How to Get Rats Out of Your Attic in Arizona
When you start hearing scratching, chewing, or scampering noises from your ceiling, there's a good chance that rats are settling in. It may seem like no big deal and harmless to have a few rats hanging out in your attic, but the situation can quickly become a big rat problem. The big question is, how to get rid of them? Also how to keep rats away in the future? As rat pest control experts, we have all the advice for rat infestation victims to chase away rats and rat-proof your home.
Do You Really Need to Remove Them?
The biggest problem with a rat infestation is not just the potential for disease and uncleanness; damaged pipes and wiring which can lead to water damage, electrical damage, and sometimes even to house fires. Rat removal companies have also found that rats chewing things in walls and attics can contribute to mold development over time and can attract other critters—including more rats.
Inspect the Attic, Identify the Culprit
If you believe your attic is experiencing rat problems, then the first thing to do is confirm the truth. Inspect your attic space for the signs of the pest, whether that be seeing the rats themselves, or their feces, trails, or tracks. Nests—which are often an indicator of a specific species of rats—are also a clear indicator. Occasionally, a good thorough inspection can show other culprits for the noises and activity such as squirrels, raccoons, lizards, and on occasion birds such as woodpeckers, sparrows, and an occasional rare pigeon problem in the attic. There are solutions to these problems too, and a wildlife control company should be familiar with solving these. Once you've identified rats as the problem though, it's time to prepare yourself for rat pest control.
Locate and Repair Entry Holes
Just trapping rats won't do much if you can't keep more from getting back in of course. Somewhere on the outside of your house, there are holes or gaps that need to be filled in, fixed, modified, or repaired to prevent rats from going in and out of your attic freely. A good rat control expert can help identify these issue areas. These are commonly openings left on the home during construction that allow rodent entry that are not an issue for the weatherproofing requirements. Roofers and construction professionals try to keep the weather out, but they are not required to be familiar with keeping rats out. There may also be cracks and broken areas of your home's exterior needing repair, or intentional openings like vents that should have strong metal screening applied to keep airflow without inviting another rat problem. A professional will be able to fix these while also following building code needs. Some of these gaps may start small and be made bigger by the rats, and some may start with screen that was weak enough that the rodents removed it. Whatever it is, it can typically be fixed by a competent wildlife professional.
Trap the Rats
Doing this part can be tricky and may require rat removal services to perform the rat abatement professionally. On your own, you'll need some gear—rubber gloves and a respiratory mask for going in the attic or places with droppings is a good start—before you go about removing or trapping the rats in the attic. Using poison to eradicate rats in the attic is not a recommended solution. Using poison in the attic creates a new set of problems: the harrowing task of proper carcass disposal if you can even find it up there, and the resulting stink that you may have to simply endure if the poisoned rat can't be found and removed. It's far better to remove rats with an adequate and effective rat trap. With the rat carcass in the trap, it is easily located and removed which avoids issues with stink and decay. Peanut butter is a good bait for the trap, but often a professional will have their little tips and tricks to increase trapping effectiveness that they have learned from years of experience in doing this successfully.
Remove the Nest
Despite their lack of welcome, rat pests have made your attic into their own little home. If these rats are the native desert wood rats or pack rats, they often gather messy nest material that may have a nice mix of parasites and airborne spores in it if it has been around for a while, so as a precaution, wear thick rubber gloves to handle it and a respiratory mask. Place it in a sealed trash bag before removing it from the attic. This will help reduce health risks.
Clean and Decontaminate the Attic
Once the rat removal is successful, you still have plenty of rat remnants to take care of. Some of these remnants may be able to be physically removed with a vacuum or sweeping up and bagging it up. Many parts of the attic may not be directly accessible though. Using a disinfectant spray or a fog will eradicate all the parasites and germs the pests left behind. Home rat control experts recommend using a decontaminant product that is a disinfectant, sanitizer, and virucide to destroy such hazardous remnants while avoiding harm to pets, people, or the house structure.
Get Help from a Professional
Don't have the time to deal with a rat problem? Worried you won't be able to execute rat control techniques properly? The good news about this being a common problem is that commercial rat control companies do exist and can readily take care of rat problems and solutions for you. Considering the health dangers of dealing with wild rat control, plus the strenuous physical labor of properly succeeding in rat mitigation, calling on a rat exterminator is never a bad idea.
No one likes unwanted guests—but when critters move in for good, it is not a problem you can ignore. If you notice signs of a rat infestation in your attic, enacting home rat control or calling upon rat control experts cannot be delayed. The sooner they're gone, the quicker you can go back to abiding in a clean, non-hazardous home!
