Hearing Some Strange Sounds on Your Roof? It Isn’t a Human Living There—It Is a Wild Animal!
No matter how much you love animals, you don’t want animals in your roof. These wildlife visitors can cause all manner of damage and even pose a health hazard—but how do you know if there are animals in your roof?
One of the clearest signs of a pest infestation is the presence of unusual sounds. While you may hear many types of noises, scratching, chewing, and scampering are the most common. These sounds are usually made by birds, rats, squirrels, or raccoons, though insects can also be behind strange noises, such as termites.
Preventing animals and other pests from making nests in your roofing is vital to avoid roof damage. Let’s take a closer look at the types of animals that may invade your attic or roofing, the damage they can do, and some suggestions on how to deal with this problem.
Common Animals in Roof Spaces and the Damage They Can Do
Birds
Birds can be great to have around as they offer free insect control, but having them living in your attic isn’t so pleasant. Their nests and their acid droppings can decrease your roof’s lifespan and even lead to water damage.
Birds generally build their nests in gutters during dry spells. When it does rain, these nests may lead to water pooling in or around your gutters, which can lead to leaks and attic moisture. If left unattended, those issues can then lead to mold and mildew.
Where there are bird nests, there are also more bird droppings. Bird poop is acidic and can stain or degrade certain roofing materials, such as shingles. With enough exposure, you might even begin to see visible holes.
Squirrels
Squirrels generally get in through the shingles and vents, and once they’re in, they can present a serious fire hazard if they chew into electrical wires. They will also stockpile pinecones, seeds, and other materials you generally don’t want in your roof, and their entrance holes can provide access to other animals as well as rainwater depending on where they’ve found their way in.
Raccoons
Like squirrels, raccoons seek out warm, dry places with plenty of food to nest, and that makes your roof the perfect choice. Raccoons can be quite aggressive on top of being a nuisance as they are fond of trash. In addition to the threat of damaged wiring and insulation, raccoons can also carry rabies, putting you, your family, and your pets in danger.
Rats and Mice
Rats, mice, and other rodents often make their way into roofs through soffits, or they may enter near the foundation and travel through the walls into the attic. You might hear strange sounds, such as chewing and scurrying, from more than just your roof if rodents have moved in.
Rodents of all variety breed very quickly and can ruin the insulation in your walls and ceiling just as fast. They present many of the same issues that squirrels and raccoons do, in addition to health concerns over their droppings and chewing into food in your pantry.
How Did These Animals Get into Your Roof in the First Place? Signs of Early Damage in Your Roof Allow Animals to Crawl Through Easily
If you have animals in your roof, there has to be a hole someplace. The most common areas animals enter roof spaces are:
- Vents and soffits
- Loose tiles
- Chimneys
- Broken pipes
Roof maintenance is the first step to prevent animals from making nests in your roof. Any damaged or rotten area could become an entry point. Louvers are the most vulnerable spots in the attic. They usually have poor screening, so animals find this an easy access point—especially if they have nimble hands as raccoons do.
Soffits are also a good point of access for animals. The end boards that cover this part of the roof are likely to decay with bad weather conditions.
In the case of pipes or vents, chewers, like squirrels, rats, and mice, can make small holes on the surface and get into the attic. Be sure to keep an eye on any pipe or vents on your attic or roof.
What to Do If You Hear Noises from an Animal in Your Roof
Once you find animals in your roof, it’s time to look for solutions. Below we give you some options.
Go for simple and fast measures. These will help control the problem but not solve it for good.
- Place baits and traps in strategic places
- Seal entry points—we can help with that!
- Consider recruiting the help of a pest control expert
You want to avoid the use of poison or other methods that may leave dead animals that you can’t retrieve in your roofing. Once you get them out, there’s also the issue of repairing the damage they’ve done. That might include things such as repairing wiring, cleaning up droppings, and replacing insulation.
To keep animals out of your roof in the future:
- Avoid accumulating water around the house as it can attract many animals, including insects
- Trim all tree branches as many animals use them to climb onto the roof’s surface
- Keep garbage well covered
- Perform regular roof inspections and keep up on maintenance
Get a Proper Roof Inspection Before It’s Too Late
While you can carry out a roof inspection yourself, some signs of animals in roof spaces can be hard to spot, as can the beginning signs of damage. At Hometown Roofing ATX, we can help keep your roof animal-free and in top condition. Our team will catch small issues before they can become big problems saving you both time and money. We can also seal entry points, and repair damage animals in your roof may have already done.
Get in touch with our team today at (512) 707-9182 to schedule a roof inspection and be rid of the animals in your roof for good!