Pest control services

Carpenter Ant Control

Carpenter ants are especially a nuisance to any property, as they can be very destructive. Carpenter ants don’t eat wood like termites do, but they do build with it. You may see some wood shavings in different places in your home, like in the window sills or baseboards, or out on your deck. These are signs of carpenter ant activity.

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Locating a Carpenter Ant Colony

Sometimes they are not easily detected because they are way more active at night than they are during the day. So if you work all day, you may miss the little activity during the day. Then while you’re sleeping, you may miss the activity at night.

Typically these ants have a home colony that may be located in an old tree, structure, sign, telephone pole, wood pile, or other wood source. The queens are in these home colonies, numbering up to about 10,000 ants. The worker ants go exploring your homes and decks, looking for harborage and food. They will bring any food they find back to the home colony. Carpenter ants bite, and they eat anything from plant juices, our food scraps or crumbs; they even eat other insects.

These worker ants may also build a satellite colony in your home or around your deck as another little nest in between travel. These colonies aren’t in the open and so they can go undetected for a long time, wreaking havoc on the structure of your home.

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Carpenter Ant Service

What to Expect With Paffy’s Pest Control

Carpenter ants (Camponotus pennsylvanicus) are a major concern in Southern Minnesota and Western Wisconsin, known for tunneling through wood and causing structural damage. Found in areas like Minneapolis/St. Paul and Alexandria, these large black ants invade homes and businesses seeking moisture and food. Paffy’s Pest Control offers targeted, eco-friendly treatments to eliminate carpenter ants at their source, protecting your property from costly repairs.

So what can I expect to happen with a carpenter ant service?

Once the technician comes out to your property and assess the situation. Once he identifies the carpenter ants he will treat your home starting with the foundation. Paffy’s uses a granular spray to bait the ants, spraying three feet up and three feet out from your foundation. The technician will also look for anything connected to your home like telephone wires, fences, garden hoses, things like that. Carpenter ants take the easiest trail to your house. If he finds things like this, he may spray it as well. Once the spray dries, the ants are attracted to the bait and take it back to their colony. When it gets to the colony, the queen eats it and dies. Without the queen, the colony cannot reproduce and the whole colony is destroyed. Paffy’s takes care of the problem at the root.

The spray will take between five and 10 days to take full effect. The product is safe for children and pets. Paffy’s only uses EPA and FDA approved, commercial-grade baits and sprays certified to exterminate the pests at the source.

Source: NPCA Field Guide to Structural Pests

Why Control Carpenter Ants?

Structural Damage: Carpenter ants excavate moist or decaying wood to build nests, weakening beams, walls, and floors, which can lead to expensive repairs.
Persistent Infestations: Their colonies, often hidden in walls or trees, can grow to thousands, making early intervention critical to prevent spread.
Health and Cleanliness: Ants trail through unsanitary areas, potentially contaminating surfaces in kitchens or commercial spaces.
Property Value and Reputation: For businesses, visible ants deter customers and risk regulatory issues, while homeowners face declining property integrity.

What to Expect from Paffy’s Carpenter Ant Service

Paffy’s uses advanced, environmentally friendly methods to eliminate carpenter ants effectively:

On-Site Assessment: Our technician inspects your property to confirm carpenter ant activity, identifying nests and entry points like moist wood, cracks, or utility lines.
Targeted Treatment: We apply an EPA- and FDA-approved granular bait spray, covering three feet up and out from the foundation. The spray targets trails along fences, telephone wires, or garden hoses where ants travel.
Colony Elimination: Ants carry the bait back to their nest, where the queen consumes it and dies, halting reproduction and destroying the colony. Full results are typically seen within 5–10 days.
Safe and Eco-Friendly: Our commercial-grade products are low-toxicity, safe for children, pets, and employees, ensuring compliance with health standards.
Preventive Measures: We recommend sealing entry points and addressing moisture issues to prevent future infestations, integrated into our Three-Season Home Service Plan for homes or customized commercial schedules.

Why Choose Paffy’s?

Paffy’s delivers reliable, discreet carpenter ant control tailored to your needs in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Alexandria, and surrounding areas. Our treatments are part of our comprehensive pest management approach, ensuring long-lasting protection. For businesses, we minimize disruption with flexible scheduling, and for homeowners, our plan includes free follow-up visits if issues persist.

Take Action Today: Seeing sawdust-like frass or large black ants? Contact Paffy’s for a free consultation to schedule your carpenter ant service and safeguard your property.

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If you want year-round coverage from insects and mice, give our office a call today! Otherwise our one-time treatment for carpenter ants will last about three months.

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Testimonials

Trusted Prevention for Midwest Communities

Don’t just take our word for it. Read what your neighbors across Minnesota and western Wisconsin have to say about our honest, effective, and reliable pest control services.

Bravo to Riley! She is always thorough, kind, considerate of my needs, questions, and suggests what might be a better way to do things. She’s the best and I am so glad you have a woman on staff. Much more comfortable for me, a single woman.

Michele K.

Very good customer service. Went with them over the other 3 I contacted because they were the first to get back to me with a quote.

Caitlin P.

Our one stop shop for everything that is bothering you! Duane and staff do an incredible great job servicing our home and business.

Wayne B.

We were having some siding repaired when a contractor found a large yellow jacket nest next to the house. With no extra time in the schedule I panicked but Paffy’s saved the day! They were able to squeeze us in same day, and get our contractor back to work. Everyone I interacted with was friendly and knowledgeable. I’ll be using them again no question.

Bonnie F.

I have used paffy”s for the last 2 years. Plan on using them this year also to continue to deal with my carpenter ants in one of my trees. Also going to hire them to take care of my mole problems in my yard. Very easy company to work with never had any issues.

Jeff S.

I went with the 3 – Season service and could not be happier! Joe was great to work with and was very helpful with my wasp problem. I plan to use Paffy’s for years to come!

Derek J.

Paffy’s is great. I’ve used them at two locations for many many years. They put service and quality results first! Thanks Another great job by Mike!!!

Clifi S.

The gentleman who comes to our building is amazing! He always checks in with me before he starts any routine visits and is very efficient! Cost is so affordable and worth every cent! Highly recommend Paffys!

Jenifer C.

We have had Paffy’s for several years and there is no one better!! Tom comes by monthly to our child care center and he is the nicest and friendliest guy ever! I highly recommend Paffy’s!

April A.

We have had a wonderful experience with Paffys Annual Plan. Kyle is a really great technician and does a very thorough job whenever we have a concern. We love that they will come out on short notice whenever we have something that needs to be addressed!

Emmy S.

We have used Paffy’s for years at two properties and have taken advantage of the three season discount offered each year for the upcoming year. Randall B was our technician today for our summer application. He did a fine job, was courteous and introduced himself to us when he knew we were home. I haven’t seen bugs in the house because Paffy’s does their job!

Colette H.

We have been using Paffy’s for several years now and have been pleased with their customer service! I appreciate that they listen to any issues you may be having and come up with solutions. I also appreciate that they will come out between scheduled treatments if there is an issue. I would highly recommend Paffy’s.

Laura S.

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Learn from our experts

Browse our latest articles, seasonal guides, and expert prevention tips to help you better understand Midwest pest patterns and keep your property protected year-round.