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

Based on the small amount of activity you're seeing, I'm not sure you can track the ants like we explain you should do in our CARPENTER ANT ARTICLE. But as you can see, they'll remain active throughout the winter if the nest is located somewhere on the home. At this point I would suggest setting out some CARPENTER ANT GEL. Any that feed on it will be affected and with any luck, some will bring it back to the nest and kill it before spring arrives.

If the nest is still active this spring, I'm sure you'll see a surge in the activity. At that point you should be able to locate the nest and treat it with the DRIONE DUST discussed in our article. This would be your best option if you know where the nest is located. If not, using the TERMIDOR would probably knock them out if you do a thorough treatment.

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

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

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

If you read through our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL article, you'll learn the DRIONE DUST must be applied directly into the nest to be effective. Based on how the limited access you have, I'm not sure you'll be able to deliver enough of it where it will really matter. And if you only end up getting the dust over the wood where they're living, the ants will simply avoid the area and survive fine. True, you could opt to drill through the ceiling of the room below the area you believe they are nesting. But if you don't get the nest dead on center, the chance of them scattering around, regrouping and getting established elsewhere will be high. In the end, if this happens it will be a lot harder than it is now to get rid of them. I'm afraid this risk is certainly real and for this reason I think another approach might be better suited.

In this situation, I'd recommend one of the other products we have listed. For example, since you know there is an ant problem, it means you must be seeing them active either on or in the home. If they're in the home, you could opt to apply some CARPENTER ANT GEL along their trails where you see them. Alternatively you could opt to spray PHANTOM throughout the home. This slow working active works because it's not detectable by ants so they won't know it's been applied. After walking on treated surfaces for a few days, they will no doubt bring some back to the nest which will then get distributed to others in the nest. Before they know what happened, the nest will be killed as the product finally kicks in and begins to take effect. This will usually be 4-7 days following initial exposures.

Phantom can also be used outside on the home which is a good place to keep treating throughout the year to keep all perimeter pests at bay. Remember, preventive maintenace goes a long way at stopping major infestations from ever getting established so don't forget to stay on the top of the treating so this doesn't happen again.

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

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

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

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

Phantom:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/phantom_insecticide.html

No doubt carpenter ants (and several other species like acrobat ants, fireants and some others) love foam and moisture. Put the two together and then move the piece outside and it's only a matter of time before you have some type of an insect problem. Having dealt with similar problems over the years, I have learned that the direct approach of dusting with the DRIONE DUST featured in our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL ARTICLE is by far the best approach. It will knock them out on the spot and the problem will be solved. In most cases I've been able to use one of the HAND DUSTERS we have to get the dust where it was needed. Sometimes I've been able to crawl in through a maintenance hatch to access the main nest site; other times I've had to reach blindly to make the application. The Drione is like smoke so it will float around and get good coverage even if you aren't sure you hit the spot dead on.

Alternatively, if you're not able to get close enough to where you think they are nesting, you could opt to spray the area down with the PT-PHANTOM AEROSOL. This product works well on most any ant as it's slow acting and doesn't "spook" them like other sprays. The way it works is that the ants will walk over treated surfaces and as they do, they'll be picking up trace amounts which will be brought back to their nest and "shared" with the other ants. The net result will be the whole nest will be killed when the active finally kicks in and starts to work. This is usually in 3-5 days after you treat.

One other thing. In cases like this I like to take a mirror and place it on the ground just under the tub so I can look at the reflection of the bottom side. I like to do this before I start plodding around and spooking them. Many times watching them this way will reveal the exact location where you'll need to direct your treatment so it's worth the effort.

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

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

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

Hand Dusters:  http://www.gotosprayer.com/dusters/hand-dusters

PT-Phantom:  http://www.bugspray.com/item/phantom_aerosol.html

All of the products we have listed in our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL article would be fine to use around any of the pets as well as any people if used properly. Our PRODUCT SAFETY VIDEOS explain most everything you need to do to insure safe treatments are made. That being said, there are some Organic Alternatives you can use in place of the products we have listed that might help feel more at ease.

