A variety of tactics can be used to remove roof rats, including traditional snap traps, glue traps, and electronic traps that deliver a lethal shock. Other strategies include maintaining a clean home, storing pet food in rodent-proof containers, and keeping garbage cans tightly closed.
Routine inspections and sanitation practices can also help prevent recurrence of infestations. A pest control company can advise on and implement integrated pest management (IPM), a combination of exclusion, sanitation, trapping, and chemical controls that minimizes harm to people and pets. Click the Roof Rat Removal Service Texas to learn more.
Rodents are opportunistic creatures and will seek out entry points to infiltrate your home or business. As such, it’s important to regularly survey your building and repair any holes or gaps that could serve as rat entry points.
Some of the most common areas where rats can enter homes and businesses include doorways, windows, and roofs. During your inspection, you should look for cracks in the foundation walls of your home, torn or missing window screens, and air vents that are not properly closed. Also check for soffit gaps and torn eaves where rats can slip into attics and other spaces above your home.
If you are unable to close up these entry points, you can use steel wool to plug smaller holes that rodents cannot chew through. Then, you can caulk over the area to make it less hospitable for rats and other pests. When it comes to larger holes and cracks, you can also use metal sheeting or cement to seal them off.
Another great tool to help find rat entry points is a flashlight. When the sun goes down, shine a flashlight around your building and pay special attention to low-level areas like basements and crawl spaces. You will be able to see the signs of rat entry points, including gnaw marks on wood or plastic and tracks where rats have walked through dusty floors.
The last places to check for rat entry points are the roof and attic. Look for any openings where ducts or chimneys come through the roof, or where gaps in the soffit and eaves provide access to the attic. If you find these entry points, you can seal them using a variety of materials depending on their size and location, such as caulk, steel wool, screen, or hardware cloth.
In addition to repairing these potential entry points, you can also keep rats out by sealing outdoor food sources and trash containers, maintaining proper waste management, and removing piles of debris, logs, or other hiding spots near your property. If you are still struggling to get rid of a rat problem, you can always seek out the services of a professional. They have access to a wide range of tools and techniques, including more potent rodenticides and advanced trapping systems that are not available to the public.
Remove Potential Nesting Sites
Rats are excellent climbers, and roof rats in particular love to nest in upper areas like attics and wall voids. They can also be found in cluttered garages, storage sheds, and other secluded areas. They are also attracted to dense foliage, which provides shelter and a place to nest.
If a rat population grows out of control, it can become difficult to contain. Do-it-yourself solutions such as traps and baits will only reduce the rat population, not eradicate it. And because traps and poison move up the food chain, they can also affect non-target species such as coyotes and birds of prey.
Fortunately, there are many effective methods to help eliminate and prevent a roof rat infestation. A combination of sealing and exclusion, removal of potential breeding and feeding sites, and sanitation are key to long-term rat control.
Sealing Entry Points: Check the exterior of your home for any holes, cracks, or gaps larger than a quarter. Caulk or wood fill the gap and install weather stripping to further seal the opening.
Removing Potential Nesting Sites: Keeping bushes and shrubbery trimmed, and avoiding piles of debris and clutter can limit roof rat harborage spots. Also, removing preharvest fruit from trees can help keep the rat population under control.
Regular inspections both inside and out can help detect and intercept a rat problem before it becomes an infestation. Look for droppings, gnaw marks, scurrying, and rustling sounds. Also watch for odors of ammonia, which is associated with extensive rat activity.
Sanitation: Make sure all pet food is stored in airtight containers, and garbage is removed regularly and disposed of properly. Also, ensure that all trash cans have tight-fitting lids.
Snap traps and electronic traps are both effective options for indoor rodent control. Be sure to place any traps away from areas where children or pets might come into contact with them. Poisons can also be used to kill roof rats, but this is a very unpleasant way to get rid of them. The anticoagulant in these poisons will thin their blood, which inevitably leads to internal bleeding, suffocation, and seizures.
Remove Food Sources
If rats are able to find food, water and a comfortable place to nest in your home, they will quickly multiply. This can lead to a severe infestation of these invasive rodents, causing damage throughout the property. Fortunately, there are steps that can be taken to prevent roof rats from finding their way in your home.
Check for gnaw holes on wood and plastic, especially near doors, door joists, floor drains, sewer pipes and vents. Piles of droppings, tracks and tail drag marks are also signs that rats have been in the area. Look for feces in attics or other elevated areas of the building as well as gnawed wires and support beams.
In the yard, remove climbing plants such as Algerian ivy, English ivy, honeysuckle, clematis and star jasmine. These plants are ideal places for both Norway and roof rats to hide and can create a path between the ground and your roof. Prune tree limbs that are within 3 feet of your roof to prevent access.
Be sure to store trash cans tightly closed and do not leave food or garbage outside overnight, even in sealed containers. Keep compost piles and wood piles away from the house, rake up fallen fruit, and maintain neat yards so that rats are less likely to make their way into your home.
Rats are like little breeding machines, so you need to act fast if you notice signs of them around your home. If you don’t, a small rat problem can turn into a massive infestation in just a few months.
It is best to enlist the help of a pest control company to perform a thorough inspection of your property and seal any possible entry points for roof rats. Professionals can also identify the optimum trapping locations, baiting options and techniques to eliminate a rat infestation in the long term. To learn more about protecting your home from these annoying critters, request a free pest estimate today! Our team is experienced in identifying and eliminating common rodent problems, including those caused by roof rats.
Maintain a Rat-Free Home
The most effective way to keep roof rats away is through preventative measures. By practicing Integrated Pest Management (IPM), which combines preventative practices with trapping and baiting when necessary, homeowners can keep these rodents from infesting their property. Exclusion techniques, sanitation, landscape management, and regular monitoring and inspections are all key elements of IPM.
Rats can squeeze through openings as small as a quarter and easily gnaw their way into homes, garages, attics, and other interior spaces. The best way to deter them is to seal all cracks and holes on the exterior of your home, especially around windows and doors, where utility pipes enter, and vent openings. Use materials that are resistant to gnawing, such as steel wool and metal flashing. Consider installing a chimney cap to prevent entry from above. Also, be sure to regularly inspect your roof for gnaw marks, grease and urine stains, live or dead rats, and rodent droppings.
Because roof rats are nocturnal, you may not be able to see signs of them until it’s too late. However, if you do notice hollowed out fruit, capsule-shaped droppings that are about 1/4 to 1/2-inch in length, chew marks on your roof or trees, and/or the sound of scurrying or gnawing inside walls, attics, or other areas, it’s time to take action.
Sanitation is a crucial element of prevention because it takes away the food, water, and nesting materials that encourage an infestation. Make sure to wipe down counters and shelves after cooking or eating, remove trash on a regular basis, and store pantry items in airtight containers. Additionally, discard any cardboard or paper garbage and recycle regularly to reduce the appeal of these materials for rodents looking for nesting material.
Lastly, managing your landscape is important because it limits the places where roof rats can hide and gain access to structures. Keep grass and bushes neatly trimmed, and dispose of yard waste promptly. Remove overhanging branches, and consider pruning trees near your home to minimize the chance of them brushing against your roofline. Finally, store firewood away from your home, and clean up debris in the yard and garden.