Carpenter ants in GTA homes

Carpenter ants are large, often black ants that excavate damp or damaged wood to nest. They do not eat the wood. In Greater Toronto Area homes they nest in decks, window frames, rooflines and wall voids, especially where wood stays wet. Fine sawdust below the nest is the usual clue. Homes near ravines see them often.

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How to recognize it

Large black or dark ants, much bigger than the ants on a kitchen counter
Fine sawdust, like pencil shavings, under window trim, deck boards or a sill
Activity at night, including winged ants leaving a wall in spring
A narrow, pinched waist. Termites, which are uncommon in most of the GTA, have a thick waist and leave mud tubes

What damage it causes

Galleries carved through wood that is already damp or rotting
Weakened trim, deck boards, sill plates and, over time, framing
They push the chewed wood out. They do not eat it, and they do not leave mud tubes
A nest that returns if the wet wood stays wet

Where it lives

Damp wood around decks, door sills, windows and roof edges
Wall voids where a leak or poor ventilation keeps the wood soft
Firewood, stumps and landscape ties against the house
Homes along ravines and wooded lots in Toronto, Brampton, Caledon and the rest of the GTA

Questions about carpenter ants

Do carpenter ants eat wood like termites?

No. Carpenter ants excavate wood to live in it, usually wood that is already damp. Termites eat wood and are rarer in most of the GTA. Sawdust and a pinched waist point to carpenter ants.

Why are carpenter ants in a house near a ravine?

Mature trees and damp shade give them nest sites outdoors. Workers then follow moisture into decks, windows and wall voids. The outdoor colony and the damp wood indoors both matter.

Common in these cities

Often confused with pavement ants.

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