Need to find out how to get rid of bats? In this article, we’ll examine just what makes this breed of pest so insidious and some of the things you can do about them. Then, we’ll talk about some of the places you can turn to for professional help getting rid of bats from your house.
Bats are pests, to be sure. If you’ve seen them hanging around at dusk, then you might have bats in your house, and you should take it seriously. But for starters it’s important to dispel a couple of myths. A very small percentage of bat species (and virtually none that live in North America) actually eat the blood of other animals. And don’t worry that bats will view your hair as the ideal place to sleep at night.
So Why Are Bats Bad?
Bats are notoriously misunderstood, and they actually control the local insect population, but there are two really good reasons to get rid of them. First of all, there are aesthetic considerations. Once your house becomes a bat hangout, you’re going to notice a lot of guano (poop) and urine that will make a mess of your house, your deck, your windows and your porch.
Secondly, bats transmit diseases. You’re probably familiar with the fact that bats carry rabies. Although the chances of encountering a rabid bat are very small, it’s not something you want to risk, particularly if you have children or pets in the home. There’s another disease that is actually more common, called histoplasmosis. This serious respiratory disease is caused by spores released from a fungus that grows in and on bat guano. It can be fatal in the elderly, the young and the weak, and it can sit around in guano long after you’ve evicted the bats that delivered it. So the removal of bat guano is about more than just aesthetics.
How Can I Get Rid of Bats?
You’re now convinced that you need to get rid of them, so how do you do it? It’s not always easy, but here are some things that can help:
Bat repellent: This form of spot removal is a good way to get rid of bats that have concentrated in a particular area of your home. Dr. T’s Bat-A-Way is effective at repelling bats, birds, rabbits, and squirrels. Just use it indoors in well-ventilated areas. One container of lasts four weeks and can cover 1,600 cubic feet. Once Bat-A-Way is used, the pests will disperse from the area very quickly. After they have left, you can quickly seal the area so that they cannot return. Sealing every crack and hole is important so that they cannot get back into the house or attic. You can also use it by placing two ounces of product into a mesh bag or cheesecloth of some kind or a butter dish and placed in specific areas for spot treatments and easy removal.
Ultrasonic Bat Repeller: Bats communicate with each other by using ultrasonic sounds that only they can hear. With an ultrasonic bat repeller, you can effectively repel bats from a pretty large area. Yard Control’s Electronic Yard Fence uses powerful ultrasonic sound and a pulsating Xenon strobe light to keep bats out of your yard. This unit is meant for use outdoors and is great for gardens, yards, porches and greenhouses. It is completely waterproof, easy-to-use, and runs on four D batteries, and offers relief from a variety of outdoor pests. You can easily mount it to a tree, post, or wall, and the items you need to do this are all included in the package. The Electronic Yard Fence is triggered by a motion sensor built in to the unit and activates when bats are within range.
How to Get Rid of Bats Roosting on the Building
If the bats are actually on the roof of your house, barn, shed or whatever building, it’s probably not an entire colony. You may just have a single bat who likes your chimney. Still, you want to deal with them as pests. In this case you need to make your roof a less attractive place to roost. To do this, you can use lights, balloons, windsocks, chimes, bells, shiny fabric or pretty much anything else that makes it bright, noisy or active.
If you can live with the fact that bats are going to live near your house and can’t seem to get them off your roof, you may want to build a bat house. Designs are widely available online and they’re relatively easy to make. If you do it right, the bats will probably opt for the house over your roof.
How to Get Rid of Bats Under Porch Roof
This is another common outdoor place for bats to hang out. You can try the same things mentioned in the above section, making it a less bat-friendly place or building a bat house.
If it’s just a problem with one or two bats, you can also try dog or cat repellent. These substances are widely available in stores and can be used as bat repellent. It may be only a temporary solution, and it won’t turn the tide in a war on an entire colony, but you can certainly try it in the hopes that the bats will find a better place away from your home.
How to Get Rid of Bats in Your Attic
This is where things get trickier. First you need to get the bats to leave, and then you need to make sure they don’t come back.
To do this, you first need to figure out how the bats are getting in and out. Look for holes in an under the roof, particularly where two structures, such as the chimney and the house, meet. Bats can get in and out of holes that are only half an inch in diameter, so make sure your search is thorough.
Now, unless the bats are hibernating over winter, they will leave their roosts to find food. But not all of the bats will leave at the same time. What you need to do is to put something over these access holes that allow the bats to exit but not reenter. This could be anything from a simple fabric flap to a mesh funnel-shaped device that the bat can push through. You can make these devices yourselves or purchase them from a store, where they are often sold as “excluders.”
The important thing is to leave these excluders in place long enough for all the bats to leave. Then you can plug the holes with whatever material you find most suitable.
Who Can Help With Bat Removal?
If your attempts at evicting the bats in your home have failed, or if you simply don’t want to deal with the problem yourself, you can call a pest control expert. Look in your local telephone book under critter control, pest removal or rodent control. Few businesses specialize in bats, but many general pest control companies are equipped to do bat control as well.
Getting rid of bats can be difficult, but it’s not impossible. Know what you need to in order to properly evict these potentially hazardous critters from your home, and if you need help, call the experts.
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