How To Get Rid Of Squirrels - Pure Pest Control

Squirrels generally stay in nature, but sometimes they seek shelter inside your homes attic or crawlspace. This can be a big nuisance and even cause damage to your home.

To get rid of squirrels, first cut back tree limbs at least 3’ (feet) from touching your roof. Next, be sure to fill any holes in your walls, foundation, as well as any vents. Use baits and live traps to capture the squirrels and relocate them. Finally using a predator spray will keep them from coming back.

You may also be interested in reading these two related articles “How To Trap Rats In Your Home” and “How To Get Rid Of Rats“.

In the rest of this article I am going to go over each of these aspects in more detail and walk you through the process step by step. As you read on keep in mind the below advice from Benjamin Franklin!

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”
Benjamin Franklin

Let’s test Ben Franklin’s quote to see if it works in order to get rid of squirrels.

Doing A Squirrel Prevention Inspection

In order to prevent squirrels from getting into your home it is important to inspect your foundation, siding, guttering, and vent system. Squirrels can get into your basement or crawlspace through cracks and holes in your foundation. Once they are inside they are hard to remove.

Walk around your home and inspect the foundation for any cracks or holes. If you find any cracks that are about 1/8” to a ¼” wide, it is important to seal these cracks as soon as possible. A good sign that squirrels are using these cracks for food storage is finding acorns and other foods they like inside.

How to Seal Up Your Foundation

In order to seal cracks or hole, s to prevent squirrels from entering your home, you will need some hydraulic cement that is premixed in a tub or a caulking tube. You can easily get these items from Amazon or your local hardware store. Then follow these steps:

Clean the crack with a stiff wire brush.
Apply a good thick layer of hydraulic cement with a trowel or putty knife.
Press the cement into the crack firmly, and smooth it out flush.

If you find a crack more than a ¼” wide you may need to consult a foundation expert.

How To Patch Foundation Holes

Holes in your foundation are generally caused from utility work. Squirrels can easily get into your home through these holes if they are ¾” or larger. This also depends on the size of the squirrels.

Holes in brick, concrete, or rock foundations are a little harder to fix than if you have a utility hole in your sill plate.

In order to plug a hole in your concrete foundation you can use the same method for repairing cracks by using hydraulic cement. However, with utility holes it is possible for the hydraulic cerement to shrink and fail.

The best product to use is Drylok ® Fast Plug or any mortar mix. You will have to mix water to the product to form putty. Clean the hole with a wire brush and apply the putty to the hole on both sides of the hole. The putty usually sets within five minutes.

How to Keep Squirrels Out of Foundation Vents

Keep squirrels from entering your house by inspecting your foundation vents. On older homes these vents could just be hole the size of a missing brick or a hand size rock for rock foundations or skirts. These vents should have a metal screen covering the vent.

On newer homes these the vent holes are formed with the foundation wall. The vents are a lot like a floor register vent for your heating system in your home. They have dampers and a strong stainless steel screen that won’t rust.

Any foundation vent can be easily damaged by debris such as rocks hitting them from a mower during lawn work. Check your foundation vents making sure they are not loose or damaged in anyway.

A small hole in the screen of the vent can be an invitation for squirrels.

If the foundation vent frame is damaged, you can easily make a new replacement or purchase a vent replacement from Amazon. For the screen you can cut a piece of hardware cloth to fit the vent. Using self drilling metal screws fasten the cloth or meshed wire to the existing frame.

So far you have learned how to prevent squirrels from getting into your home, now lets discover how to get rid of squirrels by that are already in your attic.

How To Get Rid of Squirrels in The Attic

First Identify If Squirrels Are Getting In

Getting rid of squirrels in the attic is going to be a lot harder to do than preparing to keep squirrels out of your home. This includes the attic basement, crawl space and especially between your walls.

One of the first signs of squirrels in your attic is when you hear a lot of scampering over head. Squirrels like to play and an open attic offers enough space.
You may notice water spots appearing on your ceiling. This could be caused by squirrel urination.
A quick inspection for any droppings or food sources lying around on top of your insulation is another good sign
Check any wiring and wood for any teeth marks. Squirrels are rodents and chewing is just what they do.

