[Shop-talk] OT hep with ants PLEASE

[Wayne]

On 5/13/2012 6:20 PM, Tim wrote:
> I have half a dozen or more ant 'hills' in my back yard; a yard that is
> only about 75x100 feet at best. They are about a half inch and black. I
> may have seen a white spot on the back end of one of the colony's

If they're that bad, call an exterminator. There are probably a lot more 
than what you can see! When I lived in Ohio, the bugs (like summer 
mosquitoes) were just annoying. 11 years now in North Caroline on 
heavily wooded land, they're BAD if you don't put down some heavy duty 
stuff to whack them!

The exterminators around here typically want you to sign up for an 
annual contract or plan for four applications a year. I pay $250/annual 
for it. Most common is an insecticide "Talstar" they is sprayed up the 
exterior foundation and walls, and 10 or so feet out into the yard. You 
can buy and apply it yourself, unlike some more heavily regulated 
chemicals. The local Southern States Store has it for $35/qt or you can 
order from Amazon. But as pricey as it is, I'm willing to pay to let 
someone else handle the toxic stuff!

It's been highly effective at keeping spiders, ants, gnats, etc out of 
the house and substantially reducing them outside.

-Wayne