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Originally Posted On: https://reliabletsolutions.com/pest-control/ants-in-your-home/

It doesn’t take long for ants to make their way into your home, and once they do, you’ll notice. Ants are not subtle, and if you have an infestation, you’ll definitely know it.

You’ve probably seen anthills outside in places like parks, sidewalk cracks, or even on your own property. When left to their own business outside, ants are not usually much of a problem, although finding mounds on your home property could be a cause for concern. Additionally, there are definitely a few types of ant you don’t want anywhere near your home at all.

There are many different kinds of ants. The most common type of ant you will see around is the black garden ant. These are characteristically the breed of ant that comes to mind when someone says the word ant, or when you’re thinking about a picnic in the park or walking down the street. This article will focus mainly on other types of ant that can cause damage to homes and why we are here to help you with your ant control needs.

Types of Ants and the Damage They Cause

Let’s take a look at the different types of ants you may have in your home so you can identify what the problem is and the different types of damage ants cause.

Black Garden Ants

These are the ants that are going to cause the least amount of problems. Once again, these are the typical type of ant that you will see around in lawns, gardens, and sidewalks. These ants are large enough to be noticeable, so if you see one in your house, you’ll be able to spot it right away. They are also the ones that you are going to have to worry about least when it comes to infestations, in terms of the damage they cause. Usually they hitchhike inside on things such as pant legs, pets, or other items being carried in from long grass areas. They can still be an annoyance though, and if they are spotted in numbers, it’s a good idea to call a pest control expert.

Damage
Having this type of ant on your property exteriorly is not usually a problem. They are pretty usual to any sort of grassy area and do not inherently cause issues. Seeing just one in the home is also not an immediate red flag of an infestation or problem. Being good hitchhikers, chances are one or two simply found their way in through an open door. Unless you see a whole slew of them inside, you most likely do not have a nest in your home. If there is a trail however, or you notice more than one, then this is a cause for concern.

Fire, Harvester, and Oak Ants

This is a type of ant you don’t want anywhere near you, or your property, especially where you have farm animals, pets, or children! If you see this type of small ant on your property and notice anthills or infestations of them, you’re going to want to exterminate them quickly, as they can cause a lot of discomfort for such a small insect. These types of ants are tiny and have a shape almost similar to a hornet or other flying insects with stingers because these ants, like a hornet, do sting!

Damage
These ants will not always do damage in a sense of creating disarray within their surroundings, but cause most damage to humans and animals. These three types of ants have stingers that they use to sting their predators, which can be any animal or person who is interfering with their territory. These stings cause symptoms including but not limited to itching, swelling, and scabbing, which can all also lead to infections. And, like with any sort of sting, there’s always a chance for mild to severe allergic reactions.

Sugar and Ghost Ants

These are very small ants that can sometimes almost appear either translucent or have a mild reddish tint. These ants are quick to infest and multiply. They are a pain in the rear and hard to get rid of once they’ve settled in. Chances are when you spot these ants you will not notice just one or two but will find them after it’s too late, seeing an entire swarm of them, quite possibly by the hundreds.

Damage
The type of damage these ants are going to cause, besides being an absolute nuisance, is going to be things like nesting in walls, cracks, cupboards, or any other small, dark place close to food–most commonly seen in kitchens. They like to feed on sweet things and being so small they can easily infiltrate cupboards getting into and feeding on sugar, sugary cereals and snacks, and/or any other sweet substance they can get their pinchers on. If you spot these ants in your home, odds of you pouring a cup of ants into your cereal bowl along with your sugar puffs is very high.

Carpenter Ants

These ants are going to look very similar to the black garden ant, so it’s always good to double check the sort of ant you find in your home by getting a close look. These ants are going to quickly colonize, especially near foundations of homes and in places such as under wooden decks or other crawl spaces made of wood. Their back thorax is going to have a slightly sharper point and look closer to one of the stinger ants described above versus the black garden ant. It’s a top priority to distinguish these ants right away because if you have carpenter ants you have a BIG problem.

Damage
Carpenter ants are easily the ones that are going to cause the priciest damage in your home. Carpenter ants get their name because they, similar to carpenters, like to carve out wood. These ants will go straight for your foundations quickly causing destruction that can lead to things such as collapsing structures, creating holes, and destroying anything in their path. Getting these out of your home ASAP is recommended and doing so with an extermination business such as us is highly recommended.

Disease

Ants do not generally carry disease, but they can sometimes spread salmonella bacteria and should be taken seriously in homes, especially when seen in kitchens. Another huge concern is when these infestations are found in bars and restaurants, and these infestations should be taken very seriously.

The Solution

Ants can be a pain (sometimes even cause pain, in the case of fire ants), and be an even bigger pain to get rid of. It’s important when exterminating ants to kill them at the source and nests can often be hard to find, especially inside homes and other buildings or structures. This is why professional pest control works so much better than home solutions. Home remedies often fall flat (especially when it comes to stinging or carpenter ant breeds), and you’ll want to make sure to stomp out the problem hastily and at the source.

So call us! We’re a professional pest control company and ready to come and rid you of your ant infestation today. We’ll stop the problem at the nest — the source of the problem — and get your Turlock, Modesto or Central Valley home or commercial property back to being ant-free in no time.