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Ants Still Invading Colorado Homes This Fall
9/24/13
Ants are widely considered to be a summer pest, breaking up picnics, getting into garbage and just generally bugging homeowners. Now that fall is here and the cold winter weather is right around the corner, many homeowners stop being vigilant against ants, but ants are still very much active and need to be stopped from entering your Colorado home. The fall season is the time of year when ants will enter homes looking for warm shelter, food and water. Getting rid of ants from your home can be a difficult task and to completely eliminate them it generally takes the help from a home pest control expert to make sure that all the foraging ants and the nest itself are taken care of.
While there are thousands of species of ants all across the world there are three species that are commonly found in and around Colorado homes. Common ants in Colorado include the odorous house ant, the sugar ant, and the carpenter ant.
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Odorous house ant- This is a small ant that ranges in size between 1/16th-1/18th of an inch in length. Inside homes they nest in areas near heat sources or in inside of insulation. As their name implies they emit a foul odor when squished that is similar to a rotten coconut.
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Sugar ant- This ant is relatively large in size and is distinguishable by its orange and brown body and black head. They are attracted to savory foods but prefer foods that are high in sugar.
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Carpenter ant- Another large ant species that is common to the area are wood destroying carpenter ants. Adult females can grow up to 1 inch in length and queens have wings. They like to bore tunnels into wood that is unpainted or unstained and they particularly like wood that has been previously damaged by water. Unlike termites (which they are often confused with), carpenter ants do NOT eat the wood, they simply create tunnels inside of it to make their nesting and hibernating areas.
No matter what types of ants in Colorado that you are seeing, there are things that you can do as a homeowner to help stop them from entering your home. Cutting back trees, shrubbery and other landscaping that comes into contact with your home will help to prevent them from being able to use them as a bridge into your home. You should also make sure that all cracks and crevices along your foundation are sealed, along with gaps around windows and doors. Inside your home you should not keep produce and other food out on your counters but instead keep them inside of the refrigerator or in sealed containers. Garbage should regularly be removed from your home and be stored outside in a container with a tight closing lid that is stored away from the exterior of your home. To deter carpenter ants you should paint or stain any bare wood and replace wood that has been damaged by water.
Besides taking precautions as a homeowner, the best way to keep ants off of your property and away from your home is to get help from a Colorado pest control expert. A professional pest control company will be able to provide you with a year round pest control program that will not only take care of your current problems but will protect your home against a re-infestation from ants and other common household insects throughout the year. Contact EnviroPest by Sprague Pest Solutions today to get a home inspection and start protecting your Colorado home from an ant invasion this fall!