Carpenter ants are very abundant, and are common pests in homes and other buildings. The most common carpenter ants are the familiar

Carpenter ants do not eat wood but instead construct their nests in wood such as hollow trees, stumps, logs, posts, landscaping timbers, and the lumber used in homes and other structures. Nests are made by chewing an interconnecting series of tunnels and cavities. Wood is removed as coarse sawdust-like material that is pushed from the nest. The sawdust may include other debris such as dead ants, parts of insects and other food.

Carpenter ants found indoors in the winter usually come from nests somewhere within the house. Ants found indoors during spring or summer could be invaders wandering in from outdoors or they may be foragers from a nest in the wall or ceiling. While there is no easy way to determine the source, it does pay to check carefully before making any treatment.

Locating the source of carpenter ants is as important as it is difficult. It is especially difficult if only a few ants are seen at one time. Our best suggestion is to spend time observing ants to see if you can detect a pattern of movement. In spring and summer carpenter ants are more active at night and observations after sunset, with a flashlight on the outside and inside of the house may give an indication of the source. Presence of sawdust is an important clue in locating ant nests.