4 Steps to Help Identify Ants at Your Business
In the world of pest control, knowledge is power. Partnering with your pest management provider to accurately identify the ant species invading your business is critical. You wouldn't treat a headache with a cast, and you shouldn't treat a carpenter ant infestation the same way you treat pavement ants. Use this guide to identify different types of ants, address the root cause, and partner with professionals to protect your business and reputation.
What attracts ants to businesses?
Ants are looking for three things when entering your commercial space:
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Food: Break rooms, unsealed trash cans, and even glue on shipping boxes offer an all-you-can-eat buffet.
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Moisture: Leaky pipes, condensation in server rooms, or damp basements are beacons for thirsty colonies.
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Shelter: Wall voids and cracks in the foundation offer temperature-controlled protection from the weather.
How Ants Affect Your Bottom Line
Thinking of ignoring a few stray ants? Don't. In a commercial setting, "just a few ants" can spiral into a liability nightmare.
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Reputation Damage: Nothing kills a client meeting or a Yelp review faster than an ant crawling across the table.
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Health & Safety: Ants can carry bacteria like E. coli and Salmonella onto food prep surfaces.
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Structural Damage: Carpenter ants don't eat wood, but they will hollow it out to build nests, weakening your building's structure.
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Electrical Issues: Believe it or not, Tawny Crazy Ants are attracted to electrical currents and can short-circuit expensive equipment.
How to Identify Signs of Ant Infestations
1. Look for signs of invasion. Different ant species leave behind different calling cards. Here are some of the most common red flags:
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Frass: Found piles of wood shavings that look like pencil sharpenings? That’s frass. It usually means carpenter ants are excavating your woodwork.
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Dirt Mounds: If you see sandy piles popping up around your building’s exterior or in landscape beds, you’re likely dealing with fire ants.
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Cracked Concrete: Pavement ants are notorious for nesting under slabs and pushing dirt up through cracks.
2. Follow the trail. If you see a trail, don't just wipe it away, follow it. Tracking ants back to their source is the best way to narrow down the species.
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Mulch & Soil: Argentine ants and odorous house ants often commute from nests hidden in outdoor landscaping.
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Wood: If the trail leads into a wooden structure or a hollow door, you’re likely facing carpenter ants.
3. Note what attracts them. What are they eating? It sounds strange, but peeking at their lunch can tell you a lot about their biology.
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The Grease Lovers: Pavement ants prefer protein and grease.
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The Sweet Tooths: Odorous house ants and carpenter ants often seek out sugary substances (or honeydew from aphids on your plants).
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The Omnivores: Fire ants and Argentine ants aren't picky, they'll go for meats, sweets, and everything in between.
4. Pay attention to their physical features. Ants differ in shape, size and color. While it might be difficult to identify a species from the ants’ physical features alone, you may be able to narrow down the playing field.
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Pharaoh Ants: These are tiny (approx. 1/16 inch) and yellowish-brown.
Warning: Do not spray these with standard insecticide; it often causes the colony to split and spread.
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Carpenter Ants: The heavyweights of the ant world. They are large (up to ½ inch) and usually black or dark red.
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Odorous House Ants: Small, dark brown/black, and if you crush one, it smells like rotten coconut.
Even if you have a microscope, differentiating between ant species can pose a challenge to the untrained eye. A pest management professional will know what to look for and can help identify the type of ant you’re dealing with – and how to help stop the invasion.
To learn more about the big differences between these small (but annoying) pests and best treatment solutions, download Orkin's free Antcyclopedia.
Learn More About Ants
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