How to Rodent-Proof Your Property for Winter

At this time of year our rodent control services begin to get extremely busy, as the autumn and winter seasons start to set in, there’ll be a considerable drop in temperature. As a result, all the rodents hiding around your property, that were comfortable staying outside in the warm summer weather, will now look for warmth and shelter elsewhere and that often means gaining access to nearby buildings, including your home, office, warehouse or another property you own.

In a bid to prevent these creatures from entering your indoor space, you should take the necessary steps required to protect yourself, your belongings and any occupants your property has from these furry pests. As such, The Pest Master is on hand to provide you with a quick and easy guide to preventing rats, mice and other rodents from accessing your property.

Store food adequately

Make sure you store food properly in air-tight containers and tie up food that’s stored in bags. You should also look to lift any food up off the floor, even if they’re sealed and unopened. This is common in supermarket warehouses, so look to put them on trolleys, pallets or cages instead.

You should also be mindful of dropping food on the floor as even the smallest crumb can seem like a tasty snack to a pesky rodent. If crumbs continually land on the floor, then it might cause a rat or a mouse to hang around your property, waiting for the next delicious morsel to come along.

Areas you should keep swept and crumb-free, whether it be in your home or in a commercial premises, include:

• Kitchens
• Dining rooms
• Communal areas
• Canteens

In addition to that, when sweeping a kitchen for crumbs, you should look underneath or down the side of white goods and appliances, such as fridges, freezers, washing machines, countertops and even vegetable racks. Whether it’s a commercial or domestic setting, meticulous inspection and regular clean up operations will help to keep rodents at bay.

Close all holes and gaps throughout your property

If you don’t want rodents to gain access to your property, then you should look to seal any gaps that might be present throughout your home or commercial building. Mice and rats can squeeze their way through exceptionally small holes, so don’t underestimate their ability to wriggle in between even the tightest of gaps.

As such, you should look to close off any entry points that measure wider than a quarter of an inch. Some of the things you can do include:

• Checking window screens for rips, tears or holes and then fixing or replacing it
• Sealing cracks in walls or ceilings
• Installing wire mesh in any holes in or around the building’s foundations
• Identifying damaged pipes or ones that enter your property and then filling them with caulk or mesh
• Capping your chimney if you do not have a use for it - rodents are brilliant climbers 

Store your firewood off the ground

If you have a log burner in your home, then it’s likely you store your firewood outside and on the ground. Unfortunately, stacked wooden logs provide the perfect habitat for rodents looking for warmth and cover in the winter weather and this is far more likely if you keep your lumber on the ground. 

You should remove the temptation by lifting your wooden logs up off the floor. It’s also important that you store it as far away from your property as possible as the rodents who once lived in your collection of wood will find your home to be far more comfortable. Therefore, by keeping your logs close to your house, you’ll be making the transition far too  easy for them.

Have a brush strip installed

Installing a brush strip to the bottom of all exterior doors will help to keep rodents out of your property, this will ensure that even the smallest of gaps are blocked off effectively. You’ll often find this problem with older or poorly-fitted doors. As an added bonus, this step will also help to keep your building warm in cold weather, thus saving you money on your energy bills.

Declutter your property and any outdoor spaces

Look around your building and any outdoor areas, keeping an eye out for clutter. Gardens are particularly subject to debris, including piles of rubble and soil. Any clutter throughout the property should also be removed and you’ll need to take the necessary steps to avoid it building up in the future. Keeping boxes and other items off the floor will rid the rodents of ideal hiding spaces.

Ask The Pest Master to help

The Pest Master is proud to be able to provide our customers throughout Derby, Nottingham and the surrounding areas with effective pest control services. Here at The Pest Master, we have a team of highly-skilled, fully-trained pest control experts, ensuring our clients receive exceptional service every single time.

We’re able to travel to your property and carry out a full assessment of the situation at hand. As such, we’ll provide you with an ideal solution that’ll help to eradicate the problem, whether it be with rats, mice, squirrels or other rodents. Our pest removal services can include the humane extermination of the creatures that made your property their home. 

We’re also able to make return visits to your commercial building, ensuring the right measures are put in place to keep the problem at bay. Some rodent issues require multiple rounds of pest control treatment and that’ll also include advising you on how best to keep pests out of your property.

If you would like further information about how The Pest Master can help you to rectify your rat infestation, mice infestation or another rodent infestation, then get in touch with a member of our friendly, professional team today - we’re always happy to help restore your property to its former glory, ensuring it’ clean, tidy and safe to occupy once again.