This morning I saw some dark stuff on the ground, and when I took a closer look, realized it was clusters of dead ants. Then I noticed that one of the supports for the "hot wire" around the perimeter of my bird netting-covered fruit tree enclosure had fallen down and was shorting out on the ground. It seems pretty certain that the voltage pulses from the "FidoShock" unit that powers this electric fence had both attracted and then killed the ants. I'm not sure exactly how it worked, but I'm guessing the ants must have been irritated by the electricity (one pulse per second) and came to attack the grounded wire, the way they will when an ant nest is stirred up with a stick. I prefer not to use insecticides if I can avoid it, but the ants are getting to be a problem; I may try running a wire from the fence to an ant hill to find out if it can eradicate the nest.

Well, it gives some idea for Judy who recently posted about problem with ants i.e. a hot wire around the tree trunk at some height hoping it is not high voltage pulse.

Very cool.

I would be careful about putting any hot wire in contact with a live tree. Years ago while working at a zoo, we tried using hot wires to protect a tree in the orangutan enclosure (captive orangs are very tough on live trees). I guess it shorted out to the trunk and eventually killed the tree. That unit was pretty powerful, but I'm guessing that even this model, designed for dogs, still probably has enough power to harm a tree.

Hey, That's a great idea using PVC pipe for the wire support.  I had purchased these plastic poles that are like a lawn dart that you stick into the ground.  I'll have to try that on my next electric fence set up.  I want to get one of the hard wired units because I think they will stop larger critters like racoons.  I've seen rabbits go under my bottom wire on my pulsing unit without flinching.

Those are ants??? They look like tarantulas!

Very interesting definitely keep us posted.

Since you brought up insecticides, I agree and don't like spraying by trees with them but what about those ant bait stakes you drive into the ground???

tmc--the PVC works great and costs next to nothing. Mine are supported from above rather than buried in the ground, but a ground mount should work just fine. My fence holds multiple wires; I slot the PVC on the table saw and hold the wires in the slot by slipping another wire inside the tube from the top, pinning each fence wire in place so it can't pop back out of the slot.

Well, it's no magic bullet. I just tried running a wire from the fence to an ant hill and watched to see what would happen. Contrary to what I expected, they did not swarm out and attack the wire, although a few tried to do battle if they got close enough to get shocked. Some would avoid it, others would latch on and get fried, and a few more ants got fried when they touched the dead ones and thereby got zapped as well. But, by and large most ants just went around it, so it's not nearly efficient enough to be worth the trouble. Oh well!

I am no electrical extermination expert, but, how about electrifying some hardware cloth? Should work faster right?

I don't know if hardware cloth would make it more effective. Perhaps, but there's still nothing to attract them in large numbers. I think the accidental zapping killed a bunch because it was probably in place for a long time--I'm not sure when that piece of PVC came loose and touched the ground, along with the hotwire, but ants could have been getting fried, a few at a time, over the course of several days. When I saw all those dead ants, I jumped to the conclusion that it was the arcing that had attracted them--but it looks like I was wrong. It seemed promising, but now I think it was just another idea that didn't work out. I've certainly had my share of those!

Electricity is not the best method for killing them. You need to get the queen. I have heard that cornmeal works, and is pretty non-toxic.

http://www.wikihow.com/Get-Rid-of-Ants-Naturally