Scott Colmer Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 Why are there ants always appearing on my workbench? I never have food there, but one or two will always be running around. Sometime I flick them off, some times they get squished. And they are fast! I am waiting for the day one draws me to damage a finished piece. And here another thing. I am working away on a small part of some sort and out of the corner of my eye here comes another ant. It has something. It comes up to the right side edge of the bench and drops ... the body of another ant. I'm like what is this? Some offering? Then it did it again. There, got that out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 Ants go where they think there is food available. Are you sure you (or someone) didn't drop a potato chip behind your bench a week ago? Spill a Coke? Drop some cookie crumbs? It doesn't take a lot of food to attract ants. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 ...out of the corner of my eye here comes another ant. It has something. It comes up to the right side edge of the bench and drops ... the body of another ant. Maybe they're offering you a sacrificial virgin ant because they worship you as a god... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JunkPile Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 Maybe it is the glue. Try the blue tube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blunc Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 follow them back to their nest and sprinkle some Amdro for them, they will be gone in 24 hrs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 (edited) Maybe they're offering you a sacrificial virgin ant because they worship you as a god... That would be my first guess too, but just MAYBE you have some glue-sniffing addict ants that are acting strange while intoxicated. Or maybe they're leaving dead ants to let you know they're starving, and hoping you'll take pity on them and leave some food to help them out. You just never know what ants are thinking... Edited September 19, 2013 by Ace-Garageguy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 You just never know what ants are thinking... Yes, they can be very devious... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lunajammer Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Is a laptop nearby? I had a bookshelf I kept my laptop on. A small piece of rock candy was welded to the bottom shelf. That attracted the tiny red ants, but they really got fired up over my laptop. Don't know what's in it but they were still meandering out of the case a few days after I'd moved it and cleaned up the site. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
o-man Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Borax in sugar water will knock them out in a heartbeat. I hear the Pink Panther song lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kennb Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Maybe you could train them to install suspension parts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven Zimmerman Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Um, maybe that dead carcass they offered you was a MODEL of an ant.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danno Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 A thought and a suggestion: Thought ~ some CA glues have odorants that smell like almonds. Maybe your ants go nuts for nuts? Suggestion ~ best, neatest and cleanest way to get ants to skedaddle is to sprinkle cayenne pepper wherever you think they are coming from and wherever they travel. So, if they're hanging around your bench, just spread some cayenne on your workbench and they'll avoid it like the plague. After they've been gone a few days, you can just sweep or vacuum it up and you're done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaleb Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Ants and other small insects are attracted to electrical currents. I have seen this over and over again in ac units. Spiders like them too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blunc Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Ants and other small insects are attracted to electrical currents. I have seen this over and over again in ac units. Spiders like them too. spiders like them because of all the other insect traffic. Spiders are genius. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skydime Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 If you don't have pets or small children at your bench, get some of those Terro things. Cut one open and place it where the ants gather most. They eat it and take it back to the colony where it kills them all. Our kitchen somehow got suddenly swarmed with them last summer and it worked like a charm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Suggestion ~ best, neatest and cleanest way to get ants to skedaddle is to sprinkle cayenne pepper wherever you think they are coming from and wherever they travel. So, if they're hanging around your bench, just spread some cayenne on your workbench and they'll avoid it like the plague. ...unless you have the rare Mexican hot-chili ants, in which case they'll be bringing you little bowls of hot-ant chili... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Geiger Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 (edited) At our NJ house its crickets! They are all over the yard, just move a trash pail and they all run for cover. In fact, I took a bunch of boxes from the garage there back to PA and crickets were chirping all the way home. My daughters are dead afraid of crickets who they call "black monsters". Never mind that I'll pick one up in my hand and toss it back outside, or in the toilet, depending on my mood. And all chaos breaks loose if one gets in the house. So I catch pretty bad grief over the 'monsters'. Edited September 19, 2013 by Tom Geiger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 ...unless you have the rare Mexican hot-chili ants... I don't mind them so much... it's that Mariachi music they play at all hours that drives me crazy... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted September 19, 2013 Share Posted September 19, 2013 Around here it's Cicada season. They're HUGE and they're scary looking, and they are LOUD, especially in the evening. But they're harmless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1930fordpickup Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 Around here it's Cicada season. They're HUGE and they're scary looking, and they are LOUD, especially in the evening. But they're harmless. Cats love to eat these . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Geiger Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 Around here it's Cicada season. They're HUGE and they're scary looking, and they are LOUD, especially in the evening. But they're harmless. These were around NJ this summer, but only in certain areas. My bro-in-law had a graduation party for my niece. As I drove my aging Dodge Caravan towards their house, I thought I heard a sucking sound, as if I had a vacuum leak. As I got closer to their house it got louder and all I could think was I'd get there and wouldn't be stranded. I pulled up outside their house and went to open my hood. My nephew ran out and told me it wasn't my car, but the Cicadas! Sure enough, once I turned the car off, the sound was overwhelming. It sounded like an enormous gas leak. So bad that they had the party inside the house with all the windows closed! Man those cicadas were loud. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry P. Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 Imagine this sound–magnified by hundreds of these guys in a tree in front of your house! They don't bite, they don't sting, they don't even harm the trees. They're just so freaking loud! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Colmer Posted September 20, 2013 Author Share Posted September 20, 2013 Wow. Thanks for the tips! In spite of my omni-potent efforts I can not train them. If I could they would be wiring distributors for sure. I will try customizing one of the little guys. Those clear traps work best inside. I will drop one near the bench. Those cicadas are gnarly. Glad they like it in the east. You are also right about the spiders. Found this young lady in the eaves near the back door on my monthly hunt. Hosted on Fotki So why not use her for inspiration. I really want to build this one day. ALL black with a big red hourglass rear window. Hosted on Fotki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lunajammer Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 So why not use her for inspiration. I really want to build this one day. ALL black with a big red hourglass rear window. Hosted on Fotki This is a must-do Scott. With the Potvin blower feeding it, it's the perfect set up for an awesome theme build. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramfins59 Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 Here in western PA we have what are called Stink Bugs. They look like little grayish-tan shields. They don't bite, but at certain times they are just all over the place. They try to get into your house where it is warmer as the cooler weather approaches. They're called Stink Bugs because when you kill one by either smashing it or stepping on it, they give off a "stinky smell", which, unfortunately, attracts other Stink Bugs. (A neighbor jokingly says that when you kill one, all of his friends and family come to the funeral...LOL) My wife is on a mission to kill every one she sees around our house. She smashes them, but I spray them with Ortho Home Defense Max which kills them in seconds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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