# [SOLVED] The American Nightmare



## Raylo (Feb 12, 2006)

Whoever said home ownership is the "American Dream" must have been smoking something or at least not spent 2 weekends refininshing a deck. Then a chance to relax? Noooooo! Now I have squirrels in my attic. I did a search to see where they might have gotten in and it looks like an end cap on the eaves is popped out just enough, maybe from the 4 feet of snow we had this winter.... Not to mention I live against the woods and there are hundreds of squirrels... not to mention this is the season for nesting and baby squirrels (not sure I have these, tho)... not to mention I have cathedral ceilings and they have taken up residence in a totally inaccessible area.... not to mention I have flex HVAC ducts stuffed up in the inaccessible area and if they chew those up I'll have to remove the entire ceiling drywall to repair.

I called a pro outfit and they couldn't offer much encouragement at finding, getting to and removing the nest. I figure I can probably trap squirrels as good as them so I am now in the squirrel relocation business with a couple of havahart traps. Hopefully I can catch the trangressor(s) and get them the heck out of here. Wish me well!


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## Basementgeek (Feb 7, 2005)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

OK.... wishing you well, but can not offer any help here.

Any chance you need a roof? It could be cheaper if you do to remove the 
sheeting, if repair to ducts is needed, if you need a roof.

Good luck !

BG


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## Raylo (Feb 12, 2006)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

Unfortunately I just had a new roof put on 2 (or 3?) years ago. It didn't need plywood, though so that would have been a big adder. I replaced the roof a bit early because I had a small leak (that turned out to be a vent pipe) that a couple of roofers couldn't find. At $200 or 300 a trip up there it made more sense just to replace the roof.


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## speedster123 (Oct 18, 2006)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

Are your soffits intack?


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## Raylo (Feb 12, 2006)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

One soffit end cap was sprung out a bit and we went up yesterday and screwed it back down. My friend who helped thinks my problem is mice not squirrels so I am also deploying a bunch of mouse traps including a couple of bucket traps in my lower level near the HVAC chase that could give them a pathway to the ceiling area.

Still not much sleep to be had here.... That's the downside to being a light sleeper.


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

mice sound like a herd of elephants running around at night


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## Raylo (Feb 12, 2006)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

Yes, I think you are right, Dai. I never had any before so they sounded too loud to me to be mice. But now I am pretty sure it is just mice. Amazing how loud they can be once their all night party starts.

I have set a bunch of traps out but I am not optimistic. I need to get some placed to interdict them on whatever path they are taking to get to my attic and I don't see any mouse signs anywhere in my living spaces. So perhaps they are gaining access through the siding somewhere. Can they get through a roof ridge vent?

But my dilemma is where to set traps to catch the buggers. I am thinking of setting a couple of bucket traps (with water only, no antifreeze) outside on the decks (ground level and 2nd level) near the back exterior wall. Only problem is I have a woods full of citters and who knows what I'd catch.

At least I had a fairly quiet night. They were apparently out doing whatever mice do and came bumping and scratching back around 4:30 AM and they weren't too raucous this time.


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

we had problems with them a few years ago when next door decided to have a bird avery

the gas pipe came through the brick wall with only a quarter of an inch gap around it but it was enough to give them entry i siliconed the gap that stopped any getting into the house

i baited the roof and that stopped them

i have a separate garage and i have found by continually having baits in there they don't reach the house

they go through a fair few baits and there are a lot of mouse droppings and surprisingly bird seed husks although the birds have been gone from next door for over 5yrs

i think they must be nesting under the concrete pad of the garage


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## Raylo (Feb 12, 2006)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

I'll have to recheck my electric, cable, gas and A/C penetrations. I suppose that if they got in at ground level they could work their way up and around the sill plates and the into the attic.


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## Raylo (Feb 12, 2006)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

I need some more opinions on what kind of critters I have in my attic/ceiling/walls. My friends and I have had several differing opinons and we have run the gamut from mice to squirrels, back to mice, to bats, to birds, to "it's quite a mystery". Below is a link to a "video" shot in the dark merely for the audio. Listen to the sound and tell me what you think it is. This is the sound I typically hear at night when they are basically stationary. Some other times I hear them moving and bumping around as they come and go. Then the noise in the video goes on for a long time. Turn the sound up loud... Also, there is a mechanical noise in the background... might be a refrigerator or somesuch but easy to distinguish.


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## Raylo (Feb 12, 2006)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

Mystery (not the problem, however) is solved. It is indeed mice. They were driving me nuts last night so I went to the spot in a wall over my BR door where they always seem to hang out and I cut a 1' x 1' piece of drywall out. Sure enough there was a mouse in the bottom between the studs. I could hear some others making an escape upwards.

Later I went back into my attic and poked my head above the insulation to look at the ridge vent and found something interesting. It looks like the screening material has been breached or else maybe it wasn't installed properly in the first place? Screening material seems to be plastic, which is surprising. Does this look credible as the pathway for mice entry? I am thinking I'll get some metal screen fabric and staple gun it down over the length of the underside of the ridge vent. 

Here is a photo of the underside of the ridge vent in one place where the screen seems damaged or displaced.


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## Raylo (Feb 12, 2006)

*Re: The American Nightmare*

Well, after a couple weeks of noisy mice, a bunch of empty traps, one 1' x1' hole I cut in the drywall of an interior wall where I actually captured one of the intruders, they seem to have left the attic. Never had a trace of mice in my living spaces... all traps in the house and attic remained empty... never identified a point of entry. So I guess I'll mark this solved for now and anxiously await fall when the mice usually attempt to move indoors. I'm gonna keep my traps handy.


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## speedster123 (Oct 18, 2006)

I believe mice can squeeze through almost every small hole due to their bone structure. Its impossible to rid them upstate. As soon as the cool weather comes, they will enter the house. 
I seen a show about infestation in Australia-
http://www.animalcontrol.com.au/mice1.htm


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