We would rather live without moisture ants, but they are an important part of nature -- turning old wood back into soil. As a home inspector and a licensed structural pest inspector, I often see carpenter ants. But, recently, I ran into another ant infestation that is not nearly so common to find as the carpenters -- moisture ants. It is amazing how much damage these little insects can do. They come in different colors, a brown to a yellowish-green color, and they are tiny. Take a look at the photo below, but they are way smaller than that.
While these ants are small, boy what extensive damage they can do as they build galleries. In this case, the toilet leaked, rotted out around the flange and floor and then came the moisture ants. That is one thing about this species, they are not particularly aggressive. That is, they will not move into healthy wood like some termites or carpenter ants. The moisture ants move into wood that is already very wet or rotting. So, really, don't blame them for all the damage. If things were in good shape in the first place, they would be nowhere around. For this same reason, they do not require a chemical treatment to eradicate them. Simply get rid of the water issue, be it plumbing leaks, failed caulking, etc and then replace the weak and damaged wood. In fact, bad as this spot was at the house, nobody had been living there in a long time -- no more flushing or toilet leaks -- so it looked like the ants had packed it up and had moved out. The amount of damage they can do, despite being an opportunistic and secondary infestation, is cataloged below.
The view from far away: fallen black insulation (mud from ants)
At first I suspected rats
Rot, initial distinctive signs of moisture ant damage
Major signs of moisture ant damage, their distinctive work
Closeup of a piece I removed, a realtor asked me what it is.
The answer -- mud and wood!
Thanks for stopping by,
Steven L. Smith
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Wow, no wonder I don't like ants. We have enough trouble with fire ants, termies, carpenter ants and about 50 other kinds - wasn't familiar with these but all ants seem to like moisture.
Kevin,
There are thousands of ants but only a few species that damage the wood, so what you are seeing might not be a problem. Are they up in the house or out in the yard?
Kevin,
Catch a few, send them up here, I can probably get an ant expert friend to identify them for certain. With WSU in our state, we have no shortage of entomologists.
Kevin, like Steve said, there are so many kinds of ant it can be. But Steve, who usually has "ants in his pants" will be able to figure it out. Good post Steve. Here is a picture of another Moisture Ant nest---notice how similiar the structure is even though it is made out of different materials.
Kevin,
Just catch several, put them in a baggie alive and we will see how they arrive. Try to pack them so they do not get flattened. I do not necessarily know all the ants in your area, but I think I have contacts that could identify any ant. If you get these bug PHD's working you get results, they are curious, and they have quite a network I have tapped into before on tough stuff.
Charlie,
Regarding your photos, now that you have the joists out from under the sink, does your house still feel stable enough? Getting rid of that must kind of feel like killing your pets
wow, interesting information. I had never heard of moisture ants before. Thanks for sharing.
Sean Allen
I am constantly surprised when I find that a homeowner has not had a termite inspection for 5-10 years or more.
Then there are the owners who have the "Termite Warranty" and therefore ignore everything.
NewsFlash. Termites can't read!!!
I recommend to my buyers that they have a termite inspection every year. Geez. It costs a whopping $50.
GROSS!!! Those pictures are grossing me out for sure. I've never heard of that kind of ant, but we do have carpenter ants up here. I've had them myself, but now have my house treated twice a year and no problems since. Gross!
Ann
Hi all,
Thanks for the comments. I am busy doing a report but will respond personally as I get a chance here.
I have never even heard of moisture ants! I guess (hope) I may not be alone in this...;)
Ha ha ha...Lenn..."Termites can't read..." But they can make a killer pot of coffee...;)
Kevin
I don't know about the west coast where you are, but in the Fort Lauderdale area, we have a company called, Do It Your Self Pest Proof. If you do, or similar, put a few of the ants in a jar and bring it to them, they'll sell you the right stuff and tell you how to use the Chemicals the right way.
Paula,
It is probable that a large black ant is a carpenter ant. I would not say carpenter ants specifically look for termite houses but carpenter ants are an enemy of termites, they eat them. Also, the same conducive conditions that attract termites tend to attract carpenter ants. In fact, conducive conditions that attract one wood destroying organism tend to appeal to all varieties -- fungal and insect.
Do you have a problem? Well, that can be hard to tell. Do you live in the woods, with lots of trees around. If so, carpenters are often out looking to form satellite nests. Those of us in real estate ought to understand that -- they are looking for affordable housing that is not too crowded.
I do not like to find ants inside the home. Too often they came up from the crawl space or the attic. Now, if you take this ant and ring his neck, how long before you get another? If it is fairly soon, or even in a day or so, I would be concerned. On the other hand, if it is weeks or months, not so much so. When I said marching, I did not mean a single ant. I meant a few, or many, following one another and sometimes transporting their white pupa. If you are sitting on a deck or something, and see large black ants, then just watch them. If they are darting under your house, climbing up in soffit vents, going under the gable in a hole, then you have a real concern. This is hard to trouble shoot from afar. Like I told Kevin, you can send me an ant, and I can ID it for you. But then one carpenter does not make a work crew.
Steven - Thank you for this good information. We recently had a leak in our pump house, I didn't tend to it right away and found the wood ants did quite a bit of damage in a hurry. Now I have to get busy and do some repair work.
Thanks for the good pics and information.
Carl,
Glad it was helpful. We probably see more of this being in the wet northwest, than lots of the rest of you see.