Say Good Riddance To Ants In Your Covington Home

When ants start flooding into your home, questions will start flooding into your mind. What brings ants in? What will they do in your home—other than drive you crazy? How do you get rid of ants? And, perhaps, most importantly, how do you say good riddance to those ants for good? Today, we will cover these inquiries and more as we look at common questions Covington residents ask. 

If you want more direct answers regarding ant control in Covington, remember that your Havard Pest Control team is always here to assist you. Call or text us to get answers, or jump over to our residential pest control page to learn about Pest Shield, Pest Shield Gold, and Pest Shield Platinum. These control plans offer wide coverage and competitive pricing for a long list of pests, including common pest ants. 

Types Of Ants Common To The Area

The first step in any control plan is knowing the pest you're attempting to control. We get common questions about ant identification, but one we find surprising is, "Do ants have wings?" We deal with ants all the time, so we know that some ants develop wings. We also understand the purpose of those wings. 

Male and female winged reproductives take to the air, mate with each other, and start new colonies. If you see winged ants, that is a sign that you're about to have more nests. But, for someone who doesn't know all that much about ants, it is easy to wonder, "Do some ant species have wings, while others don't?" While this misconception won't make ant control harder, knowing why ants have wings can help quite a bit. Let's look at a few more facts to help you understand your ant problems better.

Little Black Ants: If you see many little black ants, you may look up "little black ants" on the internet. If you do, you'll find out that there is a species with this name. But many ants appear little and black. Even carpenter ants, the largest ants that get into Covington homes, can look like little black ants. But all of these species are different. So, knowing what a little black ant looks like and how it behaves is helpful.

Tip: Learn to tell the difference between little black ants, pavement ants, odorous house ants, and carpenter ants. They're all little and black.

Sugar Ants: Several species of ants are attracted to sweet food sources. These ants will scale your walls and climb down strings to get to hummingbird feeders. However, they don't need you to provide a sweet food source. They'll feed on the nectar in flowers and honeydew produced by aphids. 

Tip: If you want to get rid of sugar ants, you should consider using naturally sweet foods.

Stinging Ants: One kind of ant presents a unique hazard to public health. We're sure you know what ants we're talking about: Fire ants. A sting from a fire ant can cause an irritating wound with a pustule at the center, but it can also trigger an allergic response for individuals with a stinging insect allergy. You should never allow fire ants to enter your house. The good news is that they don't really want to enter homes but will if the weather becomes severe. They live in the sunny areas of Covington yards. Often, weatherproofing is enough to keep these ants out.

Tip: Check the weatherproofing on your home if you want to say good riddance to ants.

Carpenter Ants: Property damage is a concern when you have a carpenter ant problem. These ants can tunnel in wood to create galleries for their nests. They are attracted to softened wood first. A moisture problem and areas of decaying wood are a target for these ants. But they're not the only ants that moisture issues attract. All ants need moisture for survival.

Tip: Clean your gutters, repair plumbing issues, and manage moisture to keep ants at bay. 

Ants in Covington continually apply pressure to your exterior. If you take steps to reduce the factors that attract them and block their ability to enter your house, you'll be on your way to living in an ant-free home. Let's look at a few reasons why it is good to keep ants out.