tarkus Posted October 15, 2012 Share Posted October 15, 2012 No, not a glitch or a malfunction, but rat-bastid insects have taken-up residence in some of my gear. Since moving to the tropics, the importance of steady and reliable exterminations can not be over-stated. Wife and I noticed an increase in insect traffic after the tropical storm. Most natably - sugar ants of the Pharoah Ant variety. The exterminator schedule was interrupted and for two months, we had not received the scheduled treatments. While they have frequented my kitchen counter and dining room, we have maintainded vigilent cleaning in these areas. I don't bring food into the music room, but that doesn't mean they would be less willing to find protection in the keybed of my boards. These ants are incredibly small, and fast. About the size of the ball-point on a pen. While practicing over the weekend, I noticed the intruders emeging from under the black-kets and plain as day on the whites. My wife wondered why I was playing like "Monk" on my usual reportoire... So I read about these invaders and they are almost impossible to control. The internet instructs me to bait them and hopefully the "mickey" is delivered to the queen or queens, thereby wiping out the nests. I placed a Raid Max trap in each of the areas where they have emerged. They ignore the Raid bait like a child ignores boiled broccoli. They play with the Max trap as if it is a sideshow to their new residence. Who knows, they are probably shacking-up inside this thing and creating more ants. No effect yet, however I am told to wait a few days... I can't wait. I'm buying some Terro bait and placing the traps on my keyboard cover. If this doesn't work, I will have to take the keyboard apart and go in after them. Mors et ad insecta! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moonglow Posted October 15, 2012 Share Posted October 15, 2012 So what brand keys do they prefer? Just kidding....nuke those little bastards! "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Threadslayer Posted October 15, 2012 Share Posted October 15, 2012 Don't know how you feel about pesticides, but I'm guessing if you live in Miami you must have come to grips with them. We had an unbelievable infestation of teeny tiny little ants about 4 years ago. Nothing worked until we signed up for Orkin. Not a single ant since - not one - even though the neighbors are still up to their ankles in the little f**kers. Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect. -Mark Twain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 15, 2012 Author Share Posted October 15, 2012 I have no qualms about pesticides. The condo where I live is supposed to have regularly scheduled exterminations. Because of the last big storm, the extermination schedule was out of whack. Pharoah Ants Must Die! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phnymiboy Posted October 15, 2012 Share Posted October 15, 2012 Hey Tarkus, I'm here in Miami too! I live in a guesthouse ground level so ants are a problem. Two things worked great for me. Ortho Home Defense Max or if you want to be more natural use a mixture of half water and half vinegar in a spray bottle spraying the surface and letting it dry out. You can do the cabinets, floors, refrig., etc without it harming anyone or anything. Ants are a big pain that's for sure. Hey we had two days of fall and now we're back to summer again. Can't wait 'til December when it get's to a bone chilling 70 degrees. All the best against those pests. Hey maybe we could meet up some day. Bruce http://bigfun3.bandcamp.com www.facebook.com/BigFunThree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marzzz Posted October 15, 2012 Share Posted October 15, 2012 Ants? Screw ants! You haven't lived until you've had a scorpion crawl out from underneath your gear.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joegerardi Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Savannah here. We have fire ants as well as those little buggers. There's 2 things that work fantastically: 1- Ants will not cross a chalk line. I don't know why, but they will not. Draw chalk lines on the floor and the will never cross them; 2- Grits. This sounds weird, but I've seen the results myself and I can attest it works. Get a container of Grits. Can't be instant or quick Grits, just plain old Grits. Pour a generous portion of dry Grits on the colony. The ants will come swarming and start eating Now, they also take them inside the colony, where everyone gets fed, including the queen. The Grits swell up in their stomachs, and the ants literally explode. By bringing it in the colony, the colony is dead within a day. This is the usual remedy used around here, and it works great. And, Grits are cheap! The other thing we learned to get rid of here is the roaches. How did we do that? We started calling them Palmetto Bugs! Here, our biggest worries are Water Moccasins or 'gators crawling out in front of you... ..Joe Setup: Korg Kronos 61, Roland XV-88, Korg Triton-Rack, Motif-Rack, Korg N1r, Alesis QSR, Roland M-GS64 Yamaha KX-88, KX76, Roland Super-JX, E-Mu Longboard 61, Kawai K1II, Kawai K4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrokeys Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Since the gear was designed to be shipped sometimes in the freezing cold bellies of airplanes and tropical ants are not, see if you can't find somebody with a walk in freezer or an empty chest size one and put the affected gear in there for a while. Just make sure you let it warm back up in the room before you plug and play. If it were mine, I'd try that before spraying stuff around electrical contacts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashville.Guru Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Since the gear was designed to be shipped sometimes in the freezing cold bellies of airplanes and tropical ants are not, see if you can't find somebody with a walk in freezer or an empty chest size one and put the affected gear in there