Winter has come to the sunshine state. Even if it’s still warm out, it’s here. And that means EVENTUALLY it’ll get cold down in the south. But, when it gets cold, critters tend to run for cover. So today we’re going to determine what creature exactly is making those noises in the walls of your home.
What are those noises in the walls of my home?
Scratching noises in the wall maybe some type of pest activity and need to be addressed. This is a common scenario in the pest control industry. Over the years we have been faced with this same problem time and time again. Many things can cause noises in walls, and some of them are a cause for concern.
Some noises may be ruled out as mechanical in nature: expanding or contracting pipes and ductwork, siding heating up and cooling, machinery vibrations, or the wind catching gutters or siding, all may be mistaken for pest activity. Examination of the timing, frequency, and location of the noise may give rise to an explanation other than pest activity. If none of these causes can be determined, you may well have some type of animal or insect activity in the wall.
Rats
Rats love to live inside homes. Most are born inside houses, often in the attic or walls. But first, they come from outside and find a way into the house. They can use dozens of possible entry points into the house, from unscreened vents on the roof, gaps at the eaves and roof edges, and areas at ground level, such as open A/C chases or gaps under the siding or in the outer walls. If they enter at ground level, they usually run up the walls of the home and go into the attic. The rats usually spend most of their time inside the attic. But sometimes they set up shop, and create nests, inside the walls of homes. Once in an attic, they can easily find their way down the walls of homes as they search out new areas and seek a way to get into the house if they detect food.
In fact, many times you have animals making noises in the walls, it’s likely to be a rat. But, that doesn’t mean you should immediately poison bomb your house. As with most of the animals on this list, killing them with poison would lead to them decaying in your walls and putting your health at risk. Humane methods of removal are more effective with non-insect pests.
Mice
In a perfect world, you’d never hear mice scratching, squeaking, or scurrying within your walls. But it isn’t a perfect world and chances are you will, at some time or another, hear the scratchy-scratchy sounds of the common house mouse. You might see some signs too, like black, pallet-sized droppings, a musty smell, oily black marks on the walls and baseboards, gnaw marks, or chewed-through objects like electrical wires.
Like rats, it’s important to determine whether you have a colony and an infestation or just a single wayward mouse. For example, I had a single female rat have a litter in my walls a while ago. The only thing that really needed to happen was for me to capture and take the rats to rescue, and to seal off the entry ways into my home for the mother to come back after I scared her out. If you’ve managed to get rid of mice and rats in your house, you want to make sure they don’t come back. What keeps mice away? To stop these pests from entering your house, you need to deprive them of what they want most: food and shelter.
Noises in the walls: Keeping out rats and mice.
How to keep mice away can start with simply covering your trash. Make sure your outdoor garbage cans have snug lids and are made of metal. If you have to use plastic trash cans, make sure that there are no holes in them. And this goes double for covering your pet food. Mice and rats love pet food. If you feed your dog outside and leave food out, you’re inviting every pest in the neighborhood to visit. Store pet and bird food in glass or metal containers with tight lids to repel mice.
In your kitchen, store dry goods in airtight storage containers and jars; a sparkling environment is a part of what keeps mice away. Clean up leftovers and spills as soon as they happen. Wash dirty dishes rather than leaving them in the sink.
In the garage or shed, lawn seed, tulip bulbs, and bone meal are food sources for mice and rats. Store them in metal or glass containers with tight lids. Don’t store firewood in your garage, because it’s a potential site for rat nests. Organize and store boxes off the ground to eliminate places for mice or rats to burrow. Wipe down outside cooking areas and keep grills clean.
Humane Pest Control
Now, these things that make noises in the walls- poison will only make it worse. So let’s go over another way or two to get rid of these rodents.
One thing some people believe in is scent repellents. Like a lot of small animals, rats are sensitive to smells, so you may want to buy or make some spray out of a strong essential oil. You could try peppermint or even a cayenne pepper mixture. Spread that all around the problem areas to keep them from coming back. I’m not too sure about this one, though, as rats live in sewers.
Rats are very intelligent living creatures and should be treated humanely and with compassion whenever possible.
If you are trying to be the most humane as possible, then a live catch rat trap is the best way to catch and release these animals. Get them out of your home and then seal off all points of entry. You shouldn’t be comfortable with having a bunch of holes in your home anyway! Because down the line, you’ll just end up with more noises in the walls.
