your house, clean the areas very well with any household cleaner like Mr.Clean or VIM, and pour comet (the cleaning powder) on the holes and crevices that they are entering from. As long as the powder is there, they won't come in from there. The day the powder was placed, the ants stopped coming in my house :D.

Comet is really really cheap from Wal-mart and Zellers. 1 bottle of RAID ant powder (toxic) is like $9, and a similarly sized can of Comet is $1.27 (non-toxic).

From my research online (ie. google), a product called "Terro" works very well but I believe its only found in the US as people were mentioning it is available at WalMart, but the ones I went to don't carry it -- only RAID :evil:

[hammer]

someone mentioned soap so I use diluted dishwasher fluid...wow...kill them by the thousands!! thanks!!!

[me!]

someone mentioned soap so I use diluted dishwasher fluid...wow...kill them by the thousands!! thanks!!!
that would be me! It works and is perfectly safe for all members of the household, even pets.

[bug]

I had an infestation of them this spring. I bought a box of ant traps and set them in various areas. I still see a few now and then, but not the numbers that were present before. I have a tree outside that they're destroying now :(

[vancouverforsale]

Speak to them politely, "Sorry, this my home, go build your shed elsewhere." If they go on a rant about how Anarchism doesn't believe in private property, tell them to go build an comunity-made commune. Tell them I'll join the community too, if they start one, it's hard to find one now days with this whole, "me me me scenario" going on everywhere.

[usando]

I've heard that anything with boric acid works well to kill ants and cockroaches. I just got some from Home Hardware. It's pretty cheap compared to the Insect-B-Gone stuff with diatomaceous earth.

I'll post my results later.