Rodents love spaces that are climate controlled, easy to access, and close to a food source. And unfortunately, our garages can prove to be the perfect habitat for these pests. If you’ve noticed that rodents have made their way into your garage, your home will likely be the next target. So it’s best to ensure that your garage is clean, all entryways are blocked, and you’ve taken steps to ensure that rodents stay away from your property. Alongside those tips, we’ve compiled a checklist of things that you can do to ensure that your garage doesn’t turn into a home for those rats, mice, and other little critters. And as always, you can count on us for our rodent exclusion services if rodents have already found their way into your garage — we provide rodent extermination and exclusion services for folks in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego Counties.
Block All Entryways
Did you know that rodents can make their way through openings larger than ¼ inch? So, to get started, you’ll want to ensure that rodents can’t find their way into your garage. Rodents can make their way through the very small cracks and holes, so you’ll need to scour the perimeter of your garage to find any access points. Take a keen look at the foundation of your garage — are there any cracks that allow access to your space? What about your garage door? Do you need to install better weatherstripping at the base to ensure that it forms a seal when the door is down? You should also be wary of pipes, electrical lines, vents and other protrusions that extend from the interior to the exterior of your garage. If there are holes along these protrusions, you can fill them with wire mesh, caulking, plaster, cement, or install flashing around them to keep rodents out. If you’d like, the rodent exclusion experts here at Hi-Tech would be happy to take a look at your property to identify and remedy any potential access points to your garage and home.
Keep Garbage Contained & Well Sealed
Your garbage may smell bad to you, but it smells great to a rodent. Mice and rats are attracted to the smell of garbage, which can prove to be a food source if they can find their way inside a container. That’s why it’s crucial to ensure that your garbage cans are well sealed. Invest in metal cans that can’t be chewed through, or garbage bins with thick hard plastic. Make sure your containers have lids as well, since rodents can often climb vertical surfaces. Also, clean your garbage container every so often to keep the smell down.
Store Bird Seed, Pet Food, and Other Food Sources Properly
Similarly, you should keep bird seed, pet food, and any other food sources in sealed containers. Again, metal or hard plastic are best. You can also keep these containers off the ground by placing them on shelving to make them less accessible. Clean up any spilled pet food or bird seed. Grass seed may also be a food source for rodents, so you should keep bags of seed off the ground, or store them in tight containers.
Elevate Compost Bins
If you have a compost bin, you should keep it elevated and sealed up. Rodents are attracted to fruit, and they can smell any digarded pits and rinds that you’ve tossed in the compost. Make sure your compost bin is inaccessible, or consider building an outdoor compost bin or heap (just be mindful that rodents can be attracted to your property if you have an outdoor compost).
Keep a Pet!
If you needed another reason to get a dog or a cat, here it is: these household pets can work wonders to keep rodents away. Housepets naturally deter rodents, and especially quick cats and dogs can catch any pests that make their way onto your property, if not simply scare them off.
Keep Traps Set
If you know that rodents have already made their way into your garage, then you should lay traps to get rid of these pests. Invest in a few mouse and rat traps (they’re relatively inexpensive, and cheap, spring-loaded models still do the trick), and place them in high-traffic areas throughout your garage — rodents tend to travel along the corners and edges of the garage. You may be able to identify where rodents are walking if you can see droppings around your space. Place traps and check them every couple of days. Empty the trap immediately if you’ve caught something, since mice and rats turn smelly quickly.
Rodent Exclusions From Hi-Tech
Already have a rodent problem? Don’t fret. We’re here to help. Call on Hi-Tech for rodent exclusions and exterminations. We’ll inspect your property to identify any weak points throughout the space, and we’ll seal up all of the access points we can find. We’ll also lay traps and take other measures to ensure that your property is free from rodents. Give us a call to get started!