Then Follow These Steps To Capture The Squirrels

You will need to get as many live traps as you can.
Bait them and set them in various areas of the attic and check them daily for live squirrels.
Call your local pest control company or game and wildlife office if you are unable to find or purchase live traps. Most states have laws in place against killing squirrels.

Finally Take These Repellent/Preventative Measures

Check for any cracks or holes the size of a quarter near the eaves, loose or bent screens in your gable vents, exhaust and plumbing flashing and then seal any entry points off. You can use hardware cloth to cover holes and caulk to seal flashing and eaves.
You can use moth balls, squirrel repellent, or predator spray to scare the squirrels into the traps.

How to Get Rid of Squirrels From Your Backyard

Squirrels are natural pruners. It is there nature to gnaw on wood such as branches, your prized bushes, flower beds and garden areas.

Squirrels have ever-growing teeth, which all rodents have. Squirrels have to gnaw in order to eat the food they need to survive and shred material for their bedding. Unfortunately, this includes just about every natural thing in your backyard.

It is pretty much impossible to get rid of squirrels in your backyard. However, there are plenty of ways to deter them from your prized garden and other plants.

Install baffles around prized trees and bird feeders. This will act as a slick surface that squirrels can’t climb.
Put up fencing around your garden area to keep squirrels away. After setting the fence posts, dig a ditch a few inches deep and run your fence all the way to the bottom of the ditch when you install it. Squirrels aren’t that great at burrowing and this will deter them from digging under the fence. Don’t forget to cover the ditch back up.
Build a squirrel house at the farthest end of your property. This may relocate the squirrels from being too close to your back yard and garden.
Use predator spray around your backyard. Predator spray is basically fox urine a natural predator for squirrels. You will need to reapply after every rain fall.
You can use live traps to relocate squirrels. The only problem with outside live traps is that you may trap other critters too. The same goes for kill traps.
Get a terrier dog. A dog is a good deterrent for squirrels in the backyard if you have perimeter fencing to keep the pooch in and great way to give them the exercise they need. Plus watching the chase is entertaining.

Squirrel Removal Legalities

Squirrels are cute little furry critters that many people enjoy watching play in their natural habitat. Many don’t even think of them as rodents. Because of this most states have laws in place that even pest control services have to follow or suffer fines or even imprisonment.

In the United States, some squirrels are classified as game animals and some are protected species. Most homeowners will not be able to tell the difference without looking up local and state laws.

So, before you do anything about your squirrel problems, make sure you will not have problems from a legal stand point, check your local and state laws. All you have to do is take a few moments and search online Your City, and State squirrel laws.

Example:

“Seattle Washington Squirrel laws”

As you can see that old Ben Franklin, was correct in stating that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” when it comes to getting rid of squirrels around your home.

Can Squirrels Climb Gutter Down Spouts?

Squirrels are excellent climbers and they can and will scurry up gutter down spouts if there is enough traction to get a foot hold. Most down spouts have crimped grooves built in for strength. Squirrels can simply get a foot hold on them and shimmy right on up to your roof.

Squirrels are also great jumpers. They can jump from a tree limb onto your roof and use your gutters as food storage. The best way to keep squirrels from climbing your down spouts and using your gutter as a personal storage unit is do the following preventative measures.

Keep all bushes, creeping plants, and tree limbs trimmed at least 3’ from your home.
Install a mesh screen at the end of the down spout that can be easily removed in case of a blockage.
Install gutter guards to prevent squirrels from hording.

Do Electronic Devises Work On Squirrels?

Electronic deterrents emit an ultrasonic sound wave that only animals can hear. A study from the University of Toledo found that squirrels can hear these ultrasonic waves starting at 49 Kilohertz.

These kinds of devises are used to scare the squirrels out of the range of the electronic repellent. They come in many shapes and sizes. Most need a power source such as an electrical plug-in and now they are being made to use solar.

If you have other animals or pets I would not recommend using these type of repellents in how to get rid of squirrels.