Squirrels in the Attic?

Don and Jan were just settling in for a nice Saturday afternoon when above their heads, they heard what sounded like something running in the ceiling, then scratching and a weird squeaking soun d. “Oh no,” Don said, “I think we have critters living in our attic.” Jan was especially disturbed imagining what was going on overhead and worrying about how they were going to get rid of whatever had taken up residence in their house.

How squirrels get in

This isn’t an unusual scenario. We all believe that squirrels live somewhere off the ground, mainly in trees, but the reality is that they never refuse the opportunity to settle down in your attic. This time of year, squirrels find the warmth of your home very appealing and will find a way to get into the attic through openings (which they may make!) under the eaves of the house or through attic vents. They can get inside your home with relative ease because they are mobile, agile, small, and can jump from one place to another quite easily. Squirrels have the ability to gain access through very small holes (around 1.5 inches) and will also chew the hole bigger for easier access.

Why squirrels come in

Attics are warm, dry, and mostly uninhabited. They are ideal places where squirrels can settle down and build a nest, get and store food, and be protected from other enemies outside.

The damage squirrels cause

Squirrels can cause severe damage to your home. The damages can range from a torn up book to destroyed electrical wires all the way up to broken furniture and such. They can (and love to) chew through your house’s roof timbers and underneath eaves. They can even bite and destroy vents, chimneys, wires and insulation, and since they can chew electric wiring, they can cause fire and electrical hazards.

And, of course, they deposit their feces and urine in your attic, making for an odorous situation.

They can gnaw through anything from nuts to wooden beams in your house. If they happen to through the wrong wooden member for long enough, this could threaten the structural integrity of your roof.

What to do

Now that we’ve explained how they get in and the damage they can cause, the next step is to call DA Exterminating to help eradicate the infestation and perform some exclusion techniques to keep them out in the future. Call us at 800-650-PEST if you hear scampering in your attic.