Ants?

[friz-5TH]

I noticed the wall hole a week or two ago. There was a white streak of powder going down the wall. Wife has since wiped it away. A single ant was walking around the hole. Yesterday I moved the bed away and saw the pile of powder and chewed up insulation on the floor. I am assuming I have ants or some insect inside the wall. It is an outside wall. How do I proceed to evict them? Thanks

 

[{Tpc}]

You may want to have a pest company look at it. Are there termites in your area? Do you think the hole was caused by the insect, or was it just an entry point?

 

[DutchmenSport]

Here's a solution, it works, but for some reason a lot of folks are hesitant to do it...

Clean everything up in your camper. Put away all food items, dog bowls, dishes, everything.

Then set up a bunch of bug-bombs. 3 or 4 in the living areas and one inside the front pass through, or the underbelly if you have a fifth wheel.

Set them all of at the same time.

You need to do this twice, about 10 days apart.

First time, turn the AC fan on and then pull the bug bombs. This will circulate the chemical though you ducts in the ceiling and any small holes or open joints, blowing chemical in all those spots you'll never be able to reach.

10 days later, do it all again, only this time, turn on your furnace and make sure the furnace fan blows non-stop. This will circulate the chemical UNDER the trailer, again, any holes or joints not sealed in the duct work.

In addition, the bug bomb mist will penetrate ever nook and cranney in the camper, any holes where bugs can enter, around the slide seals, everywhere.

Repeat again in a year, (the two time method), and you'll never have bugs again in your camper.

For ants, I've found nothing better than Terro ant killer. Set it out, the ants eat it, take it back to their nest and spread it to others. The entire colony dies out. It takes about 2 days.

 

[JRTJH]

Ants and roaches are fairly easy to manage. Boric Acid powder mixed with powdered sugar (75/25%) and placed in soft drink screw on lids (or other small containers) positioned around the trailer interior and also sprinkled around every place the trailer touches the ground (tongue jack, tires, stabilizer jacks, water hose and electrical shore power cord). The Boric Acid powder will kill the ants. The powdered sugar attracts them to the Boric Acid. The powders (both of them) will stick to the ants and they will carry it back to the nest (in the ground outside and/or also in a nest INSIDE the trailer. Once in the nest, the Boric Acid will begin to kill other ants. It's a perpetuating affect because as a healthy ant removes the body of a dead ant, the healthy ant is also exposed to the Boric Acid....

While this MIGHT help with your situation, as posted above, "IF YOU HAVE A TERMITE INFESTATION" which is very possible if your trailer is located in Florida, may need much more than just a "home remedy"... Once termites infest a structure with wood, it's time to call in the professionals.... If you're unsure if it's termites, I'd "err on the side of caution" and at least have a pro check the trailer....

 

[flybouy]

What would concern me is the Styrofoam damage and the hole in the wood paneling. I'm not an expert so this is just my observation from my experience. There are many species of ants but most don't need to chew their way into a camper area leave a "trail" of where they've been. There are also several species of insects that do these "telltale" indicators. Termites of course, carpenter bees, and some ant species. A lot of folks misidentify imature termites as ants.

 

[fjr vfr]

Carpenter ants chew through wood. They are usually in one area so they are easier to deal with. Spraying in the hole with malathion mix will take care of them.
That is if that's what you have. All this is just conjecture until you determine just what you have. It's better to know than just shot gunning the issue. Keep an eye on it for a while till you can determine what bug it is. Then act accordingly.

 

[locomech]

During the summer months I take care of pests around the house with Boric Acid and fruit juice. This works with ants, wasps, hornets and most likely anything with an exoskeleton. I'll take a pop can and hang it on a fence post near a wasp nest and place a small stick or bamboo skewer into the hole so the pest can drink the juice and take it back to the nest. Only a little of the juice is needed at the bottom of the can because you want the critter to return to the nest to share.

With ants I take a bottle cap and part of a cotton ball soaked with the solution and place it near any ant activity. They will return the their nest as well to share the sweet poison with the queen. It will take a few days to kill the entire nest. Boric Acid used to be available everywhere but now it's hard to find, so I ordered it on Amazon. You can also use 20 mule team Borax but the Boric Acid is better.

Wasp, Hornet, Yellow jacket, Ant killer:

Use a cheap fruit juice or sugar water,
1-3tsp Boric Acid or Borax per 1/2 gallon of liquid
Mix well

 

[JRTJH]

Just for clarity, Boric Acid is NOT a dangerous chemical if used according to directions. In fact, a Boric Acid wash is/was commonly used to wash infant's eyes when they had "morning crust" from overactive tear ducts. It used to be available in every pharmacy, but with the "loss of compounding experience" in most pharmacies, it's no longer available in most. Amazon has Boric Acid powder, enough for a house, trailer, pole barn and some to load the neighbor for around $13. Amazon.com

 

[rlh1957]

I noticed the wall hole a week or two ago. There was a white streak of powder going down the wall. Wife has since wiped it away. A single ant was walking around the hole. Yesterday I moved the bed away and saw the pile of powder and chewed up insulation on the floor. I am assuming I have ants or some insect inside the wall. It is an outside wall. How do I proceed to evict them? Thanks

That is not ants. Try to find one to have it analyzed.
You can open up that section of wall or underneath to look at trail or damage. Ants don’t need to eat through anything and don’t pile up stuff like that.

 

[LadyCPA]

I noticed the wall hole a week or two ago. There was a white streak of powder going down the wall. Wife has since wiped it away. A single ant was walking around the hole. Yesterday I moved the bed away and saw the pile of powder and chewed up insulation on the floor. I am assuming I have ants or some insect inside the wall. It is an outside wall. How do I proceed to evict them? Thanks

I know several people use bug bombs, and they do work for them, but honestly we have used a pest control company to deal with this for us. It's not much more expensive than the cost of the bombs and time spent to clean up the mess, and while they only guarantee the service for 90 days, we have only had to do this on an annual basis.