Jefferson County, Louisville Rat Control Situation:
Good morning David. I came across your website and would like to ask you for some advice! I am currently dealing with mice in my ceiling/walls. They have not made it into my house itself but they are driving me nuts and will ultimately cause damage to my house at some point. I have an exterminator that comes to my house every 3 months and that has helped to prevent any mice within my home. The problem with them in my ceiling and wall began in December. I mentioned this to the exterminators and they baited my house... I guess to draw them out. It's been months now and they still are in my ceiling and getting worse... waking me up at night... I can hear them running around and squeaking... yuck. Drives me and my cat nuts to say the least... The big dilemma is that I have an old city row home... it has a flat roof and no attic or access via panel to the ceiling. The exterminators are lacking in their services... I have them coming out on Monday to get on my roof and look for holes etc... Can you provide me with some guidance on how to resolve this major issue... Can they put bait boxes on my roof to draw the mice out... or should I create an access panel to my ceiling so we can bait or set traps? HELP PLEASE! Thank you so very much!
My response: Never use bait boxes or ultrasonic sound machines. Niether help. Inspect the house and find out how the mice are getting inside. Seal up every single last entry/exit hole and gap with steel. Trap, properly trap on rat runways, ALL the mice, and remove them from the house. Clean up the attic space or home once they are all gone for good.
Thank you for responding. My main issue is how to get traps in my ceiling without an access panel? I have all finished ceilings and a flat roof... The exterminators are saying there is no way to get traps in my ceiling... I can inspect and seal all the holes and gaps but all that will do at this point it trap the mice inside my house... I dont know how we are supposed to draw them out of my ceiling and walls... They are not getting into my actual house... just ceiling and walls... Im really at a loss now.
Louisville Rat Control Tip of The Week
The Steps To Get Rats Out Of A Wall
Rats are sneaky pests and will often find their ways through the cavity of walls. These cavities are usually their hideouts and pathways as they move around your house. But there are instances when they get stuck and are unable to find their way out.
Do you have a rat problem in your house, whereby a rat is stuck in the wall and you are looking for a way to get it out? This is no doubt a very difficult task to do, but right here we will be putting you through the process on how to get it out.
The Following Steps Will Guide You On How To Get Rats Out Of Your Wall:
1. When it comes to getting rats out of a wall, the first step you have to take is to look out for every possible entry and exit point around the wall. You intend to remove it, so don't allow it to get away by leaving those holes open. If you find any hole around the wall, you need to block it temporarily.
2. After ensuring that there are no surprise exit points, the next thing you need to do is to find the location of the rat in the wall. Figuring this out is quite easy. All you have to do is knock the wall and wait for the rat to make a scratching noise. Do this repeatedly until you can find its precise location in the wall.
3. The next line of action is to find a way to remove the rat. Ideally, there are two ways to go about it. But your choice of method depends on the location of the rat in the wall. If the rat is at the upper part of the wall, all you have to do is look down into the cavity with a bright flashlight from the top of the wall or the roof space and try removing the rat using a grab stick.
On the other hand, if the rat is at the bottom of the wall, you need to cut a small hole through the wall at the exact location of the rat and carefully remove it without allowing it to escape.
Finally, you need to seal up the hole you created and every other hole leading to the cavity of the wall to prevent this problem from repeating itself.