Getting rid of rats/mice (merged threads)

HappyGo

Hi everyone! I've not been on here for ages. So much has changed since I last spoke to some of you. We've bought a house. It's a gorgeous Edwardian terrace. And we've been in for seven weeks.

On Sunday, my husband - while sitting in our dining room/kitchen area at the back of the house - spotted something out of the corner of his eye - a mouse. Or so he thought. We called in the pest controllers. Thinking it was quite sweet and funny. And they came along within hours to put some little pellets in boxes down. Near to where husband had spotted a little mouse.

Later that day, I was sat in the same spot when suddenly loads of squeaking kicked off and we could hear Mr Mouse running around under our kitchen island. I sat completely still. And lo and behold, Mr Mouse popped out. But then wait... Another head popped out too. I remained utterly still. My heart beating fast! And then... one of the little !!!!!!s emerged completely and started to creep out along our carpet. I rubbed my eyes, and thought 'no... it cannot be!' And I called to my husband in the other room... 'Erm... Hun! I think we have a much more serious problem!!?' Yep. Mr Mouse was in fact Mr Ratty.

So here's the thing. We have a large kitchen island that includes a sink. And we think that's where they're coming up. There is a musty smell coming from underneath said sink. And we can't get the plinths off - and have been told not to by pest controllers - until rats are dead.

The kitchen is gorgeous. But it's looking tired and dated. It's not easy to cook things because the range cooker that we inherited doesn't have much space above it in the chimney breast. And the flooring isn't great. Basically, to anyone who first walks in - they love it! But as you look more closely at fittings, flooring and fixtures, it all looks a bit... well, tired. And not easy to clean.

The rat issue has indeed made my skin crawl. But am I overreacting for wanting to rip the whole lot out and just start afresh?

We were hoping to not spend anything too much on the house until next year. But this is where I prepare my food!?!

Yes! We can easily get under the kitchen island once the rats are dealt with. See where they're coming up, and block it. And then clean as best as possible.

But I just don't feel satisfied with this. I want a fresh start.

Am I being utterly mad? Given that the cost of a kitchen can be around £20-£25K!! We can afford it. It's just a matter of cashflow. If you know what I mean. Having just paid off two credit cards and become debt-free. Apart from the mortgage!

Anyone been in a similar situation? I just want a beautifully clean, sleek and modern new kitchen with new flooring and no access for rats anywhere!

Help!

Doozergirl

I can understand that.

The pest controllers don't want you to disturb your friends as they get wise to change and hide. It is important you work out how they get in as they won't stop - new kitchen or not - if they have access.

You will need to get under the kick plates at some point - hopefully the pest controller will clean it for you.

I didn't think poison was great in case they live in the house and die in cavities etc . Traps better with regilar visits from the PC?

I'd give it some time to work out the problem and end it before considering changing anything.

HappyGo

Doozergirl wrote: »

I can understand that.

The pest controllers don't want you to disturb your friends as they get wise. It is important you work out how they get in as they won't stop - new kitchen or not - if they have access.

You will need to get under the kick plates at some point - hopefully the pest controller will clean it for you.

I didn't think poison was great in case they live in the house and die in cavities etc . Traps better with regilar visits from the PC?

Thanks! Yeah - we thought it was mice initially. Hence the little pellets. It's ok if they go off to die. But when we realised it was rats, the pest control people came back with rat traps. Because you don't want a dead rat anywhere in the house. The stink is apparently horrendous!

I guess I just think it's one of those things. It's forced us to consider stripping it all out and starting again. We don't have to go nuts. A loan would cover it. I'd be able to pay it off quite quickly. It's just a cashflow problem, having moved in so recently.

We're pretty sure they're coming up from a hole in the floor where the pipe to the sink is under our kitchen island. Through a vent from outside. Possibly from a next door neighbour as well. The pellets have helped us to determine where they're coming from. None of the traps have captured anything yet. Yuk!

Oh I wish I could wave a magic wand!!

Fraise

I had rodent problems in my last house, and they are terribly hard to get rid of. You need to fill every single access hole to stop them entering, and they can squeeze through the tiniest of holes.

Which pest control company did you use? I've never heard of one coming out on a Sunday...are they independent? They should have looked for droppings, and mice droppings are much smaller than rats, so I wonder why they put down mice bait? And where did they put it if, as you said, you can't remove the plinths from the island?

Rats are a serious health risk and its fairly rare for them to enter a house. Is there any rubbish or rubble near your house? Rats are attracted to food smells, so it's imperative to to keep the outside free of any food that may have dropped from a bin. They also like water, so make sure you've no buckets left outside that collect rainwater.

if anyone nearby has a messy garden with junk laying around, rats will love that and use it as shelter.

Are you sure they're inside your kitchen island? If they're secure with plinths and you can't get them off how are they getting out? Can you see any holes? Really, the pest control should have checked all this.

Owain_Moneysaver

Sort the rats out.
Steam clean the whole place.
New floorcovering.
Consider relocating the range cooker to elsewhere in the kitchen (putting the swapped units in the chimney) or possibly just bring the range cooker forward with a false wall behind so you don't bang your head on the chimney.
Edwardian houses didn't have fitted kitchens and you could do without one too. Large table, dresser, pantry. Sorted.

