I HAVE MICE!!!
Mice In Our Homes Get A Bad Rap And For Good Reason!
Mouse infestation takes place in our living space at home and work where there is shelter, safety, food , water and plenty of entry points.
The Chief Complaints And Issues Are:
- We hear nuisance gnawing in the walls and attic
- Scratching noises keep us awake at night
- Risk of fire due to chewing on electrical wires
- Mice spoiling food in the pantry
- Numerous valid health risks
1000s upon 1000s of people just like you
are dealing with how to get rid of mice in your house including mice in the attic as well as your basement and kitchen. As a result home owners often seek ways to trap, poison or remove mice.
Some People Deny Having House Mice
We tend not to have an awareness of how common this problem is. And in many cases we are gravely mistaken to think mice are not in our home. Others think it is embarrassing or shameful and go to lengths to not let other know. These people will never say ' I have mice' even though they and most of their neighbors do.
Here are some steps on how to get rid of mice in your house and/or work place
Observe Noises
Get attuned to various noises coming from the attic or walls that include scurrying, scratching and pitter-patter walking and running sounds. Relying on noise detection alone can be difficult to gauge what animal is making the noise. You could have squirrels, rats, mice or raccoons.
Visual Inspection
Perform a visual inspection. All of these rodents will leave traces of nesting material and chew marks. Actual mouse trails in the insulation of your attic are very tiny and narrow. It is very easy however to identify mouse poop. Places to look include under and on top of shelving, appliances, floors of furnace room along the walls in behind water heaters, closets and inside long undisturbed boxes. Empty them upside down and see what lovely sights fall to the floor.
Gather Exclusion Materials
Now that you have your list of identified offending areas get your materials ready. Buy steel mesh and caulking for the holes and gaps and arm yourself with Rid-O-Mice for the weepholes to safely block mice but let the walls properly function. Never plug your weepholes. For the other holes push in steel wool and seal them with the caulking. Mice won’t chew through the steel. The secret is to understand mice are never going to stop invading your home as long as one tiny opening remains no matter what else you do.
Trap Mice On The Inside
Okay, now you have sealed your home, mice in the house remain so you have to trap them and get them out. Choose among snap traps, walk-in box traps with sticky paper and electronic zappers, whichever you prefer to work with. What is important here is how you place the traps. Identify where they walk and place them along that path. Usually they like to follow close to the wall so place them so they walk right up to the bait or opening. Place them where you see their poop. If they are in the attic it is likely they are in the walls and basement too so place plenty of traps in all areas. The rule of thumb is where you see 1 mouse you can anticipate 5 to 10 more. I know no one likes to the thought of that but this is a mouse in the house reality check.
Stay Alert
It is not time to sit back quite yet, now you have to stay on top of trap activity and check for more sounds and more poop. This is your test. If all of these things stop then you have licked the mouse infestation problem. However if after a couple of days you are still seeing examples of mouse activity you will need to get back outside and do more identifying and sealing of entry points. The problem could be right under your nose and you have no idea. Make sure you have installed our weep hole covers first (mice will no longer get into the weeps) and then addressed these points of entry and if the problem persists it means you are well on your way to solving it and it could be time to call a trained eye to get the point you can't find. You will have saved a ton of money having completed the above yourself.
Leave No Trace
And finally now is the time to leave no trace. Safely remove the mouse droppings, wash floors and carpets, replace soiled insulation. Use masks and gloves and approved cleaning agents. There are serious health risks in this step if not handled properly. Mice have a unique pheromone they leave where ever they go that tells them where they have been. It also tells new mice this is a place to be. Spend time erasing the trail so new mice don’t decide your home is a good place to start gnawing to gain access all over again. This also helps to keep Rocky the Raccoon from spying the attic as a great feeding ground.
