termidor on firewood

[wesessiah]

nothing seems to be working for these argentine ants, and the carpenter ants only get discouraged for a couple days from what i've been using, so i figured i would step up to termidor. i've seen a couple of recommendations for not burning wood that termidor has been on, but i've also seen it stated that the chemical is gone from wood within a few months of application since it can't bond like it does with soil. is it a bad idea to burn the affected wood after months have gone by (i'll start burning in early november) and using it in a stove instead of an open fireplace? thanks.

 

[bogydave]

I'd burn it.
Will be several months since it was applied when burn time comes.

 

[Woody Stover]

Is it fresh wood? What kind of wood is it? Normally, as the wood dries out in the stack, it becomes a less hospitable nest site for them. I wouldn't want to run any chemicals through my combustor.
I don't worry about a few ants, certainly not enough to use a chemical, but...

 

[wesessiah]

I'd burn it.
Will be several months since it was applied when burn time comes.

Is it fresh wood? What kind of wood is it? Normally, as the wood dries out in the stack, it becomes a less hospitable nest site for them. I wouldn't want to run any chemicals through my combustor.
I don't worry about a few ants, certainly not enough to use a chemical, but...

some of it is about a year and a half (red oak) and some of it is recent (chestnut oak.) i had a couple of piles of scraps/small rounds that the ants started with, and now they're going back and forth between my stacks. the argentine ants show up first, followed by termites (they seem to be easier to kill) and then carpenter ants. my red oak stacks are on top of treated wood on a conrete slab, and i figured nothing would bother with it. the chestnut oak is on top of landscaping timbers in an open grassy area about 20 feet from the treeline. the scraps sat for a few weeks because of endless rain we had during that time, and i'm sure that's what drew the ants/termites from whatever they could find in the woods. the ants were on the new stack within a day of getting it stacked (same day it was cut and moved to that location.) a few ants is a definite understatement with this. i went to restack one of the ends of my red oak and there were thousands of carpenter ants, with holes and wood dust on several of the pieces. i didn't have any ants last year, just rollie pollies. i don't have a cat stove btw, it's a buck 74. mostly concerned if any possible remaining chemical could build up and cause chimney fires. thanks for the replies.
edit: guarantee they'll never touch my tulip poplar and only go for the good stuff.

 

[Woody Stover]

concerned if any possible remaining chemical could build up and cause chimney fires. thanks for the replies.
edit: guarantee they'll never touch my tulip poplar and only go for the good stuff.

I wouldn't think build-up or a chimney fire would be a problem.
I wish they would eat some Blackgum rounds I got by accident; Then I wouldn't have to mess with them.

 

[DanCorcoran]

I use Talstar (termiticide) and it specifies on the label how long to wait before burning. Check your label, or online.

 

[wesessiah]

I use Talstar (termiticide) and it specifies on the label how long to wait before burning. Check your label, or online.

the only information on it i could find about firewood was to use their special sprayer due to termidor not being intended for use on wood since it doesn't last as long as it's designed to with soil because it doesn't bond with wood.
side note, found a cluster of carpenter ant eggs in my older red oak today. shouldn't there have been a queen near the eggs? all i saw were workers (some dead, some not) and one drone... at least what i believe to be a drone due to its wings... that i smashed by hand.

 

[DanCorcoran]

"... at least what i believe to be a drone due to its wings... that i smashed by hand."

Now go wash your hands...