The short answer is yes. If you find ants inside your washing machine, they’ve likely created a colony within the unit. Ants can live in the parts of your washing machine outside the area that cycles water. Because they’re small and crafty builders, they can create complex colonies in areas you don’t even have access to. However, if you have ants in your dirty laundry and toss it in the washer, chances are they won’t survive the submersion in water or the washer’s powerful movement.