Key Takeaways

• Pharaoh ants, carpenter ants, and pavement ants are common in Ontario homes, but each species behaves differently and requires a different treatment approach.
• Pharaoh ants are small indoor pests that can contaminate food surfaces and spread through walls, plumbing areas, cupboards, appliances, and multi-unit buildings.
• Carpenter ants can damage damp or decaying wood by tunnelling through it to build nests, often pointing to hidden moisture problems in the home.
• Pavement ants commonly nest under driveways, patios, sidewalks, garage slabs, and foundation edges, then move indoors for food, warmth, or shelter.
• DIY sprays can make some ant problems worse, especially with pharaoh ants, because disturbed colonies may split and spread into new areas.
• Long-term ant control depends on accurate identification, professional treatment, food and moisture reduction, entry-point sealing, and prevention around the home’s exterior.

Notice a trail of small insects running around your property? It could be an ant. Ants are common pests in Ontario and can easily multiply if left unchecked. This can become not just a nuisance but also put your property and family at risk.

While ants are certainly pests, they aren’t all the same. Some prefer dark, concrete areas while others like to nest inside your home’s woodwork. Different species also have different diets. Being able to identify the ants in your home can make it much easier to eliminate them and prevent them from coming back. It’s also crucial to know if and when you need professional ant control & extermination services.

Pharaoh Ants

Summary

It was once believed that pharaoh ants descended from ancient Egypt, when the Bible describes plagues of swarming ants attacking this ancient civilization. Despite their name, pharaoh ants are simply a variety of ant that are native to Africa. Having grown in population, pharaoh ants have spread across the globe, reaching far-flung destinations such as Australia and even here in Canada.

While large in number and grand in their name, pharaoh ants are actually quite small. Most male worker ants grow up to 3mm in size at their very largest. Just like many other ants, pharaoh ants live in colonies led by a queen. Pharaoh ant queens are larger ants at 5mm. Their job is to produce more ants and feed off the food supplied by the workers. On average, a pharaoh ant queen will lay hundreds of eggs during her lifespan.

Lifecycle

Pharaoh ants develop through four stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. In warm indoor conditions, eggs can hatch in about a week, and colonies can grow quickly because they often contain multiple queens. When disturbed by sprays or unsuccessful DIY treatments, pharaoh ant colonies may split through a process called budding, spreading into wall voids, cabinets, ceiling spaces, appliances, plumbing areas, or neighbouring units.

Issues Caused by Pharaoh Ants

Pharaoh ants are a serious indoor pest because they can move through tiny cracks, outlets, pipes, baseboards, cupboards, and shared building spaces. They are drawn to sweet, greasy, and protein-rich foods, but the larger concern is contamination. Pharaoh ants may travel across drains, garbage, washrooms, and food surfaces, potentially spreading bacteria onto counters, dishes, pantry items, and food preparation areas.

Key Facts

Characteristics: A red or brown ant with a dark abdomen. A small, slender appearance.

Colour: Very dark colours such as brown, red, and black.

Diet: Fatty or sugary foods such as cake, syrups, jelly, fruit, bread, meat and more.

Why Pharaoh Ants are Pests: Pharaoh ants are known to eat through certain fabrics like silk. They can also infect food and food preparation spaces with dangerous bacteria like Salmonella, making you and your family very sick.

Where to Find Them in Your Home: Close to doorways and windows, as well as in warm, humid areas of your home. Trails might also be visible near food sources.

Causes of Pharaoh Ant Infestations

Pharaoh ant infestations are usually caused by warm indoor nesting conditions, accessible food, and moisture. Crumbs under appliances, sticky spills, open pantry items, pet food, garbage, leaky plumbing, and damp areas around sinks or tubs can all attract them. In condos, apartments, and commercial buildings, they may also spread through shared walls, utility lines, laundry rooms, garbage chutes, and food service areas.

How to Remove Pharaoh Ants

• Store pantry items, sugar, cereal, snacks, and pet food in sealed containers.
• Clean counters, cupboards, food prep areas, and the spaces beneath appliances.
• Remove garbage regularly and wipe up grease, crumbs, and sticky residue.
• Avoid spraying visible ants, as this can cause the colony to split and spread.
• Use professional baiting methods that workers carry back to the colony.
• Have nearby units or shared areas inspected if ants appear in a multi-unit building.

