Overview
How to Keep Carpenter Ants Away
Preventing carpenter ants from attacking wood in your structure and on your property can involve several different control methods including sanitation, quarterly insecticide applications and applying a wood preservative to vulnerable wood. If you find you have a unique situation which is not listed in our guide please call our customer care team to speak to an expert who will help you come up with a treatment and prevention plan to fit your needs.
Step
1
Outdoor Sanitation
Carpenter ants require wood and moisture to live in any given area. By making every effort to control or limit wood in contact with high moisture content you can limit carpenter ants from inhabiting your property.
- It is important to keep your property free of yard debris such as tree stumps, fallen tree limbs and very moist mulch as all of these items will attract carpenter ants.
- Trees that have dead limbs still attached should be properly pruned.
- Firewood should be stacked as far as away as is reasonable from the structure.
Step
2
Protect Vulnerable Wood
Vulnerable wood on and in a structure is wood that can possibly be in contact with too much moisture. Window and door frames, areas around a vent and wood in voids where a sweaty or leaky pipe has been located are vulnerable to carpenter ant infestation. Any leaks or problem pipes should be fixed prior to treatment. You can protect wood in these areas by applying a product such as Boracare or Timbor. Please give us a call to discuss these problem areas so we can help you select the best product for your special situation
Products needed for Step 2
Step
3
Outdoor Spray Treatment
We recommend following our integrated pest management process to keep insects, including carpenter ants, away from your structure. By doing quarterly outdoor maintenance and general perimeter spraying you will be making your home or business less favorable to carpenter ants.