How to Get Rid of Rats in Your Crawl Space

Rats are a nuisance that can become a serious health hazard. No place in your home, especially a crawl space, is safe from them. A rat infestation can cause severe problems to your home's electrical and structural stability which can create fire hazards. Their droppings, if left for a long time, can also cause serious health problems in humans as well as other animals. Rats will also eat your food and will contaminate much more than they will eat. Removing rats in a crawl space is no easy task, but you can effectively get rid of the vermin with the following steps.

Step 1 - Locate the Infestation

If rats are living in your crawl space, you will notice sounds coming from behind the wall, whether from scratching, scampering or gnawing. Look around your home for their points of access. Check out the foundation of the structure for any holes or cracks. Check the exterior of the house around telephone lines, cable company wires and other external to internal wiring. Many rats will be able to get their bodies through these tiny holes. When you find these holes, patch them with wire mesh and spackle. It is important to eliminate the change of rats entering the house while you are removing them.

Step 2 - Catching the Rats

There are 3 ways to catch rodents in a crawl space:

1. Snap traps
2. Live traps
3. Poison

Snap traps and poison will certainly kill the rats while live traps do not. It is important to not use pesticide inside or outside the home as the chance for contamination is too high. Children and pets can easily stumble into the poison and become seriously harmed.

If you prefer to not kill the mice, use a live trap. Do not use a sticky trap as it will damage the animal. Bait whichever trap you use with a nice helping of peanut butter because rats are attracted to the oil in it. Rats travel along the walls, so it is a good idea to place the traps along the walls of the crawl space. Be generous with the traps but do not cover the entire floor with them. Allow the traps to rest for a few days prior to checking them and replacing the bait.

Step 3 - Removal of Rats

Once rats have been caught in snap traps, you can just toss them in a garbage bag and dispose of them that way. If, however, you chose to use live traps, then it is a good idea to drive them far away from your property prior to releasing them. This will prevent them from returning.

Step 4 - Prevent a Return

Despite your best efforts, rats might find a way to return. To help prevent them from doing so, you should remove all garbage and debris from inside and outside your home. Also remove all signs of their droppings, and thoroughly clean your home. Apply any commercially available rat repellents.