As you'll learn in the article, there are three main ways to deal with Carpenter Ants. The most direct way is to treat the nest with DRIONE DUST. The organic alternative dust would be DIATOMACEOUS EARTH which will work just about as well. It should be applied with one of the HAND DUSTERS we have listed to get the product uniformly distributed.

The second important part of carpenter ant control is spraying the foundation. Instead of one of the products listed in our article, you can use the organic alternative known as MULTI PURPOSE INSECT KILLER. This product won't last as long as the actives we have listed in our article but it will kill carpenter ants and help keep them out.

Lastly, if you wanted to use some bait, the NIBAN FG would be a good choice which is listed in the Carpenter Ant article. It's on the ORMI LIST which means it's considered safe enough for organic processors so you should be able to

Carpenter ant signs include leaving a sawdust or frass which is essentially a by product of all their chewing. As explained in our CARPENTER ANT CONTROL article, they do a good job of chewing through wood but don't in fact eat any of it. Based on your description, it sounds like you have them in this fence and probably at this joint too.

I suggest you get some DRIONE DUST and CYPERMETHRIN. Fill one of our HAND DUSTERS with the Drione and have it alongside you when you take the fence apart so it's ready to use. I'm pretty sure you'll uncover a nest and the Drione will be ideal to use for the treatment. Once you complete the work at that joint, I suggest you dust each of all the other joints you have to insure there aren't any other satellite nests on the fence. The Drione will do a much better job than a liquid spray treatment.

Once the fence has been treated, finish the work by doing a foundation spraying using the Cypermethrin. This will insure straggler ants won't find their way into your home.

Wood ants are what we call carpenter ants. Though they don't eat wood, they can chew through it and commonly will do so when making a nest. I suggest you read our on line article on WOOD ANT CONTROL to better understand this pest and what you should be on the lookout for to make sure they don't make nests in other parts of the home.

As you'll learn from our on line article, this ant loves to nest in small voids or spaces like the location you're seeing them at now. To treat such locations thoroughly, the use of some DRIONE DUST is most appropriate. It will do a great job of penetrating all the spaces where they might be and will quickly kill them all. I suggest you also spray the outside of the building with some SUSPEND to make sure there aren't other nests close by that can continue to thrive.

The best product for treating boring ants in wood siding is the Drione Dust. Use a Hand Duster to apply it and you'll get a quick kill because the dust penetrates like no liquid can. Boring ants will move up into siding because it provides an excellent location for them to build a nest as our on line Boring Ant Article explains. This video shows boring ants in siding being treated so you can understand why Drione is ideal for ant problems located in the siding of a home.

Since you know where the nest is located, you should consider using the Drione dust featured in our Carpenter Ant article. This dust acts like a dessicant and is both fast working and extremely effective on carpenter ants. If you don't want to use this product, you can switch out to Diatomaceous Earth. It too will act as a desiccant and as an organic material is about as safe of a product that can be used.

Around the home and garage you should apply some Suspend or Cypermethrin to insure any stragglers don't relocate and start a new nest. The organic equivalent would the ECO IC Concencentrate. Using all natural ingredients, this product won't last long like the other concentrates but it will offer a residual that should last 1-4 weeks. Most importantly for you, it will be completely safe to use around the pets and family members. All our organic products can be seen at Non Toxic Pest Control.

Carpenter ants like to live in any protected space they can find. Roofing shingles offer a great place for them to nest. Typically moist with a lot of seams and cracks, they'll easily get up under the shingles and from there can find spaces where they'll create thriving nests.

The best product to use for this area is the Drione Dust. It will penetrate and reach all the voids up under the roofing when applied with a Duster. Liquid sprays won't be too effective since they're readily absorbed by the asphalt shingles and since this area is typically out in the open, the sunlight will quickly break the chemical down. Treat with the Drione as explained in our article about Carpenter Ant Control and you'll be able to kill the nest immediately.