Pharaoh Ant Prevention Methods

• Seal food in airtight containers and avoid leaving pet food out overnight.
• Fix leaky taps, sweating pipes, clogged drains, and moisture around sinks or tubs.
• Rinse recyclables and keep garbage bins clean and closed.
• Seal small gaps around pipes, baseboards, window frames, and cabinets where possible.
• Report recurring activity early in apartments, condos, restaurants, or shared buildings.
• Schedule professional ant control before the infestation spreads into hidden areas.

Carpenter Ants

Summary

Carpenter ants are native to Canada and the rest of the Americas. They are one of the most common ants found in Canada and can be separated into two types, red carpenter ants and black carpenter ants. Carpenter ants are fairly large in comparison to their species, reaching up to 25mm in size for queens.

Lifecycle

Carpenter ants develop from eggs into larvae, pupae, and adults. A colony begins with a queen, then grows as workers excavate nesting galleries and search for food. Mature colonies may produce winged swarmers in spring or summer. Carpenter ants can also form satellite nests, with a parent colony outdoors and secondary nests inside walls, ceilings, insulation, window frames, or damp structural wood.

Problems Carpenter Ants Cause for Homeowners

Carpenter ants are concerning because they excavate wood to create nesting space. They do not eat wood, but they carve tunnels through damp, softened, or decaying materials. Over time, this can affect window frames, door frames, wall voids, decks, porches, rooflines, and sill plates. Their presence can also point to moisture issues such as leaks, poor ventilation, clogged gutters, or damaged flashing.

Key Facts

Characteristics: A large, dark ant with a thin abdomen, large head, and 6 tall legs.

Colour: Red or black, depending on their classification.

Diet: Foods high in sugar or protein like peanut butter, honey, candy, meat, and bread. They also enjoy plants, trails from aphids, and dead insects.

Why Carpenter Ants are Pests: Carpenter ants are known to eat through woodwork in your home, surrounding windows and doors. Over time, this can cause structural damage to your property.

Where to Find Them in Your Home: Around wooden areas of your home, including in walls and window frames.

Causes of Carpenter Ant Infestations

Carpenter ants are often linked to moisture-damaged wood and easy outdoor access. Roof leaks, plumbing leaks, wet basements, rotting deck boards, damp crawl spaces, clogged eavestroughs, and damaged fascia can create ideal nesting conditions. Outdoor risk factors include tree branches touching the roof, firewood stored against the home, old stumps, decaying logs, landscape timbers, and mulch piled against the foundation.

How to Remove Carpenter Ants

• Look for signs of carpenter ants such as frass, damaged wood, ant trails, rustling in walls, or winged ants indoors.
• Check moisture-prone areas near windows, doors, basements, plumbing, decks, and rooflines.
• Store food properly and clean up sweets, protein-rich foods, crumbs, and pet food.
• Reduce moisture by fixing leaks, improving ventilation, and removing standing water.
• Avoid relying on general sprays, which may not reach the main colony or satellite nests.
• Book professional carpenter ant control to locate the nest and treat active travel routes.

Carpenter Ant Prevention Methods

• Repair roof leaks, plumbing leaks, and damp wood around windows, doors, decks, and fascia.
• Keep gutters clear and improve drainage around the foundation.
• Trim branches and shrubs away from the home.
• Store firewood off the ground and away from exterior walls.
• Remove old stumps, rotting logs, and decaying landscape timbers.
• Keep mulch thin near the foundation and avoid direct wood-to-soil contact.
• Seal cracks, utility openings, and gaps where ants may enter.

Pavement Ants

Summary

As their name suggests, pavement ants typically find their home on the sidewalk in the gaps between pavement slabs. However, they don’t stay confined to roads and sidewalks. Pavement ants are also known to invade driveways and the foundations of homes, especially during the cold winter months seen in Toronto and Ontario.

Pavement ants are native to Europe but now thrive across North America. Unlike other types of ants, pavement ants are well-suited to life in cities and suburbs, making them more common in densely populated areas like Toronto and the GTA. They are an aggressive species that often come into war-like conflict with other colonies nested in sidewalks – sometimes leaving trails of dirt and dead ants in their path.

Lifecycle

Pavement ants develop through the egg, larva, pupa, and adult stages. Colonies usually nest outdoors under sidewalks, driveways, patios, interlocking stone, garage slabs, foundations, and other hard surfaces. In Ontario, they become more noticeable in spring and summer but may move closer to heated structures during colder months, entering through foundation cracks, slab joints, basement gaps, or garage openings.

