Black Ants in the Home

Identifying Black Ants

• A common household pest, black ants are around a 0.5-inches in length and blackish in color. The most common types are the wingless worker and the winged female. Black ants are often mistaken for termites because both species of insects look similar. The main difference between the two is that black ants are larger, have a narrower waist and elbow-shaped antennae, rather than straight antennae.

Finding an Infestation

• Carpenter ants are drawn to areas inside and outside your house because of the close proximity to available food leftovers. There may be multiple nests in and around a home, such as the parent and satellite colonies. The parent colony is the main nest site, while the satellite is the offshoot branch of the parent. Nesting locations within the home are typically found in areas with water-damaged wood, such as bathtubs, sinks, walls, window and door frames. Most nesting areas within the house will not show signs of external damage, so look for large quantities of congregating ants. The University of Kentucky also recommends tapping a screwdriver along baseboards and other wood surfaces, listening for the sound of hollowed out damaged wood.

Controlling an Infestation

• The key to removing black ants from the home is to destroy the parent colony, which will prevent black ant offspring from being reproduced. Most exterminators rely on a few different methods, such as pesticides and baited traps. The most common pesticide used is boric acid powder, which is relatively harmless to humans, but extremely toxic to ants. Apply the boric acid to areas with lots of ants, as well as into walls and baseboards where colonies are suspected. The other method of control is through baited traps that contain poisoned food particles, which the ants carry back to the colony and poison the queen and any members of the colony that consume the food.

Preventing Future Infestations

• After riding yourself of a black ant problem, there are a number of steps you can take to prevent a return. The first step is to seal cracks in locations that are vulnerable to ants, such as windowsills, door-frames and cracks in the foundation. Fix leaks in the roof, plumbing leaks and other areas with moisture problems, as they are the ideal sites for new nests to develop. Store stacks of firewood well away from your house because these are often the first location a new carpenter ant colony will colonize.