Jeff Layman wrote:

Usually, if not near the house, they aren't a problem. If they start
looking for food or a new nesting place inside, some dissuasion is
required.

They can be pretty devastating if you put down grass seed.
We put some down a couple of years ago,
and when we looked at the hoped-for lawn next morning
there were literally thousands of ants,
each carrying off one grass seed on its back.
It was like a scene from Antz.

I guess we could have used seed that ants don't like?

--
Timothy Murphy
e-mail: gayleard /at/ eircom.net
School of Mathematics, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland