Hi,
it's not a joke. Here we have a fire ants nest in the fiber patch panel.
Are there any DIY ways to manage that?
Thanks, Eduardo.-
Terro is my go-to for that... it's basically boric acid mixed with a sugar
solution. The ants eat it and perish. It's the only thing I've found that
works on the infamous Crazy Rasberry Ants that like to eat electrical
panels.
Does the local zoo have an aardvark they're willing to loan you? 
This might be a tad difficult to deal with, as the usual DIY solution is to
spray the nest with something noxious - which may not be good for your fiber
terminations either. May be worth it to get a pro to come out and look at it.
I've used mothballs* in outside enclosures each spring, but I've never had a full blown nest in an enclosure. Fireants are hard to kill, but they will move their nest.
* naphthalene, para-dichlorobenzene, p-dichlorobenzene, pDCB, or PDB
Freeze it with a CO2 extinguisher then clean it out and re-seal the
enclosure. You may want to consider a small open dish of repellant/killer in
the enclosure in case they get in again
Aaron D. Osgood
Streamline Solutions L.L.C
274 E. Eau Gallie Blvd. #336
Indian Harbour Beach, FL 32937
TEL: 207-518-8455
MOBILE: 207-831-5829
GTalk: aaron.osgood
AOsgood@Streamline-Solutions.net
http://www.streamline-solutions.net
Introducing Efficiency to Business since 1986.
Shop vac?
Perhaps diatomaceous earth or Delta Dust. Once they are dead you can air-spray or vacuum the area to get rid of it all.
--Patrick Darden
+1 for CO2 (But stand way back as they will go everywhere)
+1 for moth balls in the enclosure (esp prophylactically)
+1 for boric acid mixed with molasses (use externally) Also stops carpenter ants in poles.)
Tom
Terro is my go-to for that... it's basically boric acid mixed with a
sugar
solution. The ants eat it and perish. It's the only thing I've found
that
works on the infamous Crazy Rasberry Ants that like to eat
electrical
Ran across this paper the other day and didn't know how big a problem it was. Looks like Eduardo's post confirms it.
http://www.rainbowtech.net/products/docs/c51ce4107047eb1b2dc/Ants%20in%20OSP%20Equipment.pdf.pdf
--John
Now that is fascinating. I like how they reproduced the issue via an ant farm. That's pretty slick.
Needs an "Anthill Inside" sticker like Hex at the Unseen University.
Hi Suresh,