I've been burning ant wood for the past few weeks.I just bring in enough to stuff the stove going right onto hot coals.The logs ignite get to roaring and I begin to shut down.The next day I have ants in the house.How are these critters surviving the fire ?It's puzzling.However I make up my boric acid cocktail which takes care of them until the new arrivals appear after each reload.Soon I'll be out of the ant wood though I can't count on the fire to get them all.The cocktail does though.
Ant wood
- Thread starter Rich L
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Maybe they're fire ants?
Sorry, couldn't resist.
Are you sure they are not just ants that drop off the wood between the door of the house and the door of the stove? I find it hard to believe that they can make it back out of the stove through the primary air intake when the stove is hot, but maybe that depends on the design of your stove.
Sorry, couldn't resist.
Are you sure they are not just ants that drop off the wood between the door of the house and the door of the stove? I find it hard to believe that they can make it back out of the stove through the primary air intake when the stove is hot, but maybe that depends on the design of your stove.
How do you carry the wood in? If you are using a bucket/sling/etc perhaps they are getting onto that during the trip from outside. I too can't imagine that they can survive long enough inside a hot stove to get out.
The dropping off as you move the wood through the house and/or crawling off as the wood is transported (or sitting on hearth waiting to go in stove?) seems the best option to me.
How well seasoned are those ants anyway?
The dropping off as you move the wood through the house and/or crawling off as the wood is transported (or sitting on hearth waiting to go in stove?) seems the best option to me.
How well seasoned are those ants anyway?
they are probably popping out when you bring it in, or set the wood down on the rack. I had to take the Ortho ant spray to my woodpile last summer b/c carpenter ants decided that some of the punky wood in there was a good place to settle... I still find their little buggy bodies occassionally, but lifeless, of course.
It's possible that some may drop off the wood though I use wood carrying bags to bring in the splits and they go right into the fire.If some of these creatures can survive the fire I wonder if they do what they do in a forest fire.It's uncanny because they appear after every reload.
I had a Cherry of ant wood. I only brought in what I needed for a load. I did use that wood during the colder part of the season. S I may have had a few minutes before they woke up when loading. Out side if it made it to 40 the sure were active. Its all gone now.
What are you burning in , is it possible they can get thru the unit before they burn up ? I could see in a EKO or other gasifier maybe they could drop down and out in to the ash , maybe they can get down and out the ash pan in some other burners?
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