Getting rid of rats/mice (merged threads)

escapee

Do you have trees in close proximity to your home, possibly with branches overhanging your roof?

There is a small possibility that rats can scale up drain pipes but highly unlikely, however, if you do have trees, this could be a method of entry.

Sewer drains are a haven for rats as they're a pre-made tunnel they can easily use to move from destination to destination. Get a few quotes for your camera survey as they can be wildly different.

Keep us updated, and good luck!!

dawyldthing

We used sticky traps that caught the little blighter in the end. (I heard an alrighty scream but forgot Id put the trap down as it was a few weeks before it was caught so found it a few days later - it was a nightmare to catch and was noring no end so didnt feel guilty). They seemed to hate peppermint oil and that really worked (made the house smell ok too). We also had them outside and i tried to tell my mum it was due to her feeding the birds bird seed. Once Id turned the lid round they finally vacated the garden hopefully never to be seen again

dizzybee

hi thanks guys we don't have any trees near the house, i have a drain specialist coming on tue to take a look, so hopefully will get to the bottom of it, can i just ask if there was a problem in the Sewer drains ie broken or cracked would the council have to pay for this work or my self? will let you know what the outcome is.

escapee

dizzybee wrote: »

hi thanks guys we don't have any trees near the house, i have a drain specialist coming on tue to take a look, so hopefully will get to the bottom of it, can i just ask if there was a problem in the Sewer drains ie broken or cracked would the council have to pay for this work or my self? will let you know what the outcome is.

If your home is Council owned dizzybee, then it is the Council's responsibility to repair any damaged drains. It shouldn't be an expensive job for the council and would be remedied in a day or two tops.

red_imps_2003

We've been hearing occasional scratching under the flooring in our living room for the past ten days or so. Can't tell whether it is directly under the floor or in the cavity; it's very near the exterior wall (I can hear the scratching from outside too; the sound travels quite clearly through the nearest ventilation brick). I've also heard it in the boxing around the soil pipe in the adjacent downstairs loo. Have not seen any evidence inside any of the rooms or cupboards yet, though.

I'm going to go around the outside of the house and fill in any holes in the bricks and mortar at ground level but how high up should I go? Can they get through brick/mortar well above ground?

escapee

red_imps_2003 wrote: »

We've been hearing occasional scratching under the flooring in our living room for the past ten days or so. Can't tell whether it is directly under the floor or in the cavity; it's very near the exterior wall (I can hear the scratching from outside too; the sound travels quite clearly through the nearest ventilation brick). I've also heard it in the boxing around the soil pipe in the adjacent downstairs loo. Have not seen any evidence inside any of the rooms or cupboards yet, though.

I'm going to go around the outside of the house and fill in any holes in the bricks and mortar at ground level but how high up should I go? Can they get through brick/mortar well above ground?

Not usually red_imps_2003 - if you were to fill any external gaps up to around one metre high, I would imagine this is ample coverage (just check there is nothing the rats can climb on to gain access to a higher entry point).

As you mention sounds underneath the floor, on exterior walls and in the boxing around the soil pipe to your downstairs toilet - there is a good chance they're getting in through the sewerage system. The scratching you're hearing could well be the rodents opening up cavities to move around your home.

If you can, remove the boxing around the toilet soil pipe and check there are no methods of entry here. Internal soil pipes are usually plastic so can be breached easily by rats.

From experience, I have found that rats usually gain access to the wall cavities to move around the home and generally head straight for the roofline/attic where there is plentiful bedding material.

Hope you get to the bottom of this before too much damage is caused.

Littlejo74

Help!
It's 2.10am & I've been awake for an hour 😞 Almost 2 years ago we had an upstairs extension above an existing ground floor extension. The builder didn't put a loft hatch in. For the last few weeks we have heard the odd noise in the roof space when we are in bed. It seems to start between 10 -10.30Pm. Tonight has been particularly bad & it also sounds as if movement is in one of the walls. My OH tried to sleep downstairs but said he can hear the noise down there in the ceiling, although I can't hear it in the bedroom floor.
Am I going to have to get a loft hatch installed in the bedroom ceiling or will a pest expert be able to do something without access? I'm assuming it is mice but we haven't seen any evidence inside the house & I've no idea how they have got in.

pineapple

Hopefully it isn't rats! It's amazing what spaces rodents can get through so it might be worth laying down traps (or poison) somewhere. Do you have access to the roof space above the main house?
Also - these have mixed reviews but in my last house I heard movement in the party wall. I plugged in a sonic deterrent and no more noise.

Littlejo74

Thanks Pineapple, I'm telling myself its mice but I swear at one point it sounded like something sawing through wood :-(
The extension is on the gable end of the house, and the original house has access to the original loft space but not through to the new roof space. I'm hoping this means that whatever is up there will just be confined to the extension and wont be able to find its way into the original part of the house. I really wish we'd insisted on access to the roof space being put in when the extension was done. I'm going to try the sonic deterrent, contact a local pest control & if need be have a loft hatch put in before sending someone else up to have a look! I have no idea how they have got up there though.

Xeorix

Whilst doing some plumbing in the loft, we discovered lots of pipe insulation that had been nibbled at. I bought a couple of humane traps, stuck some peanut brunch bars in them and left them overnight.

This morning I checked and we had caught 2 mice. We're not killing them so need to figure out what to do with them. They're currently in a plastic box under the stairs with some food and water..

Any suggestions?