# what's in my attic?



## marcspar (Oct 11, 2005)

The last few mornings, right around 5:00, I have heard noises in the attic. It is intermittent and somewhat between a scratching and a tapping sound.

What is up there? My wife thinks mice, but I am think something bigger like a squirrel. Of course by the time I got the "right" flashlight and went up to investigate, there was nothing to be seen.

Any suggestions? Has anyone had luck with the ultrasonic devices to repel pests.

There are no visible signs of entry and we are very good about not having food left around.

Thanks,

Marc


ps - if it helps, we live in suburban CT


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## zespectre (Oct 11, 2005)

Could be mice, more likely squirrels or chipmonks. Possibly racoon.
The best tactic is to give your house a good once over and find out where they are coming in (loose soffet or something) and block the entrance. They are just trying to find a good place to store food (and themselves) for winter but you don't need the mess they'll create.


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## smokinbasser (Oct 11, 2005)

My first guess would be mice or ground squirrels( chipmunks) I had them in the walls of an upscale apartment complex. I had the opportunity for revenge though. They had a route that went into a patio on the bottom floor and were easy targets for me and a bb gun. My suggestion is to put out several glue traps and remember to check daily for critters stuck to the traps. I drop trap+critter into a bucket of water and when your satisfied the critter has tried to drink all the water and just can't wiggle at all just peel it off and put the glue trap back out. I have found a dab of peanut butter on the glue trap surface works to draw them in.


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## marcspar (Oct 11, 2005)

Thanks for the advice. We do have a bunch of chipmunks OUTSIDE the house, but I did not think they left their burrows for a house visit.

If I were sure it was mice, I would have no problem just to use some glue traps, but I think the squirrels would be too big and I would feel bad for the cute little chipmunks.

Do I assume the entry point must be in up in the attic, or are they just as likely to enter at ground level and go up the walls?

Thanks again,

Marc


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## Wolfen (Oct 11, 2005)

More than likely squirrels. Also a possibly is racoons, chipmunks, ground squirrels, rats and mice. Entrance ways vary but I would make a thorough inspection of the house, inside and out and pay particular attention to the attic area.


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## IsaacHayes (Oct 11, 2005)

Could even be a opposum. My dad found one in his moms old house in the attic once. It had long expired, as it fell between 2 boards and had it's head wedged holding it there!

You could first try a glue trap and if you do catch a chipmunk you could let it loose... If it's something bigger, well you'll hear it drag off the glue trap lol!


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## matt_j (Oct 11, 2005)




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## Pydpiper (Oct 11, 2005)

I bet mice, 5 am is their time to shine.. 7 am (and 7pm) is more likly to be squirrels.
Anytime you hear noise in the attic it is amplified, typically the rodents burrow to the bottom of the insulation until they reach the drywall, what you are hearing is them burrowing under the insulation and making contact with the drywall, giving a "drum" effect, often misleading people to thinking it is larger than it really is.. Squirresl run, it is a fast movenment from one area to the next, and is typical with the rise and fall of the sun. A raccoon sounds like a big dog, no running but BIG movement, often you can hear them spin in a circle like a dog just before retiring for the night (5am), usually in a corner.
I would love to help identify and fix this... This is my job, I hear this same story 10 times a day, and inspect attics of almost every one of them. If you are willing to pan over a couple more details I could help you fix this quicky.  
Pydpiper


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## marcspar (Oct 11, 2005)

Thanks Pydpiper! It is definately 5 am when we hear the noises. 

I could only see a few droppings and they look more like rice grains than beans.

There is no visible opening that I can find. 

I just put down a bunch of the extra large glue traps, but I will be miserable if I trap a chipmunk or squirrel.....

What else should I look for?

Thanks,

Marc


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## PhotonWrangler (Oct 11, 2005)

I believe that squirrel droppings are much larger than the rice grains you're describing, and I don't think that chipmunks like to climb very high; they're ground dwellers. I'm guessing some type of avian creature.

