Rat is one of the most annoying and destructive rodents. According to research in 2015, almost 8% of cities in warmer regions of America had rat infestation. If you use a storage facility, as many Americans do, you cannot keep it rat-free. Now you may wonder; how to get rid of rats in storage units.
You can kick out rats easily from your storage unit by following these tips:
- Avoid storing food in storage units and place everything in containers.
- Regularly inspect your facility and keep it clean.
- You can use a live trap or glue trap to capture a rat.
- Block your storage units so that rats cannot get into them.
Do you want to get rid of rats permanently? If so, give a sneak peek at the below guidelines and calm yourself.
How Do You Keep Rats Out of Your Storage Units?
Creating no incentives for rats to remain is essential to controlling an infestation. It means you have to keep away all allurements from rats’ reach. Additionally, if a rat is making its way into your storage unit, follow the below-proven ways to keep them out.
Don’t Put Food in Your Storage Room
The most important thing to keep your rat out of the storage room is to remove all eatables from the unit before locking it. If you have an urgent task, don’t leave your full pantry in a storage facility.
If a rat gets the scent of any food item in a storage room, you cannot stop it from munching. Even a well-packed bag of cereal can attract rats. To keep away rats from your facility, you should make your store free from eatables.
Look around for food in the area where you may forget it. Keep the furniture clean and make sure no fragment is left behind. Moreover, don’t eat inside the storage room as the enduring smell might persuade rats.
Put Everything in Airtight Containers
Firstly, you should be attentive while putting everything in containers. Putting everything in sealed containers is the most effective way to keep rats out of your belongings. Plastic boxes are most suitable for this purpose. Thus, devote in plastic tubs and containers so that rodents can’t nibble through them and your possessions stay rats-free.
Further, you can use cardboard containers for packing everything. Rats get a little possibility of entering new cardboard boxes because they are well-structured and have few gaps. Above all, don’t use free cardboard boxes as they attract more rats.
Fix the Damage Regularly
Fixing damage on your property as soon as they arise may protect your storage unit from further harm. Once you know the signs of a rat infestation, such as tear marks on containers and footprints on the ground, you can remedy the damage.
According to Orkin Pros (a pest control company), roof and Norway, rats are abundant in North America. They can adopt any shape according to the size of the holes. You may use copper mesh and caulk to restrain rats from eating and snacking through treated areas.
Furthermore, check the air conditioning pipes, door frames, and the building’s weatherstripping, as Norway rats can travel up to trees to reach them.
Choose a Well-Established Facility
The facility you choose for rat control is one of the most important decisions you can make. Don’t select a facility without visiting on your own. Make sure to consider the following points while choosing a storage facility:
- Check the obvious cracks or worn-out seals in the storage doors.
- Verify that the landscaping around the premises is maintained.
- Check the walls for openings that could lead to the outside or nearby storage units.
- Analyze that the storage facility’s perimeter is clear of rubbish by looking at it.
- Moreover, check the trash locations for hidden garbage.
Conduct Routine Facility Inspections
While deciding whether to rent a storage container or store your belongings in a storage locker, you should examine the possibility of rat damage before making a final choice. One neglected sign of infestation can lead to a large disaster.
You can find signs of rats’ presence from the garage to the periphery of a storage unit. Specifically, you must visit your storage unit once a week for inspection. Keep an eye out for scratch marks along the wall, chewing noises in the corners of rooms, and pungent odors from the urine of rats.
Clean Out Trash and Debris
Rats are likely to stay in dusted and uncleaned areas. If your storage unit is full of trash and debris, there are more chances of rat infestation. According to the New York State Department of Health, rats could prefer to reside in regions with food scraps, trash bins, and garbage disposal systems.
Maintaining strict trash control not only helps to sustain the aesthetic of your storage unit but also eliminates a rat feeding supply. To reduce the presence of any potential food residue, odors, and plant debris, wipe the garage and entrance of the storage units regularly. Besides this, seal all the trash bins with tight covers.
Restrict from Eating while Packing Your Storage Units
One of the crucial reasons for rats residing in your storage unit is the presence of their favorite foods. As it is a difficult job, you need refreshments while packing your storage units. Make sure to leave the storage unit if you need a snack break so you may eat and drink.
Rats may entice by just a few bread particles or an abandoned soda cup with sugary remnants in the bottom. So, ensure that the surrounding area should be clean and that no fragment from your meal remains inside the facility.
Lastly, all the members helping you in packing must follow this rule.
Wrap Your Furniture
Rats can bite and gnaw at furniture. If you’re keeping any lavish furniture in your unit that won’t fit in storage boxes, carefully wrap it in plastic first. You must cover anything that has fabric. After doing so, you can prevent rodents from nibbling or scratching the material and causing damage to