for a while. Just make sure you let it warm back up in the room before you plug and play. If it were mine, I'd try that before spraying stuff around electrical contacts. Bad idea, for several reasons. I've assisted researcher friends who study ants, and you can freeze the damn buggers, thaw them out, and they'll slowly stir up, lurch around a bit, and get back to business. And are you seriously not concerned about moisture condensing inside the boards as you get them out of the freezer?! This is really what MIDI was originally about encouraging cooperation between companies that make the world a more creative place." - Dave Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 16, 2012 Author Share Posted October 16, 2012 Thanks for all the advice. The worst critter to crawl out from under gear is an unwanted groupie. I placed a Terro liquid bait trap on my keyboard. In doing so, a bit of the potion spilled (about a finger nail size blob). Making sure I didn't get any inside the keyboard, I secured the trap and walked away. I returned two hours later and the blob of terro was now smothered in pharoah ants! another two hours later, the blob and any drops or streaks of bait are completely gone! The invaders focused on the trap, but I noticed their were only about a dozen workers left as oppossed to the few hundred that I originally observed. The instructions say to leave the area undisturbed for a few days, but I believe the workers have already "fed the poison" to the queens and the larvae. If I am ant-free after today - I will be convinced of the remedy. The next move will be securing the perimeter. Bruce - the vinegar trick is ok, but pharoah ants will scatter and instead of 1 nest, you will have a dozen. Post some music scenes in Miami and we'll meet up. Die Ants Die! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 16, 2012 Author Share Posted October 16, 2012 Now you get the idea of the size of these things! http://www.inriodulce.com/images/Monomorium_pharaonis.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rod76 Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 On a related note, I received a package from Maryland last week. It was tightly stuffed and after removing the packing materials, I noticed it was crawling with stink bugs inside I instantly grabbed my vaccum and started sucking them up. The invasive species (bmsb) hasn't yet been seen up here and while it's just a question of time until they do, I didn't want to be responsible for having unleashed them prematurely just because of some silly hobby of mine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 16, 2012 Author Share Posted October 16, 2012 I would contact the state DEP... but it may be too late!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EscapeRocks Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Ants? Screw ants! You haven't lived until you've had a scorpion crawl out from underneath your gear.... Having lived in Arizona myself a combined 20 years, I fully concur. I don't think I've ever run so fast the day I went to pull some amps out of my garage storage, when a scorpion the size of godzilla wanted to say hi. As far as the ants go, someone above mentioned the Ortho Home defense. That has worked for me out here in Texas. David Gig Rig:Roland Fantom 08 | Roland Jupiter 80 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrokeys Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Well, learn something every day. Didn't know tropical ants did suspended animation after freezing. Speaking of which, I understand the fears of condensation but allowing a warm up time for evaporation would fix that. I suggested the remedy because many of us who live in northern climates have to haul gear, sometimes for hours, in unheated truckbeds and or trailers in winter and then play gigs. Done it many times with no ill effects so far as long as warmup time is allowed. Anyway, hope your ant problem will soon be just another good bar story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashville.Guru Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Well, learn something every day. ... I suggested the remedy because many of us who live in northern climates have to haul gear, sometimes for hours, in unheated truckbeds and or trailers in winter and then play gigs. Done it many times with no ill effects so far as long as warmup time is allowed. Seems we've both learned something new today... . This is really what MIDI was originally about encouraging cooperation between companies that make the world a more creative place." - Dave Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 16, 2012 Author Share Posted October 16, 2012 [video:youtube] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockhouse Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Wrap double sided tape around the legs of your stands. American Keyworks AK24+ Diablo (with bow), Hammond L100, Korg M3 expanded, Korg Sigma, Yamaha MM8, Yamaha SY99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 16, 2012 Author Share Posted October 16, 2012 Wrap double sided tape around the legs of your stands. I don't want to collect them, I want to kill them! If there is 1, then there are a thousand, and the queen(s) are not going to follow the workers into the war zone. This is bio-chemical warfare. I am not stopping with the workers. I already lost those battles. It's time to win the war and eradicate the queens and the larvae that are not in plain site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Real MC Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Put mothballs around the outside perimeter of your house. It works with skunks... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 16, 2012 Author Share Posted October 16, 2012 Put mothballs around the outside perimeter of your house. It works with skunks... I live in an apartment complex... