Summer brings out all the intriguing wildlife Arizona has to offer. Birds can welcome the dawn with their chirping, and colorful lizards come out to enjoy the sun. But it’s not always good news with summertime nature. The Queen Creek pest control experts at Pro Active Pest Control know all the different ants that can pester homeowners.
How To Identify The Type Of Ant Infesting Your Home
The diverse Arizona ecosystem extends to species of ant, as well. Homeowners can find themselves up against a number of types of ants, and identifying them can help ascertain the best measures for prevention or elimination. Arizona ants include:
- Argentine ants: These ants infest houses, especially if you keep houseplants. They farm smaller insects that make honeydew, such as aphids and mealybugs.
- Carpenter ants: Groups of these ants mine wood. They can usurp termite tunnels to establish their own colony, too. Black carpenter ants in your home can mean the woodwork is already damaged.
- Crazy ants: This invasive species moves in large frenetic groups. They are known to bite.
- Fire ants: Several types of fire ants exist in Arizona. They like to build their nests in sunny areas and irrigated soil and can deliver a painful sting.
- Odorous ants: Similar to the Argentine ant, these farm aphids and other small insects. Odorous house ants in Queen Creek can be bad for you and your houseplants.
- Pavement ants: These ants like to make subterranean nests in the ground via cracks in the pavement or basement floors. Getting rid of pavement ants in your home is difficult because they dig deep underground.
- Pharaoh ants: This species can become a problem for homeowners because of their many different satellite colonies. They migrate from one nest to the next, making it hard to pin them down.
- Rover ants: These ants aren’t aggressive to humans, but they are high in numbers, which can make them a huge problem.
No matter what ant you find on your property, ant control in Queen Creek could prove to be difficult. Some may bite and even sting, while some are pesky because of their sheer numbers.
The Problems Ants Can Cause On Your Property
The damage ants do is contingent on the species. Potential problems from ants on your property include:
- Food contamination
- Wood damage
- Worsened cracks in driveways and sidewalks
- Negatively affected gardens
Some species of ants will mine through wood, much like termites. Others will raid food supplies in massive numbers. Quite often, ants farm smaller insects. These smaller bugs can be bad for gardens, deteriorating and eating away leaves or fruits.
How To Get Rid Of Ants For Good
A lot of homeowners get trigger-happy with insecticides. These are often ineffective and can cause health problems for you, your family, or your pets. While baiting is another option, doing it wrong can mean the ants wise up or that only a few of the workers are killed off.
At Pro Active Pest Control, we are well versed in every species of ant in Queen Creek and the surrounding cities of Arizona. We highly recommend hiring us for the best pest control solutions. Our services ensure the safety of the community, eco-friendliness for our beautiful Arizona environment, and optimal results.
Natural Ant Prevention Tips For Queen Creek Residents
Every homeowner should practice ant prevention, especially in summer. Ants look for food, water, and shelter, which can mean different things for different species. To play it safe, practice ant control in your house and yard with the following tips:
- Dry up and remove sources of standing water.
- Keep your food in places that ants can’t access, like airtight containers.
- Clean up spills immediately.
- Clean cooking surfaces while preparing food or immediately after.
- Check houseplants and gardens for aphids, mealybugs, or other ant-enticing insects.
- Keep firewood away from the house and on platforms separating it from the soil.
- Trim and prune all shrubbery, bushes, or branches leading to the house exterior.
- Seal cracks in the foundation, driveway, and basement.
Sometimes no matter what we do, ants find something they like about our property. If you’re facing an infestation of these six-legged foragers, get complete peace of mind by contacting us at Pro Active Pest Control. We can provide same-day service.