The part that makes a fix last.
Trapping clears out the animals living there now. Sealing determines whether replacements show up next month. A house with a dozen openings is a vacancy sign, and every rodent in the area will eventually find one.
Good sealing starts with a full survey. The technician walks the outside from the foundation up, then repeats the walk inside from the attic down, and records each opening with its size, location and the material that fits it.
Where gaps hide on a coastal house.
- Foundation vents with rusted or bent screens.
- Gaps beside pipe and cable sleeves where lines enter the wall.
- Garage door corners and worn bottom seals.
- Soffit panels, gable vents and ridge vents with loose or missing screens.
- The seam between a deck, porch or addition and the main structure.
Buildings near salt water can show more corrosion on screens and hardware, and storm movement can bend a vent cover enough to open a gap. These are the first things the technician tests with a screwdriver and a flashlight.
Materials and what each one is for.
| Material. | Where it goes. | Why it works. |
|---|---|---|
| Hardware cloth. | Foundation vents, crawl space openings, large gaps. | Rodents cannot chew through galvanized or coated mesh. |
| Sheet flashing. | Roof edges, trim gaps, corners. | Smooth metal gives teeth nothing to grip. |
| Mortar-grade sealant. | Cracks in masonry and around pipe collars. | Hardens into a surface that resists gnawing. |
| Door sweep or threshold. | Garage and entry doors. | Closes the daylight gap at the bottom of the door. |
The technician avoids foam as a barrier. It has a role as a backer behind metal, but alone it is a snack.
Sequence matters.
Gaps get closed in a particular order. The first pass shuts the openings that animals are no longer using. The second pass, after the first catches, closes the rest. Sealing a live entry with animals inside traps them in your walls, so we never do that.
Our mouse page and rat page describe how that sequencing works for each animal.
A note on older additions and seasonal homes.
Houses grow. A deck added in one decade and a sunroom in another leave seams where framing meets, and those seams loosen with every freeze and thaw. Seasonal homes that stand shut through winter can develop gaps unobserved. Walk the exterior in spring and fall, and book a check if you find daylight, loose trim or chewed edges.
If it is the middle of the night, call anyway.
(888) 686-4821What a finished job looks like.
When the work ends, you receive a list of every opening that was closed, with its location and material. The follow-up visit tests each repair, and any spot that has loosened gets corrected at that time.
Before you call, hold the broom.
Tempted to tidy before the crew gets there? Take the steps in order, and stop wherever you feel unsure.
- Leave the broom and the shop vacuum in the closet, because dry droppings crumble and the dust goes straight into your lungs.
- Airing a closed space for thirty minutes is the CDC's first step before cleanup begins.
- Gloves go on at the start and soap and water come at the end.
- Contact time matters, so the CDC wants the spray to soak for several minutes before anyone wipes.
- Add a second bag when the first is thin or heavy.
- If something feels off afterward, describe the cleanup to a doctor and let them weigh it.
Look up the official wording.
Titles and links to the full text appear below.
- CDC overview of avoiding rodent contact: The origin of the sealing and tidy-up suggestions found here.
- Rodent waste cleanup, per the CDC: Ventilate, soak and bag, in the sequence the CDC publishes.