With the colder months upon us, there is one unwelcome house guest in particular that is waiting to get into a nice warm home to raise their families.  Rats and Mice will attempt to enter homes from now and continue throughout winter.  This time of year is what the Pest Control industry refers to as ‘Rodent Season’.  The fact is, rodents are breeding all year around – they breed just as much in summer as they do in winter.  The difference in the colder months is that now our homes provide a fantastic warm place for rodents to continue to live during winter.

External conditions are starting to become less attractive for Rats and Mice.  This image shows a Norway Rat (often simply called a brown rat) about to enter a home.  These rats prefer to burrow, but have actually started to nest within the home due to the weather getting colder.  These are warm blooded mammals, and the warmth of an insulated roof space or cavity is much more appealing than a hole in the ground outside in the cold.

Norway rat entering home

Just like humans, rodents like to live in warm environments.  Rats and mice find their way into a structure through small holes, make their way through the wall cavities and exploit almost any area inside your home.  The roof void, wall cavities and other confined voids in and around your home make excellent nesting areas.  Apart from being a nice warm place to nest this time of year, once in your home food and water is more easily accessed, often directly from your very own kitchen.

Apart from the obvious threat of disease, rats will also cause a lot of damage.  Rodent’s teeth continue to grow throughout their lifetime, and if they do not continuously gnaw to keep them in check, their teeth will become too large and essentially useless to them.  Interestingly, the name Rodent comes from a Latin word which basically means to gnaw.

Wall damage from rats

Some of the damage caused by these pests will be noticeable and repairable, like this hole made in a wall by rats, giving them further access to wall cavities and other areas of your home.

Some damage, however, is a lot harder to spot, like these internal electrical wires that have been chewed back to bare copper.

In cases like these, you will most likely not notice anything at all until there are problems with your power, or even worse, a potential fire. Remember, rats and mice will always be gnawing on something, and it’s well documented that they have been the cause of many fires.

Electrical wiring damaged by rodents

There are things that you can do around your home that will help make your property less attractive for rodents to live.

1. Ensure all of your household garbage is in tightly sealed bins which rats and mice cannot access. This helps to restrict their access to food as much as possible. Rodents are opportunistic feeders – while they have their preferred food sources, they will still eat almost anything.
2. Alter your building so that Rodents cannot gain entry. Look for access holes that rats can use, such as where pipes enter buildings, gaps under external doors, etc. Sealing these and other similar points will make it harder for rodents to enter. Using a gutter guard can also be helpful to stop them entering the roof via the gutters.
3. Trim excess trees and shrubs from around the perimeter of structure especially trees that overhang the roof. This will both take away harbourage areas and make accessing the roof a little bit harder for them.

When all else fails, other control measures will need to be implemented. Here at Amalgamated Pest Control, we are the experts at assessing all of your options and presenting the available solutions to you.

What will you do for me?

If we are called to your home because you suspect or know you have a rodent problem, the first thing we will do is conduct a full rodent inspection. We look at all areas of known activity, internally and externally, including the roof void and the sub-floor. This inspection allows us to identify the rodent species, any nesting areas, travel routes, and where they are getting food and water from.

With this crucial information, we can than implement a control strategy best suited to the problem and the property. We will also provide you with important recommendations on things you can alter or fix to manage the environment and make it less appealing to rodents. Once management has been implemented, we will keep coming back to check the bait/trap placement until the problem is controlled. We will also point out all the proofing measures that can be undertaken to keep rodents out in the future.

Remember – if the rodents come back, so will we.

If you even think you may have a rodent problem, call us here at your local Amalgamated Pest Control today.

Termites: What are they, how they enter your home.

Termites are an ancient order of insects whose origins date back more than 100 million years to the Cretaceous period. Although they are commonly called ‘white ants’, the resemblance to ants is superficial and they are more closely related to cockroaches and in fact have been recently included into the cockroach order Blattodea.

Termite Characteristics

Termites can be grouped into three basic categories:

• Dampwood, these termites generally live in damp rotting logs or rot pockets in dead or living trees.

• Drywood, these termites obtain water from the wood in which they live and have no contact with the soil, or with any other source of moisture.

• Subterranean, these termites are generally ground-dwelling or require contact with the soil or some constant source of moisture and are the main threat posed to timber in the built environment, (timber-in-service).

What type of damage can they cause to your home

No matter where you are located in Australia, Subterranean Termites are present in your area. Subterranean termites are responsible for more economic loss each year than all natural disasters combined. There are more than 350 species of termites which have been recorded in this country, about 25 of which achieve economic importance as pests of timber in service.

Where do they live?

Subterranean termites live in colonies, numbering from a few hundred to millions. In each colony there is a division of labour, with several distinct castes, each specailising in particular duty. The worker termites are responsible for the damage to timber caused in their search for food, which consist mainly of cellulose, sugars and starch present in the timber. Subterranean termites generally nest underground in the soil,  build earthen mounds, or nest in the root crowns of trunks or living and dead trees. Having to maintain contact with soil or a reliable water source to obtain sufficient moisture to survive, subterranean termites construct protective mud shelter tubes from their nest to their food source- living trees, seasoned timbers, books, furniture, etc. Consuming the wood from inside out, usually by the time the termites work is visible, the timber is virtually eaten away.

How subterranean termites can enter your home.

• Constructing mud tubes over concrete piers
• Constructing tunnels up the centre of wood stumps
• Constructing mud tubes from the soil to the flooring, often within cavity walls
• Through hair line cracks which appear in concrete slabs around plumbing and electrical conduits
• Through service pipes such as telephone, plumbing and electrical
• Bridging by way of vegetation in contact with the building, through the soil abutting the base of the building, working their way through mortar or timber in soil contact
• Through colonsing flights, reproductive termites may form nests within or in close proximity to the building

Still concerned?

If you wish  further information or advice regarding termites or having a timber pest inspection, please contact your local Amalgamated Pest Control branch.