While some may be quite certain of their ability to identify carpenter ants unambiguously, for most of us they're not common enough to be distinguished from other pests that produce similar evidences.

The step child who spent much time as a framer offered some advice on the unequivocally certain identification. The "frass" and/or sawdust found in an area is a reasonable indication that one has found places where the suspect pests congregate, but the sure-fire method of distinguishing when the pests actually are carpenter ants is that the area will be heavily littered with little tiny beer cans.

John