Perhaps there's a predator scent that you can spray in the area that will give them the idea that it's not a desireable place to stay in?


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## marcspar (Oct 11, 2005)

As long as it is not as large as your avatar! (or the image supplied by Matt_J...)

Marc


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## yuandrew (Oct 11, 2005)

I'm hearing sounds at night as well, sounds like something is running up and down my wall or in the attic. It seems to be directly above my room but theres no attic there, just a "huge" sloped ceiling that is about 12 feet at the highest point so I think there's probably about a few inches between it and the roof. There is an attic in the hall outside my room that extends over the master bedroom and the rest of the house that is accessable through a crawl hole in the master bedroom closet but it's somewhat hard to get to because of all the junk my mom has in there.

We had a termite inspector come a while back and he said he saw some rat droppings in the far corner of the attic. I've looked all over the outside of my house but I couldn't find any point of entry other than a vent. I think it might be comming from the neighbor's; we have attached houses in this neighborhood.


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## Flying Turtle (Oct 11, 2005)

Rice grain size droppings sound like mice to me.

Geoff


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## PhotonWrangler (Oct 11, 2005)

Flying Turtle said:


> Rice grain size droppings sound like mice to me.
> 
> Geoff


 
Yeah, if it's brown or black grains of rice it could be a mouse. If it's whitish it might be a bird.


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## kaseri (Oct 12, 2005)

We recently had a visitor in our attic as well. After lots of investigation I narrowed it down to a squirrel. Took a bit of crafty thinking to catch it but in the end we were able to catch the pesky squirrel & let it go outside. We also found the hole that it used to enter the attic.

During this whole time I was so excited that I was able to use my SF M6 to illuminate the darkest parts of the attic that I almost felt bad that I caught the squirrel. LOL !


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## marcspar (Oct 12, 2005)

Its funny - I was thinking the same thing: what a great light opportunity. I used my HD45 from Don (perfect mouse hunting in attic light). I gave my wife my 5w error light from surefire and my daughter grabbed the gladius, remarking that she would use the strobe to "freeze the little monsters....."


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## Pydpiper (Oct 12, 2005)

My job is my excuse for my light collection..  

If you have seen droppings than it is mice, what type of insulation do you have, often it is pink batts layed down, if this is the case you will be able to go directly to the area you hear the noise, peel it back and see the discoloration on the plastic barrier, as well as droppings. Often the noises are most prevelant near the nest, often near a source of heat, pot light, ceiling fan.. Or you may have a blown in style of insulation, as soon as you open the attic you will see signs of the intruders, they burrow through the stuff, it ends up looking like a gerbil cage, paths and burrows everywhere.
Glue traps will not fix the problem.
Rat droppings are far bigger, and hardly ever found, they tend to have "areas" they use for that purpose, like a cat would. Chipmunks can get into attics, but it's not as common, they tend to scale the inside of downspouts and chew through attic vents, very difficult to locate the holes. But thats not what you have.
Mice often scale the wall and enter in the tiny gap between the brick and the soffat, most often it is not nessasary to try to seal that, it is also very difficult and time consuming.
Can you get me a pic of the outside of the house? One of the dropping would be good too, if it is still where you found it.. PM me for my email addy.
9 times out of 10 mice scale the wall and live in the attic, almost everyone has them there, once they create their home they often begin to decend (or fall) down the walls, sometimes that is heard, other times it's not. From the wall they get into the basement ceiling, their quest for heat (not food) leads them to hot water lines and then quickly up under the kitchen sink, next stage is mice in the kitchen. It is not impossible that they will contain themselves to the attic though.
Try not to spend too much time in the attic, one reason is it is very unhealthy, the other is because if you choose to evict these little guys your smell may deter them, they are a very scent orientated rodent, and spending too much time up there could cause them to change their routine, and slowing the removal process.
They have to be killed, glue traps teach them to avoid glue traps, electronic deterrents have 0 affect too. It is a great time of the year to take on a tiny project like this, the weather is on your side.  

