The Key To Keeping Rodents Out Of Your Chicago Home For Good

If there's one thing that will stop any Chicago homeowner in their tracks, it's a rodent infestation in their home. Unlike most guests, rodents won't ask for an invitation, and their only housewarming gifts are disease and destruction. But if they aren't using the front door, how are rodents getting into your home? 

Here's what Chicago homeowners should know about the top rodent entry points, what to do if you spot an entry point, how you can patch up a rodent entry point, and how pest control in Chicago can help you get rid of these entrances. 

Top Rodent Entry Points

How do Chicago rodents get inside? Some of the most common rodent entry points in your home include: 

• Vents: If you've got dryer vents, roof vents, or other open vents to provide air circulation, the slots are often big enough for rodents, like rats and mice, to climb through. 
• Cracks and crevices: You may not realize it, but your home could have cracks and crevices around your foundation. Even gaps as small as a pen or holes the size of a dime are wide enough for rodents to squeeze through. 
• Metal flashing: Metal flashing is often used on the exterior of homes to get rid of gaps and prevent water from getting inside. Over time, weather, wind, or other elements can damage this flashing and provide spaces for rodents to get inside. 
• Garage doors: If they can't use gaps or crevices around your foundation, rodents may just use your garage door. Most garage doors are not airtight, and there could be gaps on either side of the door or even just a poor seal that provides rodents with an entrance. 
• Roofing: Many common rodents, like roof rats, are adept at climbing. It's not uncommon for these pests to climb in through the chimney or to slip past broken or worn shingles. 

Unfortunately, rodents are adaptable creatures, and there can be no end to the ways they can find to enter your home. 

What To Do If You Spot An Entry Point

Now that you know where rodent entry points might be, what should you do if you spot one of these entry points? 

• Look for other rodent entry points: If you've found one rodent entry point, there's always the chance that rodents are entering and leaving through other entrances too. Check for other rodent entry points, like garage doors, vents, rooftops, or cracks and crevices. 
• Look for signs of rodent activity: You may have found where rodents have entered your home, but the next step is finding where your rodents are hiding.
• Check for rodent droppings, smudge marks, runways, and chew marks near cabinets, baseboards, and other areas likely to have rodent activity. 
• Call in the professionals: While you can patch the entry point yourself, you've still got a rodent infestation in your home, and that requires help from the professionals. A pest management professional can identify other entry points and locate where these pests are hiding. 

Rodent infestations can get out of hand quickly, so it's important to seek assistance without delay.

How To Patch A Rodent Entry Point

To prevent more rodents from coming inside, you can patch rodent entry points yourself. Here's a quick guide on how to do so: 

1. Fill the hole or gap with a rodent-proof material like steel wool. 
2. Make sure you avoid using materials like vinyl, wood, or plastic to patch the hole since domestic rodents can chew through these materials. 
3. Use caulk, expanding foam, or another sealant to hold the steel wool in place, and make sure rodents don't remove it from the hole. 
4. If the entry point is a large hole, you can supplement steel wool for metal sheeting, lath metal, cement, or hardware cloth. 
5. Call a pest management professional to deal with the existing infestation in your home. 

Remember that rodents can enter your home in various ways and through surprisingly small holes. 

Rodent Entry Point Elimination Service By Aerex Pest Control

Just because you've taken care of one way that rodents were getting into your home doesn't mean you're keeping them out – or that you don't still have them living in your home. Rodents are crafty, and if they've found one way into your Chicago home, they're likely to find another. 

Fortunately, this is where Aerex Pest Control can help. Not only can we eliminate existing rodent infestations, but we can also get rid of any and all entry points that these pests may be taking advantage of to get inside your home. If your home has weaknesses that rodents may try to exploit, we'll find them and get rid of them. 

If you suspect that you've got rodent entry points or even an infestation, don't wait any longer. Contact us today at Aerex Pest Control to learn more about how our rodent elimination service can help you keep your Chicago home permanently rodent-free.