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Kevin Carrillo
Pest Control Specialist, MMPC
Education
- Bachelor's Degree in English, Hunter CUNY
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Seeing winged ants, or swarmers, generally indicates a mature colony—one that has been there for years and is ready to grow its empire. Seeing swarmers, or winged alates, indoors generally indicates that the colony is inside as well, or at least closely abutting the property. Reducing the colony size will take time, and rarely, if ever, can you fully eradicate a colony and its satellite colonies. Generally, you are aiming for a population reduction so drastic that you stop seeing the ants, and they'll take time to recover.
Because of their societal structure, the most common and effective method is using bait, whether granular or gel. Usually, you want to watch where their scouting and foraging lines travel and place bait along those lines. Ants will pick up the bait, bring it back to the colony, and use it to both stock their pantry and feed their next generation within the nursery. This causes a ripple effect that will wipe out large portions of the population. Using a commercial-grade bait is slower acting and will allow for a more widespread dispersion. Bait is considered to have low to no irritation, though perhaps not low-toxicity. Therefore, it can be applied per label in a manner that is safe and will not cause any reactions to people of a more sensitive or reactive nature.
Carpenter ants are drawn to untreated, unpainted, RAW wooden areas of your home, to damp areas, or if there's dead wood or rotting wood on the property. Take care of firewood stacks, cover or remove old stumps, make sure wood is painted or stained, replace damaged siding, etc.
Getting rid of carpenter ants is going to require professional intervention once you've got them because of their ability to create not only structural damage, but to infest the structural areas of your home you don't necessarily have access to.
If the issue is low-level enough, you may be able to take care of the issue with store-bought carpenter ant bait, but this is not recommended if you're a homeowner - protect your investment!
1. Get your pets on medication as prescribed and approved by a veterinarian.
2. Weekly flea baths.
3. At LEAST 3x daily flea combing - be prepared to remove fleas as you're combing and have somewhere to put them.
4. Anywhere in your home that there is shade is a hangout, so vacuum it regularly and be prepared to clean out the vacuum with rubbing alcohol.
5. Get yourself a bulk order of lint rollers. Run lint rollers REGULARLY over anywhere your pet rests - you will probably pick up both fleas and their larvae.
6. Steam clean your carpets - even low-pile carpets are thicker than you think, and fleas can hide out deep in the weave.
7. If you have an outdoor pet, try as much as you can to cut back and eliminate foliage that creates shaded areas. If you can't, do your best to restrict pet access to these areas.
1. Launder EVERYTHING.
2. Deep clean EVERY place that clothing was kept.
3. Regularly steam clean anything upholstered and carpeting.
4. Change out felt carpet padding for synthetic when possible.
5. Just because traps aren't catching doesn't mean you should stop using them. Keep one in each room and one in each closet, in dark, out-of-the-way areas. Change them every 3-6 months (by label) until they're clear for 3 years.
6. Keep as much of your freshly cleaned and not-worn-everyday clothing in storage bins and garment bags as you can.
7. Think outside the box. Caterpillars feed on a protein called keratin, found in our hair and fingernails (same for animals). Anything you have that contains this protein is a suspect: food source, silk, wool, felt, your pool table, an antique horse-hair stuffed couch, etc.
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Co-authored Articles (65)
10 DIY Methods to Get Rid of Roaches Overnight (Plus Prevention Tips)
Expert tips to put an end to cockroach infestations in your homeThe last thing you want to see creeping around your house is the dreaded cockroach, but you may want to be able to solve the problem without resorting to to...
How to Kill Ants with Borax and Sugar (& Keep Them Away!)
Learn to make a safe, low-cost, and effective ant killer at homeIf you’re looking to get rid of ants without using store-bought pesticides, borax is a cheap and effective solution. In this article, we’ll teach you ho...
A Complete Guide to Getting Rid of Bed Bugs
Blech—is that a bed bug you just saw crawling around your mattress? It can be hard to get a good night’s sleep when you’re worried about the unwanted pests that are making themselves at home in your home. Not to wo...
