How to remove ants from a laptop?

[dragonblade71]

I had an endoscope camera connected to a laptop outside for recording footage of an ant nest. Unfortunately, some of these ants made their way inside the laptop. I have no idea how many there are inside but they keep coming out of various holes and vents at random moments. I want to be sure to be rid of all of them.

I'm not sure what species they are. It's the smaller ant that's featured in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQJ0YJQqpEw and the ant that's shown dragging a wasp in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bor7x2Xhjd4

Would there be some way that I could lure the ants out or drive them out by irritation?

 

[HungryGhost]

Submerge it in water for a few hours.:wink:

 

[The Snark]

I've had a number of electronic pieces of equipment ruined by ant invasions. (2 35mm cameras, electric razor, toaster oven, CD player, and an audio amplifier. The tiny red ants here are the major culprit.) They corrode certain components. What exactly attracts them I'm unsure. The bottom line is get them out before they start to build a nest. The solution I used when they invaded a DVD player might possibly work for you. I bought a large plastic box with a sealable lid that the device fit in then went to a commercial air conditioning company. Certain welding shops would also work. I had them feed nitrogen gas into the box then when full I closed the lid and let it sit for a few hours. I then put the player out on a table and let a fan blow over it for a couple of days to disperse the gas. Nitrogen in contact with certain chemicals or components can create nitric acid. I apparently caught it in time, the dead ants dried up and didn't cause any problems.
But if they have started laying eggs you have to get the thing taken apart and meticulously cleaned ASAP.

What Hungry Ghost suggested isn't all that crazy. Over the years I've dealt with contamination such as soft drinks spilled into electronic devices. If a short circuit didn't fry things you can take the unit apart and literally hose it out. Electronics are waterproof after all. However, after it is cleaned out it has to be rinsed extremely thoroughly with deionized distilled water to remove all residues, chemicals and minerals the water leaves behind.

 

[Angel Minkov]

Open your laptop and vacuum it? Seems like a viable option to me.

@The Snark: Ants CAN NOT lay eggs. Only the queen can. But looking at the species, they have very strong mandibles and could cause some mechanical damage to either wires or small, soft components.

 

[The Snark]

Open your laptop and vacuum it? Seems like a viable option to me.

@The Snark: Ants CAN NOT lay eggs. Only the queen can. But looking at the species, they have very strong mandibles and could cause some mechanical damage to either wires or small, soft components.

Speaking of the ants around here, abundant food source or conducive habitat=queen(s) migrate to it. They also colonize, the queen in one place, the workers populating another location, carrying the eggs with them. Ants use their acid, normally to dissolve food, but they liberally slosh it about. It welds transformer laminates together with iron oxide and oxidizes metals as solder and copper creating resistance.

PS I don't advise a lay person opening a laptop. If you are qualified or consider yourself competent, go for it. Just keep in mind there are very few user serviceable parts, they often take special tools, and not only are components hypercritical, their placement is as well. IE very little room for error, if any.

 

[MWAInverts]

Also don't vacuum electronic equipment. The build up of static electricity will fry whatever you're trying to clean. Get compressed air in a can, not from an air compressor (often there is a ton of moisture in compressors).

 

[MrBoom619]

I would place the laptop in an area where there are no ants present like on a fold up chair and place a small piece of food near it. It may attract the ants out of your laptop.

 

[samatwwe]

Try to fit the laptop in a large sealable bag like a large ziploc and leave as little air as possible. After a few days they should start coming out and with no way to get food and new air they should start to die off.

 

[sschind]

I had an endoscope camera connected to a laptop outside for recording footage of an ant nest. Unfortunately, some of these ants made their way inside the laptop. I have no idea how many there are inside but they keep coming out of various holes and vents at random moments. I want to be sure to be rid of all of them.

I'm not sure what species they are. It's the smaller ant that's featured in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQJ0YJQqpEw and the ant that's shown dragging a wasp in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bor7x2Xhjd4

Would there be some way that I could lure the ants out or drive them out by irritation?

If you are looking for a way to debug a computer I suggest you go to a tech site. They may be able to help.


Sorry, I couldn't resist.

 

[BossRoss]

If you are looking for a way to debug a computer I suggest you go to a tech site. They may be able to help.

LOL!!!!!!!! This made my Friday morning!

Compressed air from a tin would be a good option if you know how to strip apart and reassemble the laptop(some of them can be tricky). Your local PC shop might be your best option... Im sure if you open it up and leave it for a day or two most of the ants will disperses

 

[viper69]

There is a species of invasive ant discovered in Texas, their nick is Crazy Ant I believe, they particularly attracted to anything with electronic components. If that's what you have good luck, you will need it !!!