Ants - Chapter Two

[gypsmjim]

I recently posted about our problem with ants. We followed all of the suggestions (thanks for the help) and have not resolved the issue. Still getting 6 or 8 ants a day.

To summarize - sealed all of the possible entry points. Destroyed the ant hill 50 feet away in the fire pit. Put the recommended ant powder around the tires and landing gear. Put ant traps inside.

Current conclusion after studying and observing:
They are coming from above. They are entering thru the windows and ceiling vents.

When we arrive the first thing we do is open the ceiling vents. Within a few minutes there is an ant on the ceiling. We know they are on the roof. For the life of me I cannot see any hole or crevice that they could come thru.

The sliding side windows are sealed when closed. As soon as we open them and an ant is on the outside, whoosh he's inside. The glass is sealed but the screen has a measly fabric "brush" that apparently does not seal completely. The ant disappears and then he's between the 2 glass panes and then its a straight run out.

I know I can't get rid of the ants, but I do need to prevent them from entering. So, how can I better seal the vents and windows so they are usable but ant proof?

[muckinfuss]

I started to read your other post to understand more, but what I was looking for wasn't apparent. Is this trailer in a seasonal camp? And are the ants the larger black ones? If so, consider that at some point you had a water infiltration that set up a wet zone and carpenter ants found you and are building tunnels in your trailer. If that sounds possible, you may need to get a bug bomb and pull the pin as you leave for a few days. I've not had the problem with my trailer, but our rental houses now get bombed as a matter of course once a tenant moves out. For reasons I won't go into here. But the bug bombs do work at clearing out the pests.

[gypsmjim]

Originally Posted by muckinfuss

I started to read your other post to understand more, but what I was looking for wasn't apparent. Is this trailer in a seasonal camp? And are the ants the larger black ones? If so, consider that at some point you had a water infiltration that set up a wet zone and carpenter ants found you and are building tunnels in your trailer. If that sounds possible, you may need to get a bug bomb and pull the pin as you leave for a few days. I've not had the problem with my trailer, but our rental houses now get bombed as a matter of course once a tenant moves out. For reasons I won't go into here. But the bug bombs do work at clearing out the pests.

Yes, its on our own private campground. It has maybe 100 miles on the odometer (if it had one) and hasn't moved since. It's only a few years old and my maintenance is exceptional.

I know what water intrusion and rotten wood looks like, and it doesn't have any. Our guest house (another RV that is now 64 years old - yes sixty four) has had its share of leaks over the last 25 years, but all were repaired as soon as they were noticed. It DOES have some rot in the roof, but NO ants....LOL.

If I was really INFECTED, I would use a bug bomb. But its only a few ants and they only seem to appear after we arrive for the weekend and open things up.

[michael.g]

At our seasonal site, we've had issues with carpenter ants over the years. Last year was a bad year towards the last half of the season. We have 2 large Maple trees a few feet from the street side of the TT. We have a clothes line that runs between the 2 trees and watch the ants all day long go across the clothes line. A few weeks before the end of the season, I bought a carpenter ant insecticide. It was crazy expensive, but after a few days, we had only a few ants roaming around. By the time we left, we hadn't seen any for a few days.

I placed the gel all along the wall and floor seam everywhere I had seen ants. Like you, we'd see anywhere from a couple ants a day to upwards of 8 to 10 a day. Usually we'd see them in the early evening and night time. We didn't usually see them during the day.

If you have regular ants, I would spray the entire inside of the RV with a bug spray designed to kill ants. I'd also test it on a small area outside on the RV itself to make sure it doesn't stain, then spray the entire RV if there is no staining. For the last few seasons, we used a spray that attached to a garden hose and just sprayed the area under and around the TT as well as the chassis and the cinder blocks the TT sat on. I'd also hit the first few feet of the trunks of the Maple trees. We had a lot of success in years past, but last year it didn't seem to help with the ants. I'm guessing we got a bad batch.

Good luck.

-Michael

[Xboaters]

Originally Posted by michael.g

At our seasonal site, we've had issues with carpenter ants over the years. Last year was a bad year towards the last half of the season. We have 2 large Maple trees a few feet from the street side of the TT. We have a clothes line that runs between the 2 trees and watch the ants all day long go across the clothes line. A few weeks before the end of the season, I bought a carpenter ant insecticide. It was crazy expensive, but after a few days, we had only a few ants roaming around. By the time we left, we hadn't seen any for a few days.

I placed the gel all along the wall and floor seam everywhere I had seen ants. Like you, we'd see anywhere from a couple ants a day to upwards of 8 to 10 a day. Usually we'd see them in the early evening and night time. We didn't usually see them during the day.

If you have regular ants, I would spray the entire inside of the RV with a bug spray designed to kill ants. I'd also test it on a small area outside on the RV itself to make sure it doesn't stain, then spray the entire RV if there is no staining. For the last few seasons, we used a spray that attached to a garden hose and just sprayed the area under and around the TT as well as the chassis and the cinder blocks the TT sat on. I'd also hit the first few feet of the trunks of the Maple trees. We had a lot of success in years past, but last year it didn't seem to help with the ants. I'm guessing we got a bad batch.

Good luck.

-Michael

Could they be coming in thru the roof top refer vent?

[michael.g]

Originally Posted by Xboaters

Could they be coming in thru the roof top refer vent?

We have a Residential Refrigerator from the factory, so no vent. I have seen some on the roof top air vents. We have MaxxAir covers on all 4 of our roof top vents and leave the vents open all the time.

They seem to like under the kitchen cabinet so they may be coming in from somewhere else as well. I put most of the insecticide gel under the kitchen cabinet along where the wall meets the floor as well as along where the cabinet sits on the floor.

Since we didn't see any when we left for the season last year and didn't see any evidence that any more came in when we checked on it a few months later, I think the insecticide worked well. We aren't camping this season and with the pandemic haven't had a chance to check on it yet.

-Michael

[gypsmjim]

Originally Posted by Xboaters

Could they be coming in thru the roof top refer vent?

In our case the only rooftop vent is above the AC, with the only access in the trailer to that particular cabinet. I sealed the voids around the AC with weatherstripping, and also the cord which goes to the adjacent cabinet.

When we see ants they are always high on the walls or on the ceiling. Sitting outside all day last week every ant I saw came off the roof. None came up from the bottom. They walk down and when they get to the window they disappear, only to reappear inside. Hence my query how to better seal the window.

Just prior to opening the windows, and just after opening the roof vents, 2 appeared on the ceiling.

We have no shore cord that enters the trailer, nor any wash lines.

[gypsmjim]

I just wanted to provide an update in case our experience might help others. We have been ant free for about 6 weeks now.

First of all, many thanks to all that provided suggestions.

Our first task was to find the entry point. It turned out to be the sliding side windows. When closed, we had no ants inside. When open, the flimsy seal on the screen was no seal. I bought a roll of felt weather stripping and a piece inside and out sealed off the entry point.

We still has ants on the outside. Next to the trailer is a small plastic generator shed with a solar panel on top. My bad - I completely ignored the wires coming from the panel. The ants had no entry point, but where the wire touched the trailer was a convenient point to walk up the side. I cut a small plastic funnel and installed it around the wire and filled it with ant powder. Now, no more ants outside either.

Finally, we eliminated the source. An ant hill was on our fire pit, located maybe 50 feet from the trailer. That was the hardest fix. It took excavating the rocks 3 times to completely get rid of them.

Once again, thanks to all.