Bee or Wasp? Spot the Difference Before You Dial a Pest Controller
How Do You Find Where Rats Are Getting In?
Why DIY Rat Control Keeps Failing - Foam, Traps & False Hopes
You’ve heard the scuttling, Googled “how to get rid of rats,” and discovered an entire sub‑culture of home‑brew fixes for DIY rat control. Most fall into one of three camps:
The "Three Camps":
- The Bodge Job – Gun‑grade expanding foam rammed into every gap, or a mystery “super‑lethal” poison sourced from Bob‑down‑the‑pub. Result? Foam gets gnawed out like marshmallow, misuse of rodenticide risks the dog, and the midnight scratching carries on.
- The YouTube Warrior – Prime account humming, six plastic snap‑traps and copper mesh arrive by noon. Two rats down in week one… but week three brings a fresh crew that walks straight past the hardware because you’ve saturated the place with human scent.
- The Despairing – Two pest firms in four years, traps are a permanent feature under the kickboards, and you’ve resigned yourself to “the occasional chew mark.”
Why The Rats Keep Winning
- Behavioural smarts – Rats (Rattus norvegicus) are neophobic: new objects (traps) are avoided for days. They also learn from the mistakes of their fallen comrades.
- Entry points ignored – Killing a resident colony is only half the game. Every gap in the brickwork or displaced rest‑bend under the loo is pre‑scent‑marked. Remove the bodies and the next wandering rat follows that olfactory road map straight indoors.
- Tool mismatch – Six traps and a dab of peanut butter isn’t “control”; it’s Whac‑A‑Mole. Professional kits include break‑back traps, non‑toxic monitoring baits, motion cams, and—crucially—knowledge of when to use each.
What A Pro Service Does Differently
Service | What you get | Price |
Pest Survey | Full inspection, entry‑point hunt, written action plan | £60 |
Rodent Treatment | Three visits, integrated trapping/baiting, proofing advice | £240 |
Extra visits | If the job needs more than three calls | £60 each |
Our technicians spend as much time tracing ingress as they do setting control measures. We understand bait‑shyness, nest‑site preference, and how a 20 mm misaligned clay pipe can give rats an open runway straight into the cavity walls and roof voids.
DIY Rat Control: The Bottom line
DIY kits knock numbers down; they rarely switch the lights off in the nest. We combine behavioural know‑how, building‑fault forensics and the right gear to clear the colony and close the door behind it.
Ready to swap sleepless nights for a rat‑free home?
📞 07496 680 879 or hit Contact Us. One survey, a focused treatment plan, and no more ceiling gymnastics at 2 a.m.
