Risks Rodents Pose to Home Insulation

There are many different pests or home invaders that might be particularly harmful to your house’s structure, and some of the top examples here are rodents like mice and rats. These are some of the larger invaders you might deal with, and unlucky homeowners may even run into bigger animals like squirrels, raccoons or possums.

At Bug Busters, our residential pest control services include a full range of protections against mice, rats and all other larger invaders. One of the primary risks these creatures pose is to the insulation in your home, which can have several negative trickle-down effects if you aren’t careful. Let’s go over how rodents operate inside the home, the issues they pose to insulation, and some signs you’ll often notice that can signal the issue and allow our exterminators to get on the job right away.

Ideal Rodent Environment

Similar to several other kinds of pests, rodents prefer to make their homes and spend their time in warm and safe areas. They will actively seek out these areas and will often go to great lengths to reach them, including burrowing and chewing through many materials.

And unfortunately, there are few places in or around their natural outdoor habitat that will look as appealing here as some of your indoor insulation areas. Insulation is designed directly to hold in warmth during winter and cool months, and on top of this is highly malleable – this makes it easy for rodents to not only enter, but make themselves comfortable.

Issues with Rodents in Insulation

Rodents can create several specific issues if they are able to make their way into your insulation, including:

• Accumulation: For starters, the presence of a few mice or rats generally means you’ll be seeing a great deal more in the near future. All the issues we’ll discuss from here become more significant when you’re dealing with a mass infestation, which can happen quite quickly.
• Air loss: As rodents chew through parts of your insulation, they may wear it down and cause it to leak air more easily. This not only leaves the insulation damaged, but raises your heating or cooling bills in many cases.
• Air quality and health: Rodents will also leave droppings and urine around the home, and even if you don’t directly see or smell these, they can have a major impact on air quality and your health. Rats in particular are known to carry many diseases that can be dangerous to you and any pets in your home.
• Electrical problems: Mice and rats are not afraid to chew wires to get where they’re going or detach part of your insulation, and this can be a major fire hazard.
• Finally, insulation can act as an actual food source in some cases. On top of simply moving pieces of insulation around your home for their own comfort, rodents may simply eat it as well.

If you notice any droppings or minor signs of rodents in your home, call our pros immediately. To learn more about this and preventing rodents or any other pests, speak to the exterminators at Bug Busters today.