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Dear EarthTalk: TIn renovating a vacation cabin, I discovered carpenter
ants working their way through the walls. Is there any way to responsibly get
rid of the pests without using noxious chemicals that could potentially harm my
family? -- Curran Clark, Lummi Island, WA  Carpenter
ants may seem small and look harmless, but they can do serious damage to anything
wooden in your home, including not only furniture but also the very framing and
walls that hold up the house. If you are seeing a lot of ants or small piles of
sawdust-like material in random spots in or around your home, you are most likely
suffering from a carpenter ant infestation.
Ants are very social beings
and form large colonies before spreading out to find additional nest sites. They
thrive by hollowing out wood, especially in moist or rotten spots, to build their
nests and then use their new home in your walls and chairs as a base camp from
which to forage for food and water in their nearby surroundings. Indeed, their
very presence is a good indication of moisture or rot problems in the wood, so
homeowners may have more work on their hands than simply exterminating carpenter
ants. In the northern latitudes of the continental US and in much of Canada,
carpenter ants are the most common insect wood destroyer, surpassing even the
mighty termite. But while many commercially available chemical pesticides will
rid a structure of carpenter ants, homeowners are increasingly steering away from
such toxins proven to impact the human nervous, respiratory and reproductive systems.
Perhaps the most economical and effective way to get rid of carpenter ants
is by applying boric acid (also known as borax) to their nest sites and surroundings.
This natural nontoxic element, mined from below the Mojave Desert in southern
California, has a long history of use in exterminating brazen populations of cockroaches,
palmetto bugs, waterbugs, silverfish, termites, and, you guessed it, carpenter
ants. Al Abruzzese, owner of the website Al’s Home Improvement Center,
swears by boric acid to get rid of wood-boring pests. “This simple inexpensive,
household chemical is deadly to all insects,” he says. “It has been
shown to attack their nervous systems, as well as being a drying agent to their
bodies.” Beyond just being effective as an all-natural insecticide,
boric acid is non-toxic to humans. Abruzzese says it is safe enough to use around
children—it has been used in ointments and salves for diaper rash on babies
in the past—and can be an important part of eyewash solutions as well, albeit
in very diluted form (don’t try it at home). One common brand name to look
for is Nisus Bora-Care, but any pesticide with boric acid or borax listed as an
active ingredient will do just fine. For those not into do-it-yourself pest
control, calling in an exterminator that uses all natural products is a good option.
Oregon’s All Natural Pest Elimination, for instance, services the entire
four state region of the Pacific Northwest with products from Natureline—crafted
from safe botanical extracts and essential oils, not synthetic chemicals—on
all of its extermination jobs. Look in the yellow pages for exterminators in your
area, and call each one you are considering to make sure they stay away from noxious
chemicals. CONTACTS: Al’s
Home Improvement Center, Nisus
Bora-Care, All
Natural Pest Elimination
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