carpenter ants in wood stack

[Welderman85]

hi all im new to this. I have a decent stack near my house for burning this winter. I was moving it around and when I got to the bottom I notice little piles of saw dust. I didn't see any ants but with some searching on line best I can figure is there carpenter ants. The stacks are between my barn and house. what can I do to get rid of the and make this wood ok to burn in my home with out infesting it. thank you

 

[Welderman85]

I also cut up a dead Ash that had fallen it had signs of Carpenter ants I didn't know what it was at the time. I have burning the limbs and noticed this. I didn't see and ants in any of the wood I split . It safe to burn this in my house . Now that I know what it's is a lot of the ash I was planning to cut and burn shows the same holes in it.

 

[Highbeam]

Poison. Seems so obvious but for some reason people get really shy about it. No reason at all not to poison your firewood and burn it like normal.

Do it quick before they infest your house!

 

[Heftiger]

I like the bag of flakes you can buy. You just shake it out around where you see the ants. They take it back to the hive and kill ‘em all.

 

[TheAardvark]

I just burn them. Adds protein to the fire.

 

[McCallBurner]

Kill them. Don’t put that wood anywhere near your house until you’re damn sure they’re dead.


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[Welderman85]

Ok it's about 15 feet away currently should I move it now or can it wait until the morning or instead of moving it can I posin where it is

 

[Welderman85]

Also how do I know when there all dead and what is a good posin to get

 

[Heftiger]

This is the stuff I liked. You just shake it out. I got it at wal-mart.

https://north40.com/catalog/product...MIsuax1Mqo1wIVCqtpCh2FTwS1EAQYBSABEgKUcvD_BwE

 

[Welderman85]

Well I'm kinda porianoid so I went and moved it to about 60 feet away how do do I know when it's safe to move back up. The weird part to me is I didn't find a nest but when I started to split one round a bunch or ants came out,but that's all I saw until I started to burn the branches then a few came out I'm new to this and thank you for the help

 

[Welderman85]

In the future what's the best way to cut and split dead trees with signs of Carpenter ants. And is it safe to burn this in my house

 

[Locust99]

Carpenter ants nest inside the wood, so you won’t find their nest unless you split a piece. The wood is still safe to burn , but you don’t want to bring it inside with the ants still in there unless you take it straight to the stove. Usually when its dry they won’t infest your wood.

I have had a bad carpenter ant problem in my garage. They have ate part of the fascia around my garage. I found the nest an killed them though. Usually if you are close to their nest and you bang on the wood they get aggravated and come running out so that’s how you find them.

I’ve tried the same stuff as Heftiger, but I’ve had more luck with these https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004Q3QQNC/?tag=hearthamazon-20
.
Good luck with killing them.

 

[xman23]

When I split I have fire in the fire pit. Any thing I open up that has ants in in goes into the fire. My stacks have ant free wood. I keep the wood dry, so ants don't go there. I try not to move the wood close to the house until we get freezing temps. Then the ants and other bugs in the wood are dormant. No wood inside and a few days of wood is on the side deck that has a roof over it.

 

[peakbagger]

Carpenter Ants are normally a sign of wet wood. Cut the wood, split it and stack it and the ants will disappear. It you are paranoid create a quarantine pile until it get cold. They will not chew dry wood but will gladly chase wet rotten wood. If you find carpenter ant damage in wood structure, its highly likely water or moisture is getting in any area where you find ants nests and the ants are just taking advantage of it. Dry out the area and the ants will clear out with one exception.

The one exception is carpenter ants will create winter nests in homes, they will eat any wet wood and they love foam. They will gladly tunnel in dry foam. I have a piece of foam insulating board in my basement that is flat and undamaged on the one side that was facing the interior with the entire backside swiss cheese with tunnels. The ants were entering the basement via a drilled hole in the sill and came in from the end of the foam board. They were overwintering in the foam. I have foam board on the exterior up against the foundation covered with a stucco wash and the ants also have tunneled extensively in it despite being dry. I also know folks who have put foam board on the exterior of their older homes and then sided over it. Ants have nested in the foam board.

I have tried various poisons for carpenter ants. The various shake on granular baits have not worked that well. I still have a lot of ant activity from the surrounding woods. What has worked although is Maxforce ant gell. It comes in a syringe and you just put a little dab at potential entry points.The ants haul it back to the nest and it poisons the nest. Within a week or two the ants are pretty well gone from the house.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Here are the basics for carpenter ants. Do not spray the wood as this is a bad idea and also you will not kill them all. Spray the area around the wood pile with an insecticide, do no spray with rain in the forcast 48hrs. You will take out the ant that feed the colony ect. The best way to go is buy max force gel.. its a liquid based product that gets taken back to the nest and the queen dies. Available on Amazon
The last thiing you want to do is spray the wood.. its not good to, handle, have in your home, and dose not burn safely and fully Any insecticide.

 

[Zack R]

I'd suggest small splits, leave them spread around at first so the birds can eat the ants before stacking. Stack furthest away from the house in their own pile.

 

[firefighterjake]

Only time I see carpenter ants is when I'm splitting a round and come across a nest.

I always split up the wood as I would do normally, but chuck the pieces to the side to give the birds a nice meal.

A few days or weeks later I stack the wood and the ants are gone ... I have yet to see a single ant in my stacks, wood shed or inside the house.

 

[Destructor]

I spray them with carburetor cleaner.

 

[Sodbuster]

Carpenter ant infested pieces go to where the chickens free range; keeps them entertained, and the food the little bastards stole from me doesn't go to waste.

 

[KindredSpiritzz]

I never have a problem with ants but my wood is stacked and drying for a few years before it comes i the house, by then they are long gone from the wood in search of better accommodations.

 

[Blazing]

I spray them with carburetor cleaner.

We may live far apart but think alike lol.

 

[peakbagger]

I expect carb cleaner makes for a quick kill and makes you feel like you accomplished something but the reality is there is nest somewhere nearby that is cranking out replacement ants faster than you can zap them with carb cleaner. The only time it may be worth it is when you cut into a nest and the ants are actively hauling the eggs away. Far better to use a bait that the ants haul back to the nest and then the nest is killed. Unfortunately the bait just doesnt have the direct feedback of seeing them squirm.

 

[maple1]

In the future what's the best way to cut and split dead trees with signs of Carpenter ants. And is it safe to burn this in my house

I am quite sure that if you split your wood as soon as you get it or cut it you won't have an ant problem. They will leave it when you split it. So just split it and carry on. As long as you don't split it in the house.

 

[sportbikerider78]

Cut it and stack. They will go away. Personally, I kill everything that is a pest that could enter my home. I live in the woods and remove any dead trees within a 100' radius.

 

[Rich L]

hi all im new to this. I have a decent stack near my house for burning this winter. I was moving it around and when I got to the bottom I notice little piles of saw dust. I didn't see any ants but with some searching on line best I can figure is there carpenter ants. The stacks are between my barn and house. what can I do to get rid of the and make this wood ok to burn in my home with out infesting it. thank you

Walderman put a quarter cup of dawn soap liquid in a spray bottle with a half cup of bleach fill with water shake and spray the ants.They'll die in a matter of minutes.