Again pictures would be great..
A picture will tell me the age of the house, insulation type as well as the entry point.. We could have it over with by the weekend..


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## Pydpiper (Oct 12, 2005)

Californias climate is a tough one..  
Your cathedrial style ceiling, although it appears there is no access will still contain an attic of some sort, it may not be accessable to you though. There would be at least six inches of air between your insulation and roof, it is nessasary for the house to breath.
Running at night is almost always a rodent, although it makes them appear to be creatures of the night they are actually going all day too, it is at night that the ambient sounds tame down.
Bait placement in a home with cathedral ceilings can be difficult to place and monitor, I may not be a big help to you.. But.. if you find droppings or any other clues, send them to me, it would help.  
You are correct in thinking it could come from a neighbors..




yuandrew said:


> I'm hearing sounds at night as well, sounds like something is running up and down my wall or in the attic. It seems to be directly above my room but theres no attic there, just a "huge" sloped ceiling that is about 12 feet at the highest point so I think there's probably about a few inches between it and the roof. There is an attic in the hall outside my room that extends over the master bedroom and the rest of the house that is accessable through a crawl hole in the master bedroom closet but it's somewhat hard to get to because of all the junk my mom has in there.
> 
> We had a termite inspector come a while back and he said he saw some rat droppings in the far corner of the attic. I've looked all over the outside of my house but I couldn't find any point of entry other than a vent. I think it might be comming from the neighbor's; we have attached houses in this neighborhood.


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## marcspar (Oct 12, 2005)

Pydpiper, I sent you a pm with more details, but I forgot the insulation; it's the fiberglass batten type with paper or foil facing.

Marc

update: one mouse caught overnight in the glue traps! 


After reading what you wrote about the wall travel, I do recall hearing some noises in the past in the wall of our house where the a/c lines leave the attic and go to the external compressor, but there were no large enough openings when I last checked.


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## Pydpiper (Oct 12, 2005)

marcspar said:


> Pydpiper, I sent you a pm with more details, but I forgot the insulation; it's the fiberglass batten type with paper or foil facing.
> 
> Marc
> 
> ...



Got it! I'll hang by the phone for a while this morning..


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## yuandrew (Oct 13, 2005)

Well, I checked my attic out and found out that there is some room between my ceiling and the roof that I can access from the rest of the attic. You do have to be very slim and be able to crawl into there. The opening is about chest high.

The insulation is yellow fiberglass batts with something like the paper from supermarket bags on it. It is thicker than I had expected.

Ok, I found these near the middle of the attic; I think they belong to a rat. They probably have been there for a while since they are dried up. The beer can I found was about four feet from the crawl hole. It's dated 1988 so I think the builder left it there. 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v499/yuandrew/100_0735.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v499/yuandrew/100_0736.jpg


I'm ok for now as I haven't heard anything up there moving in about two months. If it does start again, I'll check it out and probably have to set a trap.


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## MaxaBaker (Oct 13, 2005)

Ever seen the movie The Exorcist?




Well, if your bed starts shaking get worried.


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## Netwillow (Apr 26, 2014)

I've been hearing noises in my attic the last several months. The are getting worse to the point the dog is terrified. Starts about 10 pm and goes through the night. Scampering and chewing. Animal control officer origionally thought raccoons but the peanut butter and rice from the chipmunk trap I set is gone from yesterday but the trap door never closed. Am guessing mice or chipmunks now. Have seen chipmunks go up and down the downspouts. Had mice in the shed I got rid of last Spring with leftover bait traps the exterminator left before I stopped the service. I tried bait traps of a store bought kind in the Fall but still hear them. Wonder if some took up residence in the attic instead of the shed? I need an inexpensive resolution and soon because the sleep deprivation has gotten old!


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