Ants nest??
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I saw what looked like a mass of brown rice husks on one of my outside windowsills a couple of weeks ago and cleaned them all off.
Same windowsill today - and there was another mass of "brown rice husk" type things there. So I've cleaned them off again.
Now I'm aware that the previous owner of this house that had the windows swopped to double-glazed ones got rather a bodge job type firm that didn't finish the job off properly (ie they put a upvc windowcill ledge thing at the base off the windows outside - but they had hacked away rather at the outside walls of the house and left a bodge-merchant hacked at gap thing in between base of the upvc cill and the "bricks").
The house is constructed of those concrete block type things - double thickness with cavity wall in between them (filled with cavity wall insulation).
So - the window-fitters made a bodge of it with that gap left and then the house-owner hasn't got the gap filled after them either (eg with a bit of putty and then topped off with upvc sealant is the way I presume they should have done it??).
Anyway - when I wiped those husks away and cleaned out that gap as best I could with mini toothbrush and a knife - a noticeable number of ants came scuttling out:eek:.
I've cleaned out that gap as best I can manage and shall obviously be monitoring it.
1. Wondering what's the best thing to do now about those gaps those window-fitters left underneath the upvc windowcills all round the house (though that is the worst one out of them - ie underneath the larder window).
2. Concerned that if I just sealed the caps up now (as they should have done originally) that there might be ants sealed inside the gap and I don't fancy the thought of ants potentially being there inside the gap between those two layers of exterior wall.
I have a nasty suspicion it's an ants nest inside that gap. I've found ants more than once on the ground near the adjacent back door (and a couple of times ants have got inside my kitchen).
Any time I've spotted a noticeable number of ants on the ground - I've just thrown some kettles of boiling hot water over them.
Not quite sure what to do for the best re my concern that maybe ants have got underneath that larder windowcill and how to do summat-or-other to kill any lurking under there?
Ideas? Thoughts?
Same windowsill today - and there was another mass of "brown rice husk" type things there. So I've cleaned them off again.
Now I'm aware that the previous owner of this house that had the windows swopped to double-glazed ones got rather a bodge job type firm that didn't finish the job off properly (ie they put a upvc windowcill ledge thing at the base off the windows outside - but they had hacked away rather at the outside walls of the house and left a bodge-merchant hacked at gap thing in between base of the upvc cill and the "bricks").
The house is constructed of those concrete block type things - double thickness with cavity wall in between them (filled with cavity wall insulation).
So - the window-fitters made a bodge of it with that gap left and then the house-owner hasn't got the gap filled after them either (eg with a bit of putty and then topped off with upvc sealant is the way I presume they should have done it??).
Anyway - when I wiped those husks away and cleaned out that gap as best I could with mini toothbrush and a knife - a noticeable number of ants came scuttling out:eek:.
I've cleaned out that gap as best I can manage and shall obviously be monitoring it.
1. Wondering what's the best thing to do now about those gaps those window-fitters left underneath the upvc windowcills all round the house (though that is the worst one out of them - ie underneath the larder window).
2. Concerned that if I just sealed the caps up now (as they should have done originally) that there might be ants sealed inside the gap and I don't fancy the thought of ants potentially being there inside the gap between those two layers of exterior wall.
I have a nasty suspicion it's an ants nest inside that gap. I've found ants more than once on the ground near the adjacent back door (and a couple of times ants have got inside my kitchen).
Any time I've spotted a noticeable number of ants on the ground - I've just thrown some kettles of boiling hot water over them.
Not quite sure what to do for the best re my concern that maybe ants have got underneath that larder windowcill and how to do summat-or-other to kill any lurking under there?
Ideas? Thoughts?
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Comments
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I'm no expert but from my experience you might need to get an expert in from your local council to advise however, Ants will be dying off just now after the Queens have left to create new nests so now would be a good time to act, try putting some ant powder in any cracks you can get into this worked for me in a garden wall on a temporary basis until the following year another nest appeared.
Boiled water is pointless, with the powder they take it back to the nest apparently so it kills more of them, the powder is cheap and it works for me quite well, it will buy you some time to get someone in.Enjoy everyday like it's your last!0 -
Can you get a hand-held steam cleaner with a small nozzle? I'd go out there 4-5x a day for the next few days and blast it along... I use a kettle of boiling water on regular ants nests on pavements etc.... that kills them... so I figure, with the off-the-ground location and limited gap a hot steam cleaner up their jacksy would work as well.0
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Both those thoughts sound like possibles:T
I've not got a hand-held steam cleaner - but I used to have a lightweight wallpaper steam stripper. When I'd finished stripping the wallpaper in this house I gave it away to a friend - thinks = I could borrow it back and have a go with that possibly?
Using ant powder could be my fallback position if the wallpaper stripper doesnt work. I'd guess I could do a DIY thing with that if need be. Can't say I've any great faith in the Councils here to say the least - I find them pretty useless (make that downright useless) and still havent figured whether it's inefficiency, their odd financial priorities or this being a poor area (and so they havent got much money in the first place). I've learnt not to ask them for anything - it's wasting my breath to do so...0 -
This is more effective than powder in such circumstances, in my experience.
https://www.wilko.com/en-uk/home-defence-ant-stop-granules-300g/p/0454957
post a photo or two of the gaps to get the best advise on what to do with them0 -
I don't have any means of taking photos I'm afraid.
The gaps are in between bottom edge of upvc windowcill and the original concrete windowcills (which are still there). So they are rather jaggedy and vary in width from nothing to half an inch or so wide and it's a couple of the wider gaps that I've seen some ants scuttling out of whilst cleaning the windowcill again.
Went back subsequently with a very fine crochet hook I have and hoicked out everything I could get at with it.
I'm inclined to think of a bit of readymix filler of some description to fill in those gaps. It doesnt have to "look attractive" - as one can only see the hacking away those bodgers did if leaning down a little and peering up iyswim. So even a shortie like myself can't spot the gaps facing them dead-on and standing up.0 -
Bit of googling of ant hill images later - think I know what those "discarded rice husks" (which is what they look like) are - ie flying ant wings (ie what they discard after mating).
Most of the ants I hauled out were ordinary ones - but there were one or two rather bigger ones.0 -
Concentrated steam cleaner by uPVC? No way for me!
The best ant killers are those that are taken back and kill the queen.
Like:
Nippon at Amazon
You will never seal them out from a house. The botched seal job is more likely a coincidence.0 -
Concentrated steam cleaner by uPVC? No way for me!
The best ant killers are those that are taken back and kill the queen.
Like:
Nippon at Amazon
You will never seal them out from a house. The botched seal job is more likely a coincidence.
Ah...right.
So they'd have been there even the windows had been well done then you reckon?
Okays - guess I better not borrow back that wallpaper stripper I gave away and go for whacking some poison down underneath the windowcill then.0 -
Duly ordered that Nippon from Amazon and am having to wait till latter part of next week for it.
Cue for thinking they say that cornmeal is something they take back with them to the nest/eat it/blow up/dead.
Well - I've got corn grits in - presume that counts as cornmeal?
Scattered a generous line of it along the windowcill concerned and where adjacent back door step has a gap (more bodging:cool:) before it meets the path outside door. Cue for ants running out madly from both spots. Not sure whether they're panicking or thinking "Goody - dinner time - stuff to take back to nest". Belted all the ones I saw and poured loads down into the gaps....
Maybe that'll do the trick on its own. Anyway - shall put down some Nippon as well when it turns up.0 -
Well, if you really want pet ants, why didn't you say?
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