Do you have a suspicion unwanted guests are infiltrating your home? Rats and rat infestation is no joke or small matter due to the damage and disease they are known to cause. Continue reading below for information on prevention, how to get rid of rats and contact Environmental Pest Management for expert help and service.

Rat Ruin & Devastation

Rats are known to cause vasts amounts of damage to your property. They can ruin your house interior, your roof and even bring destruction to your home garden and automobiles. Reportedly, rats cause approximately 50 million to 1 billion dollars in damage to home and properties each year. No surprise you want to know how to get rid of rats!

Damage Caused by Rats:

  • Insulation damage (chewing, trampling, defecating, removing for nest material
  • Furniture damage (chewing, gnawing)
  • Wall damage (creating cracks, holes and entry points)
  • Roof damage (chewing on eaves to create an entry)
  • Grease Stains
  • Electrical damage (chewing on wires, also creates a fire and gas hazard)
  • Automobile damage (nesting in engines)
  • Plumbing damage (chewing on pipes)
  • Water contamination
  • Garden & crop damage (eating bulbs and seedlings)
  • Biohazard (feces, urination)

If the threat of wreckage to your home isn’t enough, 50,000 people on average get rat bites every year. Rats are incredibly filthy, and they are prone to carry and spread diseases, which makes both people and house pets susceptible to them. By defecating all over your home, getting into your food or your pet’s food, or transmitted directly through contact (bite and scratches) they can cause several types of serious illnesses.

Also Read: 3 Proven Ways to Get Rid of Mice Fast

Rats

Diseases Caused by Rats:

  • Rat Bite Fever (RBF)
  • Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome
  • Leptospirosis (Weil’s Disease)
  • Salmonellosis
  • Tapeworms
  • Bubonic plague
  • Tularemia

How To Prevent Rat Infestation

Before you whip out your poisons, rat traps, and baits, there are a variety of environmentally friendly solutions you can take first. Read below for a list of ways to either get rid of rats or how to rat-proof your home to avoid potential rat infestations in the future.

Sanitation

Maintaining a clean and sealed home reduces the risk of rats tremendously. Rats infest homes because they are searching for food, water, and shelter. They eat 1-3 ounces of food daily, so caution is required when it comes to food storage and cleaning up crumbs and spills.

  • Store bulk foods in metal canisters or glass containers with tightly sealing lids
  • Avoid leaving bulk food stored on the floor and near walls
  • Use metal bins with airtight lids for garbage and recycling
  • Vacuum, wipe and or sweep up crumbs and spills immediately
  • Clean up and put away pet food dishes and water bowls
  • Store pet food in airtight, sealable containers
  • Store dry goods (flour, sugar) in sealable containers on high shelves or in refrigerator
  • Maintain clean floors and countertops
  • Clean kitchen regularly
  • Removing clutter

Rats

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Rat-Proofing Procedure

Besides taking precautions on how to store your food and the practice of maintaining proper house sanitation, there are also some things you can do to safeguard your home against a rat infestation. Follow these tips to prevent rats from entering your home, causing damage to property outside of it, and from creating a nest and populating near you.

  • Plug up and fix holes, cracks, leaks, gaps and entry points in walls, paneling, pipes, eaves, foundation, porches, decks, AC units, vent fans, joints around windows and doorsills, and crawl spaces
  • Use caulk, foam, and weatherstrip
  • Inspect weatherstripping around your garage door
  • Use window screens
  • Do not leave garage doors, patio or side doors open
  • Keep trees and branches at least six inches away from home
  • Plant new shrubs and plants at least three feet away from home
  • Keep lawn trimmed
  • Store wood, lumber and other materials away from your house
  • Maintain a clean lawn (clear away boxes, old tires, appliances, and other garbage away from your home and yard)
  • Place bird feeders away from the house
  • Inspect your car frequently (trunk and engine)
  • Keep car windows sealed
  • Cars infrequently driven should be checked more often and kept inside a closed and sealed garage

Rats

How To Get Rid Of Rats

So, you have managed to keep a clean home with all of your food properly stored, and all of the possible nooks and crannies have been correctly stopped up. But do you still find rat droppings, gnawed through wires or paw prints around your home? There are more permanent solutions to deal directly with a rat infestation.

Traps & Baits

There are a plethora of products on the market available for handling a rat infestation from poisons, sprays, traps, and baits. It all is a matter of preference. If you’re squeamish about finding a rat trapped, dead or alive, in your home, then using some human and pet-friendly poisons may be the solution for you. In that case, the rats digest them and then, days later, are exterminated outside of your home; out of sight, out of mind.

Also Read: The Best Ways to Get Rid of Mice this Spring

Let Environmental Professionals Handle It

Whether you have tried a score of rat traps and poisons with no results, or are merely uneasy about the entire process yourself, contacting Environmental Pest Management is the best solution for you. They are affiliated with the Minnesota Pest Management Association, the National Pest Managment Association, and they have been doing business for over 30 years.

Besides being local and experienced, Environmental Pest Management also utilizes IPM (Integrated Pest Management). IPM is a four-tier approach to evaluating, controlling, preventing and managing rats and other pests in the safest, most ecological and economical way possible. They combine current information and science on the pests (their life cycles and behaviors) with solutions that are the most benign and environmentally safe for a step-by-step procedure to control and eliminate pests.

Environmental Pest Management has high environmental standards that aim for the best possible solution for both people and the environment. Contact them today for an assessment, check out their website for more information and let these experts manage your damage.