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Rodent Control
Rodent Control and Exclusion: what it covers
Quick answer
Rodent control in Birmingham starts with the entry points, not the traps. The technician looks for the gaps rodents use at the foundation, the utility lines, the eaves and the attic, then sets traps where activity is found and records the sealing needed. Calls are answered 24/7.
A rodent problem is almost always an entry problem. Mice can pass through a gap the width of a pencil, and rats can use a gap the size of a coin, so a building that has a rodent inside has a way in that the household has not yet found. The technician's first job is to find that way in, before any trap is set, because a trap in the wrong place catches one animal and leaves the route open.
Birmingham Pest Control takes rodent calls at any hour from Birmingham and from the towns of Jefferson County, and the visit is planned around the building type. A detached house has a foundation, an eave and a garage to check; a shop has a back door, a delivery area and a food store; a flat in a shared-wall block has the voids the building shares with its neighbors. Each has its own likely way in.
This page does not describe the rodent species found in Jefferson County, because no Alabama rodent data is on file for this site. The technician identifies the animal from its droppings, its tracks and the damage it has done, and states what that tells the household about the population and its route.
Do not handle a dead animal, droppings or nesting material with bare hands. Use gloves and a mask when cleaning droppings, and wet the material before sweeping so the dust does not rise. Keep bait and traps away from children and pets.
Droppings in a cupboard, under a sink, along a wall or in the garage, dark and rod-shaped
Gnaw marks on a door sill, a food package or a cable sheath
Scratching or running sounds inside a wall or in the attic at night
Greasy rub marks along a skirting board or a pipe where animals travel
A pet that stares at a wall or a cupboard, or that brings in a dead animal
A damp or nesting smell in a loft, a shed or a stored box
A mouse in the garage of a detached house on a family lot
What homeowners notice
A household finds droppings beside the garage freezer and chewed food packaging on a shelf. The garage is shut at night, but the animal has been using a route along the wall for several weeks.
What we do
The technician checks the garage door seal, the vent screen and the pipe that passes through the wall. A gap at the vent is found to be the route, and the rub marks confirm the line the animal follows. Traps are set along the wall where the droppings show travel, and the vent gap is recorded for sealing on the same visit with the owner's agreement.
What to expect
The sealing is completed on the visit, the traps are checked at the follow-up and the record shows the catch and the gap closed.
2 hours typical visit
Options
Types and options for rodent control and exclusion
Detached house with an attic or garage
The attic and the garage are the most common hiding places for rodents in a detached house. The visit checks the eaves, the vents, the garage door seal and the attic access, and sets traps along the rafters and the walls.
Shop or food business
A food business needs a record of activity and of the entry points that were sealed. The visit covers the back door, the delivery area, the food store and the drains, and the report is written in a form the owner can keep.
Shared-wall or multi-unit building
Rodents move through the voids the building shares, so the visit covers the unit that reported the activity and, with access, the voids on the shared walls. The report says which neighboring voids were checked and which were not reached.
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Traps reduce the animals that are already inside, but they do not stop more from coming in. A building that is not sealed will attract the next wave, which is why the entry points are part of the plan from the first visit.
A trap catches the animals that happen to walk across it, and a rodent that has learned the room may avoid a trap for days. A household that keeps setting traps without finding the way in is treating the symptom. The technician counts the catch, notes where it was made and uses that to find the route the animals take.
Sealing removes the route. A gap at a pipe penetration, a missing vent screen or a gap under a garage door is closed so the next animal cannot use it. The work is explained before it is done, and the owner decides which of the marked gaps are sealed on the day and which are scheduled for later.
What should a household do before the sealing visit?
Clear the areas where the work will be done, move stored food and paper, and keep pets away from the gaps. Report any new activity and note where it was seen, so the sealing can be checked against it.
Before the visit, clear the cupboard under the sink, the shelves in the garage and any boxes in the attic. The technician needs to reach the walls and the gaps, and a cleared space makes the visit shorter and more accurate. Store food in sealed containers, and move pet food indoors if it is kept in the garage.
After the visit, keep a note of any activity. A new dropping or a fresh gnaw mark tells the technician whether the sealing has held, and whether there is a gap that was missed. Report it to the line, and the follow-up will look at the place where it was seen first.
Our process
How our rodent control and exclusion visit works
Confirm the animal and the activity
The technician checks the droppings, the tracks, the rub marks and the damage to decide whether the activity is mice, rats or something else. The answer decides the trap size, the bait and the places to set them.
Find the entry points
The building is searched from the outside in: the foundation at grade, the utility lines and the vents, the eaves, the garage door, the gap under the door and the attic access. Each gap is measured and marked on the sketch, and the owner is told which ones are most likely to be used.
Set traps where the travel is
Traps are placed along the walls where droppings and rub marks show the animals run, not in the middle of the room. Each trap is labelled and numbered on the plan, and bait is used only where it can be kept away from children and pets.
Seal where the owner agrees
Entry points are sealed with the materials that suit each gap, such as steel wool and sealant for small gaps and metal mesh for larger ones. Sealing is explained first, and the owner agrees which of the marked gaps to seal on the day or later.
Check, clear and record
Traps are checked and cleared, the catch is counted and the activity is noted at the follow-up. The record shows which entry points were sealed and which remain open, so the household can see whether the problem is shrinking.
Jefferson County
Why rodent control and exclusion is different in Central Alabama
Rodent calls from Birmingham reach the same 24/7 line as calls from Hoover, Trussville and the other towns on the service list, and the technician is sent as soon as one is free.
A detached house in Birmingham and a flat in a shared-wall block need different entry checks, so the first visit records which one it is before any gap is marked.
The species on the plan is the one the technician identifies from the animal's sign. This page does not name a Jefferson County species, since none is on file for the county.
Where we work
Rodent Control and Exclusion across Jefferson County
Removing or treating wasp, hornet and yellow jacket nests in Birmingham and Jefferson County, with the nest's position and the people nearby taken into account first.
Rodent activity leaves signs in predictable places: droppings in the cupboards, gnaw marks on food packaging, rub marks along the walls and sounds in the wall at night.
Read the guide
FAQ
Rodent Control and Exclusion FAQs
Are traps enough to get rid of mice?
Traps reduce the animals already inside, but they do not stop new ones coming in. The entry points are part of the plan, so the number of animals falls over time.
How soon can a technician come?
The line is answered 24/7 and a technician is sent as soon as one is free. No arrival time is promised on this page, because an honest one cannot be given over the phone.
Is it safe to keep pets in the house during the visit?
Keep pets out of the areas where bait and traps are placed, and ask the technician where each one is. The plan lists the placements so the household knows what to avoid.
Will sealing the house stop rodents for good?
Sealing reduces the routes in, but it cannot guarantee that no animal will ever come in. The follow-up checks the sealed gaps, and new activity is reported and treated.
