Ants in our basement.... *scared* (homes, camp, living)

[krusher]

Ants are the natural predators of termites. So you really only want to keep them out of your house and not blitzkrieg your yard if possible.

[Suryoyo]

Originally Posted by lov403

are they carpenter ants? they are chemically resistant to most commercial stuff. they hide in the woodwork when its cold. do you see any of them with wings? some of them can fly.
if you don't know what type of ants you have i would call a local exterminator.

Well it's expensive with exterminators.... Doesn't spray help?
Where should we spray?

[tamitrail]

Originally Posted by Suryoyo

They are black ants... My mom killed lots of them but they are still comming back more and are around the floor, rug etc. When I try to kill them, some of them jump like only 2 - 5 cm...

Ant traps. They work great. Put them in the corners, by the windows and doors. Make sure your kids don't touch them.

[lov403]

Originally Posted by Suryoyo

Well it's expensive with exterminators.... Doesn't spray help?
Where should we spray?

no spraying will not work on carpenter ants, ant traps don't work either. they are chemically sensitive and resistant to most everything. it is recommended not to even start spraying them (if they are carpenters), leave it to a professional.

if you can google some info on them, maybe you can tell if what you have is a carpenter ant infestation. could they be a different type?

[Roselvr]

Originally Posted by Suryoyo

Where should we spray?

Look at my post ^^^^

[cream of wheat]

I have some information that might help you. First of all if you have fleas, no pets and a fireplace, have someone check if you have raccoons that are living in the chimney. We had a family living in there. We had fleas all over the house and my kids had bites on their legs and arms. It was terrible!
After awhile we discovered that we had ants after we pulled up the rugs. But the only reason why we pulled up the rug was because of all the flea powder we used on the fleas. Ants were everywhere. We tried to find out where they were coming from. We checked all over the first floor but came up empty. We did find some in the basement and searched along the outside walls checking cracks in the cement. We went outside and saw they were in the base of the glass blocks. (millions of them) So we tore the paneling off the wall and saw they were coming in that way. We sealed up the cracks and found they were still coming in. We are still working on the ant problem. They do die in the winter but will come back only if there is a tiny hole to come through to get into your house. We had glass blocks put in 4 windows in the basement and I discovered all these dead ants in the glassblock windowsill. So I pulled out the panels that were put around the inside of the window opening and saw that the sides of the opening were never covered with cement before fininshing the area. The openings in the mortar were unbelievable. So right now I'm closing off everything with cement and chaulk before ant season. I will let you know the outcome. But the thing that slowed the ant problem was cream of wheat. That works like dynamite. And I'll tell you having spiders in the openings really help too. Spiders are great guards.

[stevemorse]

with carpenter ants, you must get rid of the rotten wet wood. They love that and thats the attraction. If you have rail road rotten ties, rotten wet walls behind a shower, or any rotten wood in the basement,this is the cause/most exterminater said you cant get rid of them until the wet wood is ripped out. Thats if they are carpenter ants only.

[frankgn87]

I agree. ants can't jump

Originally Posted by Jerseyt719

Wait a minute - the ants are jumping???

Are you sure they're not fleas?? Fleas jump when you try to kill them. This is prime time for fleas to come into a house and infest. Check carefully.

[stevemorse]

carpenter ants can fly, so why not jump??

[Jerseyt719]

Originally Posted by stevemorse

carpenter ants can fly, so why not jump??

I don't know, maybe because flying requires wings and jumping doesn't. JK
I've never seen an ant jump, fly, yes, jump, no.