In most cases people are not aware of where the ants are nesting. In your case, you seem pretty sure where they're living. In fact bathroom walls are one of the most common locations for carpenter ants to use. These areas are usually moist and at least humid which carpenter ants love. No doubt this is why they target the bath room in so many homes.

I recommend using the most direct approach possible. That means drilling some holes and pumping the DRIONE dust into the wall void. Drill between the studs all the way around the room. These holes can be above any water proof walls you might have. And don't forget you can access this space from two sides. That means if there is a closet on the other side it might be easier to drill through that wall instead of the closet.

I also suggest doing a good dusting on the outside of the home. This should be done now and then in the spring I'd followup with some CARPENTER ANT BAIT and spray on the foundation. The BIFEN is a good product to use and if done throughout the year, you won't have any chance of a reinfestation.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Drione:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page91.html

Carpenter Ant Bait:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page253.html

Bifen:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/bifen_it.html

If the ants are large it would be a good guess they are in fact carpenter ants. But before you were to do anything extensive pest control wise, you really need to know for sure since treatments for carpenter ants will cost more compared to treating any common ant. And as our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL ARTICLE explains, these guys don't "go away" during the winter. They merely get dormant or in a state of hibernation so it's entirely possible there is a nest somewhere on the camper or close by.

At this point I'd say to focus your attention on solving the moisture problem in the camper. If you work on it now you should end up ripping up some of the flooring and gaining access to areas you can't see into right now. At that time you'll no doubt find some ant nests in the damaged area if you do in fact having some nesting inside the camper. And if any nests are found, you can treat them as explained in our article.

But if no activity is found, I'd wait till next spring and summer to see if they return. And if they do, at that point you could take a more pro active approach using the baits and sprays if needed. But applying any now would be waste because all these products require the ants to be active in order for the treatments to be affective.  Since it's winter, as long as the camper is kept inactive and cold, the ants will be dormant and inactive as well.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Carpenter Ant Control Article:  http://www.carpenterants.com/carpenter-ant-control

If you read through our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL ARTICLE, you'll learn this species of ant will make many nests which are all "linked" via a complex web of scent trails. Finding one nest and destroying it will never solve the problem; the related nests which are very much a part of colony will simply use the pre existing scent trails to continue foraging. In most cases you'll continue seeing ants as if you never killed any nest once they start using the old scent trails and repopulate the area.

To get control and kill off all the nests, you'll need to use some of the professional grade products we have listed in our article. In situations like this, a combination of spray for the outside, spray for the inside and bait for the inside will usually do the job. Lets start on the inside.

Anywhere you've seen activity inside the home you place some CARPENTER ANT GEL out. In most cases this product will be readily consumed and shared by the other ants still alive. In a few days the gel will make it's way into different nests and when it kicks into gear (which only happens after it's been consumed and digested), the net impact of them feeding on it can be devastating since it will be too late for them to realize what has happened and change anything they're doing.

To insure you get all the ants foraging inside the home, you should also spray all the cracks and crevices where you don't apply the gel with some PHANTOM AEROSOL. This odorless and slow action residual will work much the same way as the gel. It's impossible for them to detect and by the time it starts to work, the ants will have infected their nests and it will be too late. This is a key part of the process as it will insure any ants still living that are away from the gel infected nests will be controlled as they forage around looking to establish new nests.

Lastly, spraying the outside with some TERMIDOR will do the same thing as the Phantom on the inside. Be sure to treat the perimeter of the home so that any ants trying to get in will no doubt be affected. And as you'll learn in our article, since this ant will forage several hundred feet, it will commonly come from other property so the outside treatment will be paramount if you wish to stop these long reaching invaders.

In summary, it's important to understand carpenter ants don't rely on just one nest when they build a colony. Instead they make several nests, maybe 4-8, and these all work hand in hand to both support and nourish one another. This is exactly the reason why a direct treatment approach will many times fail; the surviving nests will just re establish themselves and the problem will persist. But treating the inside and the outside thoroughly with slow working products that take 4-7 days to fully work has proven most effective on this species of ant. This "blanket" approach insures you get product into all the satellite nests at the same time so that when the active ingredients kick in and begin to their job, it's too late for the carpenter ants to do anything about it. When done properly, the net result will be all the nests shutting down and the problem will be gone.

Here are direct links to the information and products listed above:

Carpenter Ant Article:  http://www.carpenterants.com/carpenter-ant-control

Carpenter Ant Gel:  http://www.bugspray.com/catalog/products/page560.html

Phantom Aerosol:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/phantom_aerosol.html

Termidor:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/termidor_sc.html

Carpenter ants are unique in that they will actually spend time removing dead ants from their colony. It could be you are finding dead ants that have been removed from a local nest. The key for you will be determining where the nest is located. It sounds like you are unsure at this time and as our Carpenter Ant article explains, many times it is hard to discover these locations. Remember, ants don't want you to know where they live. But unless you are able to either spray or bait where they are active, it's not likely you'll be able to resolve this problem any time soon.

That being said, I'm pretty sure there is a nest either in or on your home. I would be surprised if they are located far away; it's most likely they are very close based on the numbers you report. I'm thinking in the ceiling void, maybe behind some crown molding or in some air vents, since you're finding these ants out in the open. This is usually a sign of ants being "pushed" out of some small hole up high. Since homes can have nests which don't have ants visually seen all the time, this scenario is fairly common and happens all the time.

At this point the Carpenter Ant Gel might be your best option but you do need to locate the placement to where you have seen activity. From your message, I don't think you know of any activity so this might be hard for you to do. Remember, carpenter ants are nocturnal by nature so they could be out and about in the dark thus avoiding being seen. I suggest you place some of the Ant Gel where you're seeing the dead ones for starters. You are also welcome to give our office a call at 1.800.877.7290. One of our technical reps might be able to ascertain a better remedy after being able to discuss the matter on the phone.