Atticare has more than 10 years experience rodent proofing in the San Francisco Bay Area. So when people ask us, “How do I rodent proof my house?” Here’s what we say.
Rodents are hard to get rid of. Because unfortunately, mice and rats instinctively really like us. They’re “commensal” animals, which means they live in close proximity to humans. And in San Francisco we have the dubious honor of being in the top 10 for the highest rat population in America.
However, we should try our hardest to keep a distance from rodents. In addition to causing widespread destruction inside and outside our homes, rodents can carry a multitude of serious diseases.
How Do I Get Rid Of Mice And Rats In San Francisco?
If you already have a rodent problem at home, don’t panic. There are a lot of things you can do to reclaim your home from the rodents again. Here’s what Atticare does to move them on and it’s completely non-toxic and humane.
Find Out Where The Rodents Are Entering
A flashlight is a simple and effective tool here. You can find tiny cracks and spaces where rodents are getting in.
Extraordinarily, mice can squeeze through a hole smaller than your pinkie. So this means it’s necessary to find every single gap and deal with it individually.
How Many Rodents Are We Talking About?
If the rodent infestation in your home is in its very early stages you can stuff these gaps with steel wool to keep rodents from entering.
If you have more than one or two unwelcome rodent visitors, or a number of gaps, it’s best to call Atticare for expert rodent proofing in your San Francisco Bay Area home.
Seal Rodent Entry Points
We need to seal all these small cracks and spaces with mouse proof sealant to stop the rodent traffic flowing through.
This simple sealing method is not only humane but it saves you from the additional problem of dead rodent cleanup.
How About Using Traps And Poison?
Many homeowners’ knee-jerk reaction is to try to kill the rodent trespassers. However, killing rodents on your property causes more serious problems. For one thing, dead rodents quickly attract more pests that want to feed on them.
Traps
Traps don’t discourage rodents from entering in the first place, while rodent proofing does.
Dead mice and rats quickly rot, which ruins your air quality. Toxic air from dead rodents is more serious than you might imagine as it can trigger allergies and serious respiratory illnesses.
Poison
Similarly, poison won’t discourage rodents in the first place and may even encourage them inside if it smells good.
When rodents are dying of poisoning they typically return to their nest in your home. This means if you poison them you’ll have smelly dead rodents in areas which are often really hard to reach.
What’s The Best Way To Protect Against Rat And Mouse Infestations In The Future?
When Atticare comes for rodent proofing in the San Francisco Bay Area, first we remove any debris like rodent feces. Then we identify and totally seal off all the rodent entry points.
However, it’s impossible to get rid of mice and rats permanently and just forget about it. We need to keep on top of things to stop rats and mice returning in the future. Homeowners can help by keeping an eye on dark, secluded areas of the home that rodents may want to nest in.
Plus, use this as your checklist to deter rodents in the future.
#1. Don’t Create Tempting Nesting Areas
That barbecue that you ignored for months near the house looks like a safe nesting space for a rodent, as does anything left leaning against a building. Keep your plants and lawn neatly trimmed so you don’t have any cozy looking nesting spots outside.
To make them unattractive to pests, cover barbecues and outdoor furniture and store them away from buildings.
#2. Keep Your Food Safe
Mice and rats will eat almost anything. Check the back of your pantry. Has your food been nibbled on? Tough containers with tight lids make it impossible for rodents to contaminate your food.
It’s important to keep pantry shelves clean as well as sweeping the floor regularly. Pet food isn’t safe either, so store it in a strong container that rodents can’t chew through.
#3. Treat Your Trash Like Treasure
A trash can full of this week’s scraps may seem like a banquet to rodents. So is your trash can easy to open? If so, securing it with bungee cords makes it hard for rodents to enter.
Rats and mice are expert scavengers. With this in mind, make sure to collect windfall fruit and vegetables you have in the yard, too.
#4. Plant Mint Outside
Yes, mint. Rodents dislike the smell because it irritates their nasal cavities. Planting mint is an easy way to make your home smell bad to rodents while smelling good to humans.
If you don’t want to replan your yard you can get the same effect using a peppermint spray outside.
#5. Store Stuff High Up
Would you believe that rodents can survive eating wood and newspaper? So if you have wood or paper in storage keep it at least a foot off the ground. This discourages rodents from nesting inside.
Is Rodent Exclusion Necessary?
Yes, and it’s best done as early as possible. Rats and mice breed at an alarming rate and they will only chew through more of your home and eat more of your food as they go.
Atticare will clean, identify entry points and use mouse proof sealant to seal rodent entry points. Combined with future inspections, this is the best technique for rodent proofing in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Learn more about getting rid of mice in your attic here.
Call Atticare For Safe And Efficient Rodent Proofing In The San Francisco Bay Area
You can rely on Atticare to rid your home of rodents in a way that’s effective while being kind to the environment. Call our friendly team at (866) 692 5449 for professional rodent proofing and a wide range of attic and crawl space services.