There’s A Rat In The Kitchen
Nightmare-inducing statistics* from Rentokil warn that increased numbers of rats are invading British homes to find some respite from the wintery weather conditions.
It appears that the much-reviled creatures are just as opposed to snow, sleet and freezing temperatures as we are, and have been burrowing their way into our centrally heated houses to keep warm and dry.
So, how do you cut down the risk of a rodent invasion? Rule number one, says Rentokil, is: don’t leave rubbish outside your home.
This, it would seem, is the rat equivalent of placing a red carpet on your pathway and a great big WELCOME! banner over your door.
Secondly, make sure that you seal any holes or gaps in your house, particularly around pipes, and repair or replace broken drain covers.
Rats only need minimal entry space and – yikes! – can even emerge from sewer systems. (Yes, I’d thought that was an urban myth too.)
If you’re concerned that you may be unwillingly co-habiting with a colony of rats, Rentokil have a handy “Signs of a Rat Problem” section on their website, as well as some excellent rat-busting advice.
*Rentokil saw a 34 per cent rise in rodent-related callouts between Jan 07-Dec 07 and Jan 08-Dec 08.
In 2009, local councils were called out to deal with 700,000 infestations, compared with 650,000 the previous year.
Related Tags: rodent, Rentokil, General, rat
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Just to make it easier for your readers the link for the ‘Signs of a Rat Problem’ on Rentokil’s web site is:
http://www.rentokil.co.uk/residential-customers/household-pests/rats/index.html
One of the ” sure ways ” of identifying if a block of flats suffers form rat infestation is to look at the service charge accounts. If you can see a history of ” pest control ” fees then you know there is a problem.
Your conveyancing lawyer should send you copies of the previous 3 years accounts. Not many buyers realise that these accounts can provide a rich insight as to the state of the block.
Rats and mice mainly walk into a property.
That is broken air bricks, missing bricks, on the back of utilities gas,water electrics pipes and cables.
Yes broken sewer pipes which can be found by visual rat poo in inspecton chamber or by a drain camers survey.
Deal with the problem, then try and stop it re occurring.