HappyGo

Fraise wrote: »

I had rodent problems in my last house, and they are terribly hard to get rid of. You need to fill every single access hole to stop them entering, and they can squeeze through the tiniest of holes.

Which pest control company did you use? I've never heard of one coming out on a Sunday...are they independent? They should have looked for droppings, and mice droppings are much smaller than rats, so I wonder why they put down mice bait? And where did they put it if, as you said, you can't remove the plinths from the island?

Rats are a serious health risk and its fairly rare for them to enter a house. Is there any rubbish or rubble near your house? Rats are attracted to food smells, so it's imperative to to keep the outside free of any food that may have dropped from a bin. They also like water, so make sure you've no buckets left outside that collect rainwater.

if anyone nearby has a messy garden with junk laying around, rats will love that and use it as shelter.

Are you sure they're inside your kitchen island? If they're secure with plinths and you can't get them off how are they getting out? Can you see any holes? Really, the pest control should have checked all this.

Hi there - thanks ever so much for your reply!! That's our plan. To fill every single hole in the house/flooring. And we think we've identified how they're getting in.

We used an independent pest control firm when we thought we had mice. My husband spotted a little mouse near the kitchen, you see. They came out same day, and placed mice poison in a few suspect places. But later that day, whilst sat in the same room, reading - a mouse popped its head out, then another... and then their whole bodies emerged to get at the poison. It was then that I realised we weren't dealing with mice!? These were rats!! I took a video, just to confirm. Pest control people came immediately, agreed they were rats and lay rat traps and further pellets.

There's a messy house next door. And they've found evidence in their home of mice or rats. But I think they're dealing with it by laying their own traps. It could be that's where the rats are coming from. After being disturbed, they've come to check out our home. But given the dark stains around the holes we've found, I think this has been a problem for some time. We only moved into our new home seven or eight weeks ago. So if they were already here, we've only just discovered them!!

As for the plinths on the kitchen island, the pest control guy has visited again today. Just as I was getting a quote for a new kitchen, and both men managed to remove two plinths and see what was underneath. Lo and behold, we can see where they're getting in - from a pipe coming up for the kitchen island sink! And then... there's a wall behind where they might be sneaking through to the under-stairs cupboard. Plus that cupboard has a hole coming up from the floor below - where pipes are coming out.

So we now know where they're coming from and how they're getting in. And we have a plan in place. Still heard movement earlier even though it's day four of all this. And the rats have been eating the poison for four solid days. Can't imagine it'll last much longer? Nothing caught in traps as yet.

But I just can't wait to get everything ripped out, cleaned and cleaned again, new floors, new kitchen, new everything! And everything blocked up and sorted!!!!! Phew.

HappyGo

Owain_Moneysaver wrote: »

Sort the rats out.
Steam clean the whole place.
New floorcovering.
Consider relocating the range cooker to elsewhere in the kitchen (putting the swapped units in the chimney) or possibly just bring the range cooker forward with a false wall behind so you don't bang your head on the chimney.
Edwardian houses didn't have fitted kitchens and you could do without one too. Large table, dresser, pantry. Sorted.

Thanks for the advice. I love my Edwardian home and I want to respect its heritage. But what's there presently just isn't up to my standards of hygiene and clean lines!

I've had a few people round this week to quote on putting a new kitchen in. And remove a few walls to provide more room. I'm completely modernising everything because the most important room in the house has to be the kitchen!

Plan is:

Rats eliminated.
Holes filled in.
Rat runs scrubbed clean whilst I look like something out of Breaking Bad...
Old flooring ripped up. New flooring put down.
New kitchen.
New carpet everywhere. Or laminate.

Happier life :T

Over and out

HappyGo

A further question, if I may?

Once we've got the little blighters dead... Sorry if this offends anyone. It's not pleasant. I am an animal lover. But rats carry disease and pose a risk to our health, so they have to go... Once they're dead, what products would people recommend for keeping them out?

Expanding foam good enough for the holes?

And as we think they're coming in through an air vent outside, would a steel mesh covering suffice? Something like this? http://www.mousemesh.co.uk/mouse_control_prevention_eradication-stainless_steel_rat_proof.asp

Thanks

escapee

Rats apparently have the strongest jaw of any animal and, as their teeth constantly grow, have to continually chew to file their teeth down and prevent them growing through their gums.

Expanding foam is useless, it would be like candy floss to a rat. Concrete or some kind of hard filler would be your best bet to keep them at bay. It is advised to use mesh scouring pads for small holes in the short term as when rats attempt to chew through these, it would cause discomfort and make their gums bleed.

The mesh vents you have linked to are too thin, look at the previous page on this thread - I mentioned vents to another user and these are thicker and therefore harder for rats to gnaw through.

If absolutely necessary, rats can chew through concrete - so nothing is impenetrable BUT we all want an easy life (rats too) so if something is 'difficult' then usually they move on to locate an easier entry point/property to forage for food and shelter.

HappyGo

Gosh! Gulp! Eat through concrete? Hideous. My pest control man says I need a joiner to fit wood around the holes and fill everything up.

And thanks - I'll check out your recommendation