Although rats can be a good pet, the truth is that most of the time these rodents are undesirable animals in any home and their grayish and dirty appearance can be disgusting. For this reason, in most houses it is always a matter of scaring away these small animals and the truth is that it can be quite a complicated task. If you want to learn much more about How to Get Rid of Rats from your home, don't hesitate for a moment to continue reading this article.
How to drive away rats
We reiterate, driving away rats from your house can be quite a complicated task, especially if you do not know very well the behavior of these rodents, because you should also consider the extreme speed with which they can reproduce. Not to mention that like many other animals, rats can give humans a number of diseases, plus they tend to be pretty disgusting and unwanted animals.
Normally, in houses or apartments all over the planet, rats very easily find a good place to make their refuge and to feed, using their speed and small size to go completely unnoticed and stay in your house.
Characteristics of Rats
As we have mentioned several times, rats are rodents and these in turn belong to the Muridae family. They usually measure between 26 and 30 centimeters in total length, their body is quite elongated and their snout is pointed, in turn, their tail is quite long and thin compared to their body. They regularly have very short black, light brown or dark brown fur.
Also, rats are able to adapt very well to all kinds of environments, this is because they can consume almost any type of food they find, they can also swim, dig, climb and run very fast. However, unfortunately for them, this great adaptation that they have has made them live mostly in the aqueducts of different cities, places that are completely infested with diseases that later, these same rare ones infect human beings.
Within the extensive list of diseases that rats can infect humans, we could find some such as different parasites, bubonic plague or even salmonella. Not to mention that these unpleasant animals can have different external parasites such as fleas or ticks. For all these reasons, obviously it is best to keep them as far away as possible from our homes.
How to drive away rats from the house?
Once you discover that there are rats in your home, you can probably get worried, however, the only thing you have to do is apply the following recommendations that will be mentioned about how to drive away rats from your home without killing them. All these recommendations are completely homemade solutions and remedies that can help you completely drive away rats in a completely natural way.
Deep cleaning
Rats will always prefer places that are perfectly suited to the conditions they need to live, for this reason, the first thing you should do to eliminate rats from your house is to clean your house very thoroughly and eliminate any element that may be attractive to these rodents.
Among all the recommendations that you can apply to eliminate rats is: Take out the garbage every day, have completely hermetic garbage cans and close the garbage bags very well, do not leave any food outdoors, store all the food in airtight packages, make sure that all sewers, drains, sinks and all water outlets are completely closed to prevent unwanted animals from entering. In turn, we can also find other recommendations to do a deep cleaning in your house, among these we find:
You must do a very deep cleaning in all corners of your home, whether it is a house or an apartment. For these you can use bleach or chlorine, and you should especially focus a lot in the kitchen and be very careful when moving appliances and furniture to clean behind and under them. The idea of this cleaning is to remove any debris that the rats might feed on.
Once you stop using any surface in your kitchen, clean this area immediately. Eliminate boxes, old clothes, and anything that has been stored for a very long time, as these will be ideal environments for rats to inhabit and reproduce. It is a much better option to opt for airtight plastic boxes to store all your belongings.
All spaces where there are pets or children, you must disinfect them every day, either with vinegar or you can also use lemon, this is because chlorine or bleach could be slightly toxic to them. During this long process you must wear gloves and a mask, remember that the dust from the dry feces expelled by rats can be extremely harmful to human health.
Menta
It is well known that mint is one of the most effective home remedies of all to drive away rats from a house, because this plant has a fairly strong smell, which will repel rats very well. For this you must use mint oil or fresh mint; now the way you will apply this will be in the following ways:
- You can dip some cotton balls in the mint oil, after doing this put the cotton balls in a glass container and you should place them unclosed, at the entrances of the house, windows, or any place where you have identified the presence of rats
- In the event that you have fresh mint leaves, you can put them in muslin bags and also place them in strategic spaces in your house.
- You can also use mint leaves to make a cleanser. For this, all you have to do is boil a mint tea, that is, you must emulsify a few mint leaves in hot water for about an hour. Once it is ready, put the tea in a container with a spray bottle and use this to clean various areas of your house.
It is very important that if you decide to apply the mint to repel rats, you should change the leaves, or the cotton balls, approximately every three or four days, remember that over time they lose their smell, which is what they mainly do. drive away the rats from your house.
Pepper and clove
Using spices are very good remedies if you want to drive away rats without having to kill them. These remedies are not only completely natural, but you can make them yourself very easily with ingredients that you will find in your kitchen. To apply this, you must gather a good amount of cloves and cayenne pepper, once you have them, fill muslin bags with the species and place them at strategic points in your home, this will generate a very strong aroma that will scare away rats . Remember that just like with mint, after a while the bags will lose their aroma and you will have to change them.
