Finding and closing the openings where rodents and squirrels get into a Snellville attic or crawl space.
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Attic and squirrel exclusion means finding the openings animals use to enter a house and closing them so the animals cannot come back in. A technician checks the roof line, soffits, vents and the spaces around pipes and penetrations, because a rat or mouse can use a small gap. The work is sequenced so the animals are not sealed inside.
Most of the houses a technician sees in Snellville were built on slabs in subdivisions, with older crawl-space houses mixed in. Federal census-survey data for the Gwinnett County school district geography puts roughly 59 percent of the housing structures in the 1970 to 1999 bracket and about 37 percent from 2000 onward, so a large share of the attics in town sit under roofs that are a few decades old. That matters because the joints where a roof, a wall, a soffit and a vent meet are where age shows first, and it is where rodents look for a way in.
The three rodents that UGA Extension says live in Georgia are the house mouse, the Norway rat and the roof rat. Rats and mice usually hide by day and move at night, which is why many homeowners first notice them as sounds in the ceiling or walls after dark rather than as animals they have seen. A squirrel is a different animal with different habits and a different entry point, and a technician identifies the animal from the signs and the opening before choosing a method. Squirrel and rodent work overlap in the attic but they are not the same job.
A call for this work usually starts with a noise, a smell or a dropping found in the attic hatch. Phones are answered 24/7, and a visit happens when a technician is free rather than at a set arrival time. Before any sealing starts, the technician explains what was found, which openings will be closed, in what order, and what the price is. The price is confirmed on site, in writing, before any work starts.
A homeowner should not go into an attic or crawl space without a light, a dust mask and a plan for where to step, since insulation and framing can hide a fall or a wire. Poisons, glue boards and fumigant products carry risks for children and pets, and a homeowner should not place them in a wall void or attic, where they can be missed and reached by a child or a pet. If an animal is found dead in a wall or attic, the technician should be called to remove it, so the smell and the handling are done safely. Any sealing should be planned with a technician who knows whether an animal is still inside.
Soffits, fascia joints, gable vents and ridge vents are the most common places a technician checks on a house with an attic. Where a soffit board has a chewed corner or a vent screen has come loose, the fix is usually a matter of replacing the board or screen and closing the joint behind it, and the material is chosen to fit the existing trim.
Each pipe, wire bundle and exhaust fan duct that passes through a wall or roof is a potential entry point. The gap around a penetration is often larger than the pipe itself, so the technician checks the edges of each one and closes the gap with a material that matches the surface around it.
Older houses with brick or block piers and a crawl space often have a different attic layout, with more framing that a rat can use as a route between rooms. A technician checks the attic and the crawl-space side together, because an animal that enters at the sill line can travel up inside the wall to the attic.
On houses with brick veneer, the weep holes at the base of the brick are openings by design, and a technician looks at whether any of them lead into a space an animal can reach. The fix is planned with the veneer in mind, so the technician first checks which openings are meant to stay open.
Tell us what's happening and we'll tell you honestly whether it's a quick fix, and what attic & squirrel exclusion should cost.
University of California Extension guidance says to seal gaps larger than half an inch to keep rats out and gaps larger than a quarter inch to keep mice out. That is California guidance rather than a Georgia rule, so it is a measure a technician uses as a starting point and not a legal standard.
A homeowner who wants to check their own house can look for gaps around pipes, wires and vents with a flashlight from the attic, and can look at the soffit boards from the outside. The gap that matters is the one an animal can get its head through, since the body usually follows. A technician measures each opening rather than guessing from its look, because a gap can narrow in one place and open up in another.
Measuring is one part of the work. The material that closes the gap also has to hold up to the animal chewing at it, which is why a technician chooses the material to fit the opening and the edge it sits against, rather than filling the gap with whatever is nearest.
The houses here are mostly subdivision homes on slabs from the 1970s onward, with older crawl-space houses mixed in, and each type has its own roof and attic layout. Where a tree limb reaches a roof, an animal can use the limb as a route, which a technician checks for on each house rather than assuming it is the cause.
The fact sheet for this site describes the housing stock as a mix, not a single pattern. On any house, the joints between the roof, the wall and the vent are where a technician looks first. Older crawl-space houses on piers have a different layout, with more framing and a crawl space below that can connect to the attic through the wall.
Snellville's lots are a mix of open ground and wooded edges, and the creeks and the Yellow River corridor run through the wider area. A house near a wooded edge or a creek corridor can have more animals living close to it than a house on a dry street, and a technician asks about that when planning the work. That is a reason to check, not a finding about any particular house.
Yes. Rats and mice and squirrels use different routes, leave different signs and need different openings closed, so a technician identifies the animal before choosing a method. UGA Extension lists the house mouse, the Norway rat and the roof rat as the rodents living in Georgia.
Rats and mice are small enough to use gaps that a squirrel cannot use, and they tend to hide by day and move at night. A squirrel is larger and is often more active in daylight, and it can chew through a soffit board or gable vent to reach a nest space. A technician reads the droppings, the chewed edges and the nesting material to tell the two apart, because a plan written for one will leave the route used by the other open.
Where the animal is still inside, the order of work changes. The technician deals with the animal first and only then seals the openings, because closing a route with an animal still in the space can trap it inside the wall or attic.
The price depends on how many openings there are, how hard each one is to reach, how large the attic and roof are, whether insulation has to be moved or replaced, and whether the work covers one house or several units. The price is explained and approved before work starts, and no figure is given on this page.
Access is one of the biggest factors. An attic with a standard hatch and a clear floor takes less time to inspect and close than an attic with a tight hatch, low joists, stored boxes or a finished ceiling that has to be opened. A roof with steep pitch or high eaves takes more setup time than a single-storey roof, because the work has to be done safely from the right position.
The number of openings and the condition of the materials matter as much as the size of the house. A house with a few well-placed openings is a different job from one with openings at every penetration and a soffit that has been chewed in several places. The technician walks the house and explains the price on site, in writing, before any work starts, so the homeowner sees what is being priced before agreeing to it.
A homeowner can look for openings and clear the attic floor, but sealing and the handling of any animal inside are better left to a technician. The attic is a confined space with insulation, wiring and framing, and an animal inside can behave unpredictably when it is disturbed.
Homeowner policies can matter here too. The fact sheet notes that termite and vermin damage is usually excluded outright from a homeowner's policy, and that the policy and the insurer decide what is covered. A homeowner who has a rodent problem and a claim question should read the policy and talk to the insurer rather than assume a result, and a technician can describe the work done but cannot decide the coverage.
The technician asks where the noise, smell or droppings have been noticed, what time of day it happens, and whether the house has a crawl space, an attic hatch or a finished attic. Those answers decide which parts of the house to inspect first, and they keep the visit from becoming a general walk-through.
The technician works from the attic side and the outside together, checking soffits, gable vents, ridge vents, exhaust fan housings and the places where a pipe or wire passes through the roof or wall. Each opening is recorded by location and size, because a gap that looks small from below can be larger than it appears from the attic.
Droppings, gnaw marks, nesting material and the shape of the opening are used to tell a rat or mouse from a squirrel. The choice of method depends on the animal, because an opening that a squirrel can use is not always one that a mouse can use, and a plan built for the wrong animal will leave the real route open.
Before any sealing, the technician lists each opening, the material that will close it and the order of work. Animals already inside are dealt with first, since sealing an opening with an animal still inside can trap it. The plan is explained to the homeowner, and the price is confirmed on site, in writing, before any work starts.
Openings are closed in the planned order and the work is checked for any gap that was missed. A follow-up look is part of the job, because an opening nobody has seen cannot be closed on the first day, and the technician wants to confirm that the sounds, droppings or tracks have stopped.
Snellville's own 2019 future-development map names character areas such as Towne Center, Highway 78 East and West, Scenic Highway North and South, and No Business Creek. Attic work on Scenic Highway and near No Business Creek is planned house by house, since each house is checked on its own layout.
Thomas W. Briscoe Park has a lake, walking trails, picnic areas and playgrounds, and the Centerville branch of the county library shares a building with the community center beside it. Properties that sit near parks and open water can have more wildlife moving through the area than a dry street, so a technician asks where the house sits relative to those features when planning the work.
Snellville sits where US 78 crosses Georgia 124, and the Yellow River crosses Georgia 124 just northeast of town. A house close to a river or creek corridor can have more animals in the surrounding ground and trees, and that is one reason the inspection looks at the roof line, the soffit and the crawl space together rather than only the attic.
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
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Squirrels are a different animal from rats and mice, and they use different openings, often larger ones near the roof line or a gable vent. A technician checks the soffit, the gable and the vent screens for signs of nesting material and chewing before deciding what has to be closed. The plan is written for the animal that is actually there, not the one that is assumed.
UGA Extension says the house mouse, the Norway rat and the roof rat all live in Georgia, and rats and mice usually hide by day and move at night. Droppings, chewed edges and the shape of the opening help a technician tell them apart. A sure sign of occupancy is a small hole with chewed edges, and the technician records what the signs show before recommending any work.
University of California Extension guidance says to seal gaps larger than half an inch to exclude rats and gaps larger than a quarter inch to exclude mice. That is California guidance rather than a Georgia rule. A technician measures each opening and chooses a material that will hold up to chewing, rather than relying on a single size rule.
Sealing closes the openings a technician finds, and it cannot close one that nobody has seen. That is why a follow-up check is part of the job. No outcome is promised, and the technician will explain what was closed, what was not, and what to watch for after the work is done.
The fact sheet says termite and vermin damage is usually excluded outright from a homeowner's policy. Coverage is decided by the policy and the insurer, not by the pest company, so a homeowner with a damage question should read the policy and contact the insurer. The Georgia Office of Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire is the state office that handles insurance complaints.
Noises at night in the ceiling or wall are a common reason for a call, and rats and mice are usually active after dark rather than during the day. A technician can check the attic hatch, the soffits and the roof line for droppings, tracks and chewed edges. A visit is scheduled when a technician is free, and the price is confirmed on site, in writing, before any work starts.
Phones are answered 24/7, and a visit is made when a technician is free rather than at a set arrival time. The first call is about what is happening and where, so the technician knows what to bring. The price is confirmed on site before any work starts.