It can be really frustrating when you have to share your home with a colony of carpenter ants. For carpenter ants, it can take only few hours to turn your favourite rocking chair or old family furniture into saw dust. Armed with effective home remedies, you can prevent carpenter ants from causing needless damage to your woods. To effectively deal with this problem, you may want to identify the nests. These can be the moist areas of basement, leaking roofs, wall area having openings for vent pipes, etc.

Home Remedies for Carpenter Ants

Listed below are some natural remedies to get rid of carpenter ants:

• Hot Water to Kill Carpenter Ants: Once the area is identified, you can drench the nest with hot water. This can help in killing the carpenter ants.
• Check or Eliminate Moisture in the Area to Stop Carpenter Ants: Experts suggest reducing or eliminating moist environment can be an effective way of dealing with carpenter ants. This is because carpenter ants thrive in moist environment. This can be done by correcting drainage and ventilation, fixing leaky faucets, etc.
• Boric Acid as Carpenter Ants Remedy: Boric acid is considered another effective remedy for killing carpenter ants. It is suggested that boric acid can help in dissolving the exoskeletal structures of carpenter ants, thereby killing them. One can sprinkle some boric acid on the areas frequented by carpenter ants and ensure that they touch the acid while crossing.
• Boric Acid and Honey as Natural Remedies for Carpenter Ants: Experts suggest that while sugar can be used as a bait to attract the carpenter ants, boric acid can help in killing them.
• Diatomaceous Earth and Boric Acid as a Natural Cure for Carpenter Ants: It is suggested that diatomaceous earth (silicon dioxide) can kill carpenter ants by causing them to dehydrate. One can prepare a mixture of diatomaceous earth and boric acid in equal amounts and spray it with a duster on the nests, leaks and crevices. To avoid respiratory irritation caused by the powdered diatomaceous earth, one can wear a dust mask.
• Vinegar and Garlic Powder as Natural Repellents for Carpenter Ants: The powerful smell of garlic powder and vinegar can act as repellent for carpenter ants and prevent them from entering the house. One can mix garlic powder and white vinegar to spray it around and within the house.

Winged carpenter ants can be distinguished from termites by the shape of their slender waist, antennae and larger size. Carpenter ants can cause damage to woods by hollowing it from inside for nesting purpose.