Hot sauce and detergent
Hot sauce is also one of the most effective natural remedies that can exist to drive away rats from your home. To apply this remedy, first find a container, then you must mix half part with water and half part with liquid detergent, finally you will apply approximately 20 drops of hot sauce. Once you get your mixture, use it to clean any surface in your home. However, you must remember that this mixture is not usually recommended if there are children or pets in your house, since this remedy could cause some irritation in them.
Ammonia
Like many of the home remedies that have been mentioned above, ammonia also has a rather strong and unpleasant odor for these undesirable rodents, this is because it closely resembles the smell of the urine of the main predators of rats, this smell will cause rats to flee your house immediately.
To apply this remedy, the first thing you should do is obtain powdered ammonia and mix it with water. Once you have your mixture, what you should do is spray them behind all the furniture in your house, in the corners and in all those areas where you have detected the presence of rats. Like the previous method, it is not advisable to use this remedy if there are children or pets in your house because it could become very toxic for them.
Onion
Onion is probably the simplest home remedy to ward off rats, although it can also be very effective. To use the onion against rats, you must cut several slices of it, then you must put open containers and place them at strategic points in your house, such as windows, drains, or any area where rats can enter and live. .
ultrasound devices
When talking about methods to scare away rats, it is suggested that ultrasound devices are the most effective if you want to avoid harming these undesirable rodents at all costs. The functionality of these devices is very simple, they emit a sound with an extremely low frequency which is totally imperceptible to human beings, however, for animals and specifically for rats, it is one of the most unpleasant sounds that exist, for this reason they will flee as quickly as possible from him. You can easily purchase one of these devices at different home supply stores.
However, you must remember that these devices are not so easy to use at first, the low-frequency sounds they emit are only pointed in one direction, for this reason you must make sure to point exactly where the rats are. placing in your house.
How to drive away rats from the garden?
Well, now that you have been able to observe all the natural and homemade ways to drive away and completely eliminate rats from your house, you should also know how to drive them away from your garden. It is important to remember that once these rodents invade your home, it is not enough just to drive them away from your home, you must make sure that they are out of your garden as well and from all around your home. Below you can see a detailed list of all the methods or remedies that you can apply to eliminate rats from your garden and surroundings:
Menta
Mint is probably the main and most effective natural remedy to completely drive away rats from your garden. All you have to do to take advantage of this plant is to plant several of these plants and make sure that they are always very healthy. . The fresh and rich aroma that these give off from their leaves can be very pleasant for humans, however, for rats it is unpleasant and they will not think for a moment to go through your garden.
Cleaning
Keeping your garden very clean is essential if you want rats to be as far away from your home as possible. Whenever you can, remove all the natural debris that is there, such as trunks, dry plants, leaves, among other debris. In addition to this, you should make sure to keep your garbage cans completely sealed and completely remove any standing water deposits.
Aromatic plants
Although it is probably the most effective plant and the one with the strongest aroma of all, it is not the only plant that can help us completely ward off rats. Some plants that are great options are: Lavender, peppermint, calendula and also basil. All you have to do is plant them in your garden, always keep them very healthy and water them regularly, this ensures that their aroma will always remain very powerful.
metal mesh
If you identify that the rats are entering your garden through a fence or fence, one of the best options you have is to install a metal mesh in your garden that completely prevents them from entering your house and also your garden. This is probably the easiest way to scare away rats from your environment, because, if they don't enter at first, you will never have any problem with these undesirable animals.
How to get rats out of the roof?
One of the most common places where rats take refuge is the ceiling, and unfortunately this can be the most complicated area of all to drive away rats, however, below you will see a small list of the best recommendations that you can follow to chase them off your roof:
- First, take a good look at your ceiling and clearly identify all the fissures or cracks that there may be and where the rats can get into your house. Rats can be extremely agile and elusive animals, for this reason you should not underestimate any type of crack or hole that may be in your house or on your roof.
- Once you have identified the cracks well, you must seal them on the inside, that is, on the side that is inside your house. For this you can use materials such as plaster, putty, or cement, everything will depend on the severity of the crack, and if you cannot do it yourself, do not hesitate to get a professional to do it.
- After you have completely sealed all the possible entrances that the rats have, you should apply some of the home remedies that we have recommended above. Likewise, they will have no way to enter your house and the only way left for them to completely escape unpleasant odors will be to escape from your roof through the outside of it.
- Finally, when the rats are completely gone, the time will come when you should check the cracks in your roof on the outside very well and repair all of these. Before repairing the cracks, you must make sure very well that no rat is trapped inside the ceiling, as it could bite and scratch the wall until it finally manages to get out. Once you're very sure, repair the cracks using metal mesh or plaster.
- After a couple of days have passed, you should thoroughly check your entire house to make sure there is no residue from these rats, such as their feces, chewed objects, torn bags of food, among other items.
Here you have all the natural remedies that you can apply in your own home if you want to completely drive away rats without having to kill them.
If you want to learn much more about all the animals throughout the world, do not hesitate for a moment to leave without first having read these three wonderful articles: