Ants are one of the most common and most annoying pests that can find their way into your home. They march one by one into your home, possibly by the hundreds. They contaminate your food and leave trails in your home. They spread with little regard for your preferences. In most cases, the ants invading your home are content to grab whatever food or resources they can find and return to their nest outside. In some terrifying cases, however, those ants will turn to your home to build their nest.
Can ants live in your walls in Bartlesville, OK? If you’re concerned you might have ants in your walls, here are some tips to spot them.
How to tell if you have ants in your walls
If you’ve spotted ants in your home and you can’t tell where they’re getting inside your house from, then the odds are that they’ve already moved in. Fortunately, ants aren’t very good at covering their tracks. Look for:
- Ant trails leading into a small crack in your walls
- Piles of plaster from the holes the ants have carved out in your walls in Bartlesville, OK
- Hollow noises when you knock on your walls because the ants have destroyed your insulation
- Sudden unexplained rise in home heating and cooling costs
- Ants coming out of your electrical sockets
- Skittering noises inside the walls
If you are concerned that ants have moved into your home, you should immediately call a skilled pest removal specialist to help you get rid of them.
The types of ants that live in walls
Across the world, seven types of ant are known to nest in walls, and three of them have been spotted in Oklahoma. Despite its towering title, the pharaoh ant is a tiny insect gaining a nefarious reputation for entering homes. They’re a particular problem in hospitals. Carpenter ants are a pernicious threat to any wooden structure, since they live to excavate tunnels into your home’s studs. Odorous house ants bite and smell like rotten coconut when they’re crushed.
None of these infestations are welcome. Here are some ways to get rid of ants in your walls.
Natural removal
If you’re hoping to take on ant removal as a DIY project, the first step is to locate and eliminate any means of entry into your home. That means shoring up your insulation, checking your windows for cracks and leaks and replacing rotten wood. You can also place a natural ant repellent like bay leaves or peppermint in the places you’ve seen the ants enter or exit your walls. These should prevent further incursions.
Come to the pros
If you want to make 100 percent sure you’ve eliminated ants from your walls in Bartlesville, OK, come to Excellence Pest Control. We have over 15 years of experience helping our valuable customers fend off a massive selection of home invaders, including ants, rats, termites, mice, fleas, bed bugs, spiders, hornets, bees and more!
When you need quick, reliable pest control, you can rely on Excellence Pest Control. Pick up the phone and give us a call today. We can’t wait to hear from you!