Concerns Related to Pavement Ants

Pavement ants are persistent nuisance pests because they invade kitchens, basements, garages, entryways, and lower-level living spaces in search of food. They feed on sugar, grease, crumbs, meat, pet food, spilled drinks, and dead insects. They can contaminate food surfaces and create small piles of sand or soil near cracks in patios, driveways, walkways, basement floors, and garage slabs.

Key Facts

Characteristics: A small, brown or black ant up to 3mm in size with pairs of small spines and a shiny-like coating.

Colour: Brown or black.

Diet: Sugary or greasy foods like candy and syrup, as well as meat and other dead insects. Pavement ants are not picky with their food and will eat nearly anything edible.

Why Pavement Ants are Pests: Pavement ants seek shelter inside or around your home during colder months. As well as infecting your food and being a visual nuisance, they are also able to sting humans.

Where to Find Them in Your Home: Driveways, garages, patios, basements, or other concrete or stone areas.

Causes of Pavement Ant Infestations

Pavement ant infestations often start around outdoor nesting sites close to the home. Cracks in concrete, driveway joints, patio stones, garage slabs, foundation gaps, basement floors, and utility openings give them shelter and access. Indoors, crumbs, grease, sticky spills, open pantry items, pet food, garbage, compost, and poor drainage can attract foraging ants.

How to Remove Pavement Ants

• Follow ant trails to identify where they are entering the home.
• Inspect baseboards, patio doors, garage edges, basement cracks, and foundation gaps.
• Seal food, vacuum crumbs, wipe spills, and clean under appliances.
• Keep garbage, compost, and recycling containers closed and clean.
• Avoid spraying every visible trail without addressing the colony.
• Use baiting methods that allow workers to carry treatment back to the nest.
• Have exterior nesting areas under slabs, patios, walkways, and foundations inspected.

Pavement Ant Prevention Methods

• Seal cracks in foundations, garage floors, basement walls, exterior doors, and utility openings.
• Repair damaged caulking around windows, doors, and patio entrances.
• Keep driveway joints, patio stones, and walkway cracks in good condition where possible.
• Store food in sealed containers and keep pet feeding areas clean.
• Remove garbage regularly and keep outdoor bins away from entry points.
• Clear debris, excess soil, and vegetation pressed against the foundation.
• Check patios, garages, walkways, and foundation edges regularly for ant activity. 

Need Ant Control or Exterminators in Toronto & Southern Ontario?

If you are experiencing ant problems in your home in Toronto or Southern Ontario, Greenleaf Pest Control is here to help. We use environmentally responsible pest control solutions that will help keep the ants listed above outside of your home for good. Learn more about our ant control solutions or contact us today!

Frequently Asked Questions About Ant Species & Infestations

What types of ants are common in Ontario homes?

Common ants in Ontario homes include pharaoh ants, carpenter ants, and pavement ants. Pharaoh ants are tiny indoor pests that often spread through walls and shared spaces. Carpenter ants are larger ants that tunnel through damp wood. Pavement ants usually nest under concrete, patios, driveways, and foundations before entering homes for food.

How can I tell what kind of ants are in my home?

You can often identify ants by their size, colour, nesting location, and activity patterns. Pharaoh ants are very small and often appear near kitchens, bathrooms, and warm indoor spaces. Carpenter ants are larger and may appear near wood, moisture, or window frames. Pavement ants are small, dark ants commonly found near basements, garages, patios, and concrete cracks.

Why are pharaoh ants so hard to remove?

Pharaoh ants are difficult to remove because their colonies can contain multiple queens and may split when disturbed. Sprays can scatter the colony, causing ants to move into new wall voids, cabinets, ceiling spaces, or neighbouring units. Professional baiting is usually more effective because workers carry the treatment back to the colony.

Do carpenter ants cause structural damage?

Carpenter ants can damage homes by excavating wood to create nesting galleries. They do not eat wood, but their tunnelling can weaken damp or decaying materials around windows, doors, walls, decks, rooflines, and other wooden areas. Their presence may also indicate moisture problems that should be repaired to prevent future infestations.

Why do pavement ants keep coming back?

Pavement ants often return because the main colony is still active outdoors under concrete, patios, walkways, driveways, garage slabs, or foundation edges. Cleaning indoor trails may reduce visible ants, but it does not remove the nest. Baiting, exterior inspection, crack sealing, and food-source control are usually needed for longer-lasting results.

When should I call an exterminator for ants?

You should call an ant exterminator if ants keep returning, appear in multiple rooms, emerge from walls or wood, show up near food areas, or continue after DIY efforts. Professional ant control is especially important for pharaoh ants, carpenter ants, and large pavement ant infestations because the nest must be identified and treated properly.