Crazy ants - broke the A/C

[Aerows]

by building a nest on the contacts. I thought it was lack of freon - no it was a wad of tawny crazy ants that when they receive an electric shock, send out a pheromone to summon more crazy ants. It results in a big nest of ants that have a substance that prevents conductivity and the acid that fire ants produce.

Whacky, I know, but it happened to me. I'm on the Gulf Coast, and I've read up on these little invasive bugs from South America, but I didn't think too much of them. They can defeat our FIRE ants because they are impervious to the acid and shorts out electronics when they are there.

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-rise-of-the-crazy-ants/

http://urbanentomology.tamu.edu/ants/rasberry.html

Get rid of them before they get rid of you.

[CatWoman]

1. Actually

that happened to me a couple of years ago.

freaked me out when the repairman explained the problem.

I'm like "ants???? you kidding me, right"

[Aerows]

3. So will Oppossums

and they don't carry rabies due to low body temperature, and help prevent Lyme disease also due to low body temperature.

Fail.

[Aerows]

6. It was still a fail

But you did try hard. I give it a 3.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

4. I had them in a coffee maker once...

used it one morning ok, went to fill it up that night for the next day and ANTS everywhere as soon as I moved it. it was gross

[Aerows]

7. These are specifically tropical ants

They won't survive your winters (at least I hope these things don't infest the entire continental US!)

[Aerows]

8. Just to clarify

This *ACTUALLY* happened and isn't bullshit. I linked two articles, but you can find multiple articles with a search for tawny crazy ants or raspberry crazy ants.

I realize few of you live on the Gulf - you are missing out on things like this.

[Aerows]

10. Here is another link

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rasberry_crazy_ant

[oldhippie]

11. I had the same thing happen here ...

... a couple of years ago. Fairly new heat pump system, only about a year old. Outside condenser unit failed. Called the HVAC company and they sent out a tech. First thing he did was open a panel over the main power contactors for the unit and pulled it out. Yep, all gummed up with dead ants. Though they were probably fire ants here. The tech said that it was very common recently and he carried a bunch of new contactors in his truck. He said they were made of a material that was not attractive to ants, and sprayed it with a bug spray before plugging it back in. I got to keep the old contactor assembly, so I cleaned it up and keep it as a spare. If it happens again I know the first place to look.

I'll have to read up some on these crazy ants, sounds pretty interesting.

[malaise]

12. Nothing kills ants like vinegar

and that way we avoid pesticides.

[Aerows]

13. They will be enjoying a vinegar bath

and a boric acid ring around the A/C unit, I can tell you that!

[malaise]

20. ROFL

Just dilute cheap white vinegar 50-50 with water and spread. Adios ants.

My neighbors had a serious ant problem in their laundry room and I suggested that they wiped from ceiling to exit in a half and half water-vinegar solution. They said they never heard about that but that they'd try because they didn't want pesticides with their asthmatic child. They couldn't believe how fast it worked.

We wipe counters and tiles with the said solution - much cheaper and way less harmful to all.

[Liberal_in_LA]

22. thx for the tip. i'm having an ant situation. will give it a try

[malaise]

23. You're welcome

[malaise]

24. Some other ways here

http://www.wikihow.com/Kill-Ants-Without-Pesticides

[Aerows]

28. I'm definitely going to try that

Stupid crazy ants!

[TheBlackAdder]

14. Human Grade Diatomaceous Earth - Kills ants, spiders, house centipedes, any hard or soft insect.

Since it's food industry grade, it doesn't contain anything that is harmful to consume (silicon dioxide - used as an anti-caking agent in salt, foods, pills, etc.). It's finer than flour, these skeletal frames of microorganisms that were millions of years old and resemble a Chex cereal type of structure, but it scores the exoskeleton of soft bodied insects so they dehydrate in less than two days. For hard exoskeleton insects, like ants and spiders, it lodges in their joints and mandibles and they are immobilized within a couple of days.

I had several trees with carpenter ants going up them. I purchased the optional green pump applicator and threw a six inch bead around the tree at about 3 feet off the ground. Within a week, no more carpenter ants. My neighbor brought over his dog two years ago and introduced fleas into the house, affecting the two cats. I used DE under the furniture, on the carpets, etc. Placed collars on the cats and within two months... no more fleas. Centipedes, millipedes, weird house bugs, etc are easily controlled.

DE is also used to eliminate bedbugs in a home.

I dust anywhere a bug could go, behind outlets, etc. to control insects.

===

diatomaceousearth.com is the place where I bought it. The cheapest around, and they are top notch to deal with. I got 25lb food grade boxes for the whole family, with the green JT Eaton applicators.

===

The only precaution is to limit breathing it in. Here's the weird thing, we use DE to act as a supplement to the dewormers for the farm animals, including goats, sheep, horses, etc.. While humans and animals can consume it, for some reason parasites cannot tolerate it.

[malaise]

21. Vinegar solution is just as effective and much cheaper n/t

[reddread]

15. yeah I was trying to solve a motion detector issue in a boat shop

once I opened the case, there were innumerable ants living inside.
quite the surprise. definitely a problem.

[PATXgirl]

16. Yep, we lost two pumps on our septic system a few years back to ants getting in the wiring. Sucks.

[eShirl]

17. we had a squirrel short out a transformer once

power was out to the block for almost 3 hours

[elias49]

18. I bet the squirrel was out for longer than that! nt

[eShirl]

19. basically exploded, I was told

[MannyGoldstein]

26. Do you happen to live in Mass?

Same thing happened to us a few years ago, a few blocks away.

[Warpy]

25. Apparently they secrete happy hormones when they get zapped by shorting electricity

and that gets more ants to move in.

I just hope altitude and hard winters will discourage them from moving in here. Otherwise, it's a tent over the house and poison pumped in every couple of years for me.

[Aerows]

29. They are freaking ridiculous!

SWARMS of the darn things.

[mnhtnbb]

27. Had the same thing happen a couple of years ago

to the a/c for our garage apartment.

[tabasco]

30. Anybody who can live down south

is a better man than me.

[Aerows]

31. It's hot as hell here

But the upside is that I can grow your name sake's peppers (and I am!).

I have two Tabasco pepper plants