Ingham County, Lansing Rat Control Situation:
I was reading your site and I am trying to find a good way to keep the pack Rats out of the engine compartment of my car. I live in the Southern part of Lansing MI and it is mostly forest. I have a carport so it is open. I have to clean out a nest in my car about every two months because of a nest. I have used the traps in the common areas and have caught about 50 rats during the summer. My question to you after reading your article is the best way for me to take care of this is put a trap under the car, I have a live trap along one wall as well as one of the Victor traps. Hope you can help.
Morning David, Am I glad to check your website!! I have a rat problem in our house. These are not just rats, theyr intellects !! Trust me !! They first started with the kitchen lower cupboard, we cleared all food items from there and now they cruise around in the living room. We have set traps, blocked all holes that may be a source of entrance, we even used poison.. one night, we set the poison under the cupboard in one of the bed rooms as my husband saw a mouse run under it. In the morning both the poison tablets were away from the cupboard as if they were trying to say" Thanks but no thanks!!" They eat away the peanut butter from traps and still survive.. I'm really sick of them and the smell is even worse... using rat exterminators is expensive and we are trying to get rid of them ourselves.. the traps we have used are the old fashioned wooden traps, those plastic type boxes, and a few other similar ones, Poison as well.. nothing works.. Need your advice ASAP
Lansing Rat Control Tip of The Week
Are Rats Able to Enter a Property Through the Plumbing?
Rats are able to swim:
Rats are surprisingly flexible and they have some excellent swimming abilities. Even if they have to make their way in through your pipes, it won't take long for them to make their way into your home if they are located under it in the groundwater. A rat is a perfect size to get through most water pipes or sewage pipes and this can mean easy access into your home.
There are dry spots throughout your plumbing:
Depending on the way your plumbing bends, it is likely that there could be some dry spots within your plumbing or within the inner workings of your home. Rats may enter into your plumbing and may even build nests throughout these dryer areas.
Rats can damage your plumbing:
As well as being able to scurry through your plumbing, rats could potentially damage your plumbing or even clog up your pipes. If there is a major rat problem or a nest nearby, you could be risking the chance that you could damage your neighbor's pipes or have an ongoing rat problem in your own home.
Rats easily enter in through broken lines:
If there are areas of your plumbing that have fallen into disrepair, make sure that they can be properly fixed up. Broken sewer lines or tree roots in your plumbing can often be the perfect place for many rats to make their way into your property.
Check grates and drain covers:
Installing mesh or making sure that you have a proper cover for your drain covers can be important to keeping rats from invading your space. Regularly looking at all of your drains and making sure that a rat can't make their way inside can be very important.
Close your toilet lid:
Closing a toilet lid could be a simple practice you could use that can stop rats from entering your home.