How to
Get Rid of Spiders in the House
Most spiders prefer living outdoors, but all too often, you may run across a few spiders that have found their way indoors in search of food or shelter. Getting rid of these pests is most easily accomplished by keeping t...
How to Tell if You’ve Been Bitten by a Bed Bug
Plus, how to get rid of bed bugs and prevent future bitesYou’ve probably heard the phrase “Good night, sleep tight, don’t let the bed bugs bite,” but nothing’s worse than waking up to an ''actual'' bed bug bite...
Bed Bug Poop: What It Looks Like & Where You'll Find It
Easily identify bed bug droppings on sheets and furnitureIf you’ve woken up with itchy red bites all over your arms or legs, you might be looking at a bed bug infestation. One of the best ways to ID pests is to look fo...
How to
Check for Bedbugs
If you don't want the bed bugs to bite, learn how to spot live bed bugs or signs that they're infesting your space. Then check common hiding spots, such as beds or couches, for bed bugs, excrement, or bloody smears. If y...
How to Get Rid of Small Ants & Prevent Infestations
Eliminate tiny ants in your house or garden with this guide Having a tiny ant infestation in your home or garden can be frustrating, especially if you don’t know how to get rid of them. Luckily, there are a ton of easy...
How to
Get Rid of Fleas on Humans
If you have small, itchy red bites on your legs or ankles, you’re probably being bitten by fleas. Fleas live on pets like cats and dogs, but they’ll sometimes jump onto humans in a pinch. Getting rid of the fleas on ...
How to Make Rat Poison: Home Remedies to Kill Rats
Kill rats quickly with this natural DIYCommercial rat poisons contain toxic chemicals that could pose a risk to the people and pets in your home. As an alternative, you can make your own, less toxic rat poisons from comm...
4 Simple Ways to Capture Flies
A guide to catching flies in traps or with your hands There are lots of simple ways to catch flies in your home, whether you want to get rid of these annoying insects, feed them to a pet, or study them up close. We spoke...
How to Tell a Field Mouse and a House Mouse Apart
Find out how fur coloring, size, and dropping shape differs between field and house mice Out of the corner of your eye, you see a small, furry critter race across your floor. It’s definitely a mouse, but how can you te...
Effective Ways to Get Rid of Cockroaches in Your Home
Prevent a cockroach infestation with these easy, expert-approved tips If you spot a cockroach, don’t panic! Cockroaches enter a home in search of food, water, and shelter, but there are many ways to get rid of roaches ...
How to Identify Common Household Insects & Rodents
Finding a random insect in your home is never a welcome surprise, especially if you aren’t quite sure what it is. Since a lot of pests can look similar (or almost identical), IDing the pest isn’t always easy. While ...
How to Kill Roaches with Borax or Boric Acid
Pest control specialist Kevin Carrillo & wikiHow staff explain how to use Borax and sugar to kill roach infestationsIf you’re tired of surprise roaches scurrying across your floors and up your walls, borax is a lifesav...
How to Get Rid of Ants in the Kitchen
Eliminate those pesky ants and prevent them from coming backIf you've ever had ants crawling around in your kitchen, you know that they can quickly go from being an occasional annoyance to a persistent pest. These critte...
How to
Detect Fleas
It’s common for house pets—typically dogs—to encounter fleas and come home with a coat full of them. Flea infestations only worsen with time (and can easily spread to other animals), so it’s important to detect a...
How to Draw Bed Bugs Out of Hiding
Simple tips to catch and kill bed bugs effectivelyDo you have a bed bug infestation? These nocturnal critters (meaning they come out to feed at night) can be difficult to spot during the day, especially since they’re s...
Flea Bombs: How to Use Them Effectively & Safely
What you need to know about preparing and treating your home for fleasFinding fleas in your home is definitely not fun. Now you've got to call an exterminator and evacuate—you don't have time for this! Well, what if we...
How to Trap Roaches in Your Home: 4 Effective Methods
Pest control specialist Kevin Carrillo explains the best ways to trap roaches at homeIt can be very hard to get rid of a cockroach infestation. Smashing each individual roach seems like an insurmountable task—or an inh...
