Hamilton County, Cincinnati Rat Control Situation:
Thanks for your helpful information on your website. In our situation, we have some sort of rodent(s) between the ceiling of the first floor of the house and the floorboards of the upstairs. At night, we definitely hear scurrying above us when we're in bed on the first floor. Because that space is not connected to the attic, nor is it a drop ceiling, it's impossible for us to access without cutting holes in our ceiling. We have tried to do a very thorough check around the exterior of the home, but we're not sure where they might be coming in. Thus, we have no idea where to set traps. Every time I call out our Terminix guy, he just puts out a little rat bait in a few random areas around the exterior of the house (we don't have pets or small children) and says we'll hope for the best. So far, no luck, as we still hear them almost nightly. We have absolutely no signs of rodents on the interior of the house, such as in the kitchen, so we're assuming that they must be traveling through the wall space and outside to get food. Is that a reasonable assumption? We have also checked the attic (which is above the second floor) and there's no sign of them there. Do you have any suggestions for what type of service we might be able to call who could actually help us with this problem since Terminix doesn't seem to have any answers? Thanks so much for any help you may be able to give us.
Hi David, I have a rat in my apartment!! I liv e in Cincinnati OH. I noticed the rat early last Sunday morning after Ieft a pizza box on the floor. I heard the rat trying to get in the box. First, I tried glue boards, which failed. Then I tried 2 black cat brand snap traps & the rat just ate the bait w/o tripping the trap. I am now using the Victor wooden rat trap w/ the yellow, plastic plate where the bait goes. The rat keeps licking the peanut butter off w/o tripping the trap. An exterminator came & reset the traps, but still nothing. Maintenance came & put steel wool in the two holes they found. This rat is smart & keeps eating the bait w/o tripping the trap. The exterminator said it's definitely a rat b/c of the droppings he saw, which were only by the sliding glass door to the patio. There are no signs of the rat any where else. I'm running out of patience! I'm terrified to say the least & I haven't had a restful sleep in more than 7 days. Please help! Any advice is greatly appreciated.
Cincinnati Rat Control Tip of The Week
The Proper Way To Clean Rat Feces Out Of Your Attic
If you already know the dangers of having rat feces in your attic and coming in contact with it, you are most likely going to get scared and confused about how to clean it. When it comes to cleaning rat feces, you can't afford to do it the wrong way. Refusal to follow the due process might cost you more of what you are trying to prevent.
Since rat feces is a major carrier of bacteria and other disease-causing organisms, the first thing you need to do when planning to clean out the feces from your attic is to protect yourself appropriately. To do this, you need to start by ventilating your attic for as long as possible before entering. By doing this, you are simply expelling the contaminated air and allowing fresh air to go in. This protects you from breathing air that is contaminated with rat feces while in the attic. Also, you need to have equipment such as a facial mask, gloves, plastic bags, and a strong disinfectant in place before going ahead to clean your attic.
Just like every other part of your home, cleaning your attic is not that difficult. Provided you have all the supplies listed above, you will find it quite easy to do. To start, wear your facial mask and gloves properly and carefully pack the feces into the plastic bag. After that, dispose of the plastic bag safely.
When you are done with that, you need to soak the floor of your attic with a disinfectant and then scrub the floor until all the remaining feces are removed. Leave the disinfectant on the floor for 10 minutes to allow it to kill all the pathogens and bacteria deposited by the rat. After doing all this, your attic will be completely pathogen and bacteria-free.
If you find any of these is difficult to do, you can hire a professional to help you out with the cleaning.
