How do you get these ants out of the underside of a hot tub. It’s up on blocks right now, and I know they are eating through the foam insulation because there are little chips of it in piles under it.
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: https://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
guest says
Hi. I am having a major problem with ants living around and in the foam of my hot tub. I have put down granulars (for fire ants) all around the perimeter of the tub and it has not helped at all. What is the best thing I can use so they will take it into the nest and kill the queen and colony? Your help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
admin says
@guest: Go with the PHANTOM mentioned above. It comes with a small crack and crevice injector which will enable you to get your treatment exactly where it will matter. If you treat well enough, within 2-4 days the entire nest will be shut down whether you hit the nest or not because of how the Phantom works.
http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/aerosol/pt-phantom-17-5oz