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phnymiboy Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Living in an apartment complex you have a problem other than ants....other neighbors and how they deal with the ants. Anyway best of luck in your war against the little beasts. It's a constant battle. As far as the music scene in Miami, well that's a whole 'nother story. But I'll keep a look out for anything worth going to. Bruce http://bigfun3.bandcamp.com www.facebook.com/BigFunThree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Threadslayer Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Put mothballs around the outside perimeter of your house. It works with skunks... I live in an apartment complex... So a guy walks into his apartment complex and what does he find? Tenants! I'll be here all week folks - try the veal! Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect. -Mark Twain Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Emm Posted October 16, 2012 Share Posted October 16, 2012 Play some Skrillex at a high volume for a while. Crank it far enough and create an animal-free quiet zone for a few blocks. If a 3 hz square wave duty cycle of sufficient amplitude can kill roaches, Skrillex can banish ants. "Well, the 60s were fun, but now I'm payin' for it." ~ Stan Lee, "Ant-Man and the Wasp" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dgas Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 I live in a fairly rural area in the southeast US (transplanted Vermont Yankee) and run an instrument repair business. I get a lot of amplifiers that have been stored in sheds, barns, basements, and who know where else. Surprising how many critters make their homes in these amps. Lot's of spiders; more than a few Black Widow webs. I've learned the female Black Widows are venomous & have a distinct look to their webs; massive pile of apparently random strands. Step 1 after putting a customer's amp on the bench....flashlight in one hand & a can of spider spray in the other. Inspect for webs & shiny black spiders with red hour-glass marks on their bellies.(Kind of tricky getting them to turn over for inspection). It took several years to get over the willies & heebee-geebees. Almost enough to make my wife want to pack up & move back to the deep freeze where these types of bug don't exist. Sometimes I find several white Juvenile Black Widows run out of an amp....not venomous.....yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 17, 2012 Author Share Posted October 17, 2012 Dgas... thanks for giving me the willies. Update: Success so far... Pharoah Ants have not returned to the baits after 36 hours. Perimeter baits were established to maintain the eradication process. Terro is living up to its rep. Play some Skrillex at a high volume for a while. Crank it far enough and create an animal-free quiet zone for a few blocks. If a 3 hz square wave duty cycle of sufficient amplitude can kill roaches, Skrillex can banish ants. If that were true Miami would be a dead zone. I'll stick Brubeck with my Martini. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rod76 Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 All ants supposedly hate cinnemon. I tried that trick before and seemed to work for me. Drop some in and around the spots where they enter, the food source or pour directly on them. They send back the signal to the colony not to return to that place. You need to kill off the scent trail they established. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarkus Posted October 17, 2012 Author Share Posted October 17, 2012 I tried the cinnemon trick - it didn't work. So far bio-chemical warfare seems to be working beetter than spray and pray... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ITGITC Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 Savannah here. We have fire ants as well as those little buggers. There's 2 things that work fantastically: 1- Ants will not cross a chalk line. I don't know why, but they will not. Draw chalk lines on the floor and the will never cross them; 2- Grits. This sounds weird, but I've seen the results myself and I can attest it works. Get a container of Grits. Can't be instant or quick Grits, just plain old Grits. Pour a generous portion of dry Grits on the colony. The ants will come swarming and start eating Now, they also take them inside the colony, where everyone gets fed, including the queen. The Grits swell up in their stomachs, and the ants literally explode. By bringing it in the colony, the colony is dead within a day. This is the usual remedy used around here, and it works great. And, Grits are cheap! The other thing we learned to get rid of here is the roaches. How did we do that? We started calling them Palmetto Bugs! Here, our biggest worries are Water Moccasins or 'gators crawling out in front of you... ..Joe Thanks, Joe! When I visit Savannah in the next couple of weeks, I will bring my chalk. I don't think I'll have a problem finding grits while I'm there. Of course, I'll stay far away from Paula Dean's place. She uses just a li'l too much butter for my diet. And unless gator meat is on the menu at The Olde Pink House, or the Water Moccasins are sunning themselves on the Riverfront, I think I'll be OK. Can't wait. Love Savannah. Tom "Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent." - Victor Hugo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phred Posted October 17, 2012 Share Posted October 17, 2012 Tarkus, I think that the double sided tape on the stand legs is a good idea, now that you killed them all... You will know if any are trying to get back into your boards (maybe put some on the cables too). Assuming of course that double sided tape will stop them and keep the there... I live in a seasonal climate, but we get our fair share or ants in the summer. I have had good luck with those and bait things. You need something that kills the whole nest, not just the gatherers. I'm just saying', everyone that confuses correlation with causation eventually ends up dead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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