A player on reddit has a special problem: Ants have suddenly taken over his PC. Of course, he would like to get rid of them, but that’s not so easy. Because they are a special species of ant that targets electronic devices.
Here’s the story: In the PCMasterrace subreddit, a user posted a short video. He had been away for a month and turned off his gaming PC. When he returned, he made an unpleasant discovery. Ants had nested in his PC.
Of course, he wanted to get rid of the unwanted guests right away and had some immediate ideas:
- He played games and ran various benchmarks to drive the ants away with the heat.
- He also left his PC running overnight to possibly scare the ants away.
But his initial attempts were not very successful, as the ants are still present in his gaming PC, crawling through the ventilation, climbing over the processor, and populating the graphics card.
Following this, he reached out to reddit users for help. They had some tips for him but also warned him about what he should not do.
To illustrate his problem, he uploaded a nearly 30-second long video. You can see how the ants scurry over the processor and crawl out of the graphics card. We have embedded the video here for you:
Users advise him to seek professional help and to refrain from gaming
Here’s how the subreddit reacted: Hundreds of people responded to his post on reddit. As of today (April 13, 2021), there are more than 3000 comments under the article.
Some find amusement in the user’s ant problems and consider ants chewing on electronics a bad joke. However, the majority takes it very seriously and warns the user, as the problem does not seem to be widely known.
RawDenseEggs wrote on reddit very clearly: “Do not use your computer with ants inside, it could cause a short circuit and destroy everything.”
Others also gave hints on what he should do:
- He should definitely not continue using his PC. That would only attract more ants and severely damage his hardware.
- He should pack his computer in an airtight bag for 2 weeks; this should kill all the ants inside the computer. This way, further ants cannot be attracted either.
- Professional help is also advisable. The ants in the PC may be dead, but there is likely a nest somewhere nearby, and new ants will probably arrive soon.
That’s why he should seek professional help: His gaming PC is likely not the only device infested by ants, several users speculate. PeaGreenGrenade wrote on reddit:
If you have the problem in your PC, then they are probably also in your monitor, TV, keyboard, in your Nintendo [Switch], in the microwave, in cracks, etc.
When I had the ants, I packed everything of value in sealed bags as recommended and called a pest control expert.
It seems to be a particularly nasty species of ant that targets electronic devices. This species has migrated from South America to the USA.
This ant species particularly loves electronic devices and is hard to get rid of
What kind of ants are these anyway? The species of ant is likely the so-called American “Rasberry Crazy Ants.” They are about three millimeters large, extremely aggressive, and target electronic devices (via deutschlandfunknova.de). In the embedded video, it can be seen that the ants constantly change direction and run around wildly. This has earned them the name “crazy” in English.
Basically, there are many species of ants attracted to electronic devices (via ant-pest.com). It cannot be said exactly why that is. One thing is certain: significant damage is caused by these ants, and in the southern USA, particularly fire ants and “Rasberry Crazy Ants” cause major problems. Fire ants have a significantly darker coloration.
Inside electronic devices, they chew on wires or components and, in the worst case, cause short circuits or electrical fires. Even a few dead companions don’t bother the ants much. Because they attract further ants with pheromones, the infestation is likely to get worse rather than better. Additionally, these creatures can multiply rapidly. This applies not only to the “crazy” ants.
The user was indeed more lucky than smart when he left his gaming PC running overnight. In the worst case, he could have had a house fire. Possibly, he killed a few of the intruders with his actions, but that is likely to have worsened the infestation rather than improved it.
Could this happen in Germany as well? “Rasberry Crazy Ants” are not yet present in Germany or Europe. This species is currently only native to North America. So, it is currently unlikely that your electronic devices will be invaded by ants. The ants were first found in the Texas city of Houston and are now also found in Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi (via nbcnews.com).
Have you also had experiences with unwanted guests in your computer hardware or console?
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