Squirrels In The Attic? How To Prevent Them
There’s nothing more spooky than waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of scratching noises in your ceiling or walls. Those creepy noises are created by squirrels, and while squirrels might appear cute and harmless they can do a lot of damage to your attic. Their bodies are small, they can make their way into your home through tiny entry points, as well as a hideout in the hard-to-reach places of your attic and walls.
Not only is it important to learn how to safely remove squirrels from your home, but also how to keep them out of your home. In this article, we’ll give you a few effective steps that help to make your home squirrel free and keep them from coming back.
Look For The Entry Point
If you’re hearing the sounds of pests living in your walls and ceiling, that means those critters are getting into your home from an entry point. Go outside and walk around the perimeter of your home, look at the roof, and around the gutters to see where the entry point is. If you’re having a hard time finding it, go up in the attic with a flashlight and look for any entry points. But be careful when going up into the attic while squirrels are living there, they scare easily and can run into other parts of the attic or other parts of the house.
If you do find holes in the roof, gutters, etc, repair the holes with animal-resistant patches. Another great solution is to apply seals with caulk or plaster around electrical wiring and plumbing fixtures to prevent squirrels from entering.
Another point of entry for critters is the chimney. By placing a chimney cap on top of the chimney it keeps critters like squirrels from entering, and it allows the smoke to escape the chimney.
Give Squirrels A Reason To Leave
Squirrels are stubborn and may not leave on their own, especially if a mother squirrel just gave birth to a litter. If a squirrel is feeding its litter, it will leave and reenter bringing food to its litter, but if you cover up the entryway while the mother squirrel is away, you’re left with a litter of squirrels. If that’s the case, that’s when you call Amco Ranger and we’ll safely remove the litter of squirrels (dead or alive). To prevent that scenario, remove the squirrel as soon as it’s detected. A cheap and easy to run them out is to soak a rag in ammonia and then place it near the nesting site or entryway in the attic. The strong smell of ammonia will irritate the squirrels and they view the attic as a bad place to live, driving them to leave.
Prevent Re-Entry
Yay, so you got rid of those squirrels living in your attic, now it’s time to protect your home from critters reentering. Take a look at your roof, and if you notice and tree branches that are hanging out next to your roof, cut them off. Squirrels will use tree branches as a bridge to your home, and that tree could be the squirrels main home and uses your attic as a space to nest and keep comfortable during the winter months and bad weather. Plus, having too much plant matter next to or on your home can give other pests like insects, mice, and mites easy access to your home.
Keep Critters Out With Insulation
You’re probably going to ask how insulation will keep squirrels out of the attic, but our InCide® Pest Control Insulation is infused with a powerful pesticide that kills pests once it’s been ingested. The active ingredients that are used to treat our insulation are safe to humans and pets, and there are no irritating side effects related to the insulation or inhalation of this EPA registered product.
The best way to deal with squirrels in attics, walls or around the home is to call a pest solutions group, like Amco Ranger. A professional from Amco Ranger not only knows how to get squirrels out of the attic (safely), but how to keep them out for good. Give us a call today, and we’ll put an end to the critters living in your space.
