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The equipment you need to trap a rat may vary
depending on where exactly the rat is on your
property, which specific method you’re going to
try in order to get rid of the rat, and the
approximate number of rats you’re dealing with.
The most common scenario for home rat invasion is
rats living and breeding relentlessly in your
attic, so I’ll base my suggestions on this
particular situation.
For home inspection in order to discover all the
rodent points of access to your attic, you’re
going to have to verify the building in its
entirety, from bottom to top. Here’s the equipment
recommended for the inspection:
- A ladder in order to get on the roof;
- A harness in order to remain secure while on
the roof;
- Safety helmet and steady legs for when on
the roof;
- A flashlight for attic inspection, or for
inspection under the house, if you live in an
elevated structure;
- Good eyesight, and a bit of knowledge
relative to rat biology and behavior so that
you can know where to look.
Rat control is tough, but if you do it correctly,
you can solve the problem permanently. So, in
order to do it correctly, you now need to seal all
the rodent access points. Assuming the rats are
getting in through holes in the roof and not
through some more unfortunate points of entry,
here’s what you’ll need:
- Steel mash for vents;
- Metal flashing (preferably aluminum);
- Screws and a hammer drill for bolting;
- Keep the ladder used for inspecting the
roof, because you’ll probably do most of the
work standing on it.
Next step will be to trap and dispose of the rats
that are living in your attic. In my educated
opinion, the best way to eliminate this pest from
your home is by killing them with classic wooden
snap traps. This is what you’ll need:
- Protective gloves;
- HEPA filter mask;
- About 15 Victor wooden snap traps – I’m
serious, it’s best to install lots of traps
and check them frequently in order to dispose
of the rats soon after they get trapped. This
will ensure a quick, well-done job;
- Educating yourself about rat behavior in
order to know where and how to place the
traps;
- Bait;
- Close-lid disposable plastic bag or
container for the rat carcasses.
The last step in removing attic rats forever is
decontamination. Cleanup is essential, and must be
done with caution and perseverance. Proper rat
decontamination equipment would be as follows:
Full biohazard suit;
LED-powered headlamp;
Keep the HEPA filter mask on;
A vacuum cleaner which you will use everywhere
in the attic;
Batt fiberglass insulation for replacing
heavily soiled insulation;
An electric fogging machine (or its not so
prolific cousin, the spray bottle/container);
A liquid cleaning product that will neutralize
residual rat waste, stains, and eliminate all
the smell left behind by the rats – I recommend
the Bac-A-Zap Odor Eliminator.
Like I said in the beginning, the exact equipment
that’s needed will depend on a few factors. In
principle, however, you would use more or less the
same gear and equipment to deal with rats anywhere
on your property as you would use for eliminating
rats from an attic.
The wildlife control pros available on my
nationwide directory are not approachable strictly
for hiring. They, like me, want to help. So, feel
free to choose one that’s appointed to your area,
and shoot them an email or give them a call for
some solid advice on what you need in order to
take care of your pest issue depending on the
specific characteristics of your particular
problem. For more information, you may want to
click on one of these guides that I wrote:
How much
does rat removal cost? - get the lowdown on
prices.
How
to get rid of rats - my main rat removal
info guide.
Example
rat trapping photographs - get
do-it-yourself ideas.
Rat
job blog - learn from great examples of rat
jobs I've done.