We all have our own ideas of what to do to start preparing for the colder months once the leaves begin to turn colors. Like many of us, you probably rake the yard, put all the lawn furniture away, have the furnace cleaned, or stack what seems like miles of wood. We forget that there are other creatures looking to get in out of the cold as well. Pests like ants are looking for a cozy spot and your home might be just what they are looking for!
There are several types of ants who might find your house a cozy alternative to those cooler nights outside. Ants such as pavement, odorous, and pharaoh ants regularly find their way into homes and nest within the walls or behind cabinets making the location of where they might be nesting extremely difficult to access.
If the ants that you are noticing crawling down your walls or across your floors are a large black variety, there is a good chance that you have carpenter ants. These ants got their name not because they eat wood but because of their ability to chew through wood to make their nests within it which will greatly compromise the integrity of the framing of your home. The damage left behind by nesting carpenter ants can cost you thousands in repairs.
Once inside, carpenter ants that generally would hibernate in the winter to avoid the cold that comes with it suddenly don’t need to. Luckily for them, you keep your house at a nice warm temperature all year long enabling them to go about their business on your countertops and in your bathroom looking for food and water and growing their colony. With these colonies ranging in size from several hundred into the thousands, you will now have permanent houseguests unless you obtain professional intervention.
If you do not want to spend the winter checking your sugar bowl for ants grabbing a snack, Parkway Pest Services can help. Give us a call and we will send our professional pest control technicians to you, often the same day. Our technicians will do a thorough inspection of your home and work with you to make sure that your winter is pest-free.