Batzner Pest Management: National Carpenter Ant Awareness Week Coming Up

Contact: Jerry Batzner, 262-797-4160 or Jordan Fox. 414-352-2645

Area Families Named Carpenter to Get Unique Offer

(Milwaukee, May 31, 2006) – Because carpenter ants are one of the most common ants found in Wisconsin and one of the most difficult to control ant species, Batzner Pest Management, New Berlin, wants to raise awareness about the problems these critters can cause.

“The week of June 18-24, 2006 is National Carpenter Ant Awareness Week,” says Jerry Batzner, president. “Especially at this time of the year, it’s important that people know more about this bothersome and destructive pest,” he says. Carpenter ants, along with termites are wood destroying organisms that cause Americans to spend $3.5 billion annually to rid themselves of an infestation and repair the damage they have caused.

To highlight this special week, Batzner, who created National Carpenter Ant Awareness Week several years ago, will give Milwaukee, Madison and Oshkosh area homeowners going by the family name of “Carpenter” a unique opportunity to participate in a drawing on June 20. The names of Carpenter families responding to a Batzner mailing by June 16 will be drawn and the winners’ homes will receive a free carpenter ant or general pest management treatment.

Just the Facts, Ma’am

According to Batzner, it’s a little known fact that ants have actually overtaken cockroaches as the “number one” pest.

Carpenter ants are a common sight around businesses and homes throughout the year. Although their natural nesting sites are in trees, these ants can also invade and live indoors. They can cause significant damage over a period of years because nests are so long-lived.

”That’s why it’s important to take care of an infestation as soon as possible,” he says. Carpenter ants are one of the largest ant species and can be 1/4 to 3/8 inch long. Although their most common color is black, they can be reddish or yellowish in color as well. They have a pinched waist, elbowed antennae, a single bump or node between the abdomen and thorax, and an evenly rounded thorax (when viewed from the side).

In the spring, carpenter ants send out a large swarm of winged adults looking to reproduce. If there’s a nest already inside a home or business, swarms of winged ants often are seen trying to escape through a window. This is usually the first clue that there is a problem.

“The only way to eliminate them is to destroy their nests,” says Batzner. “They can actually be actively building their nest for years before a home or business owner detects their presence. A highly trained pest management professional is able to perform an inspection, assess, the situation, and apply the proper treatment.”

Batzner Pest Management is a 60-year-old, family owned pest management company based in New Berlin, with service centers in Oshkosh, Fond du Lac, Racine and Madison. It was named one of the Top 100 pest management firms in the USA by PCT Magazine, an industry publication. For more information about carpenter ants and other pests, contact the company at 262-797-4160 or visit Batzner’s website at http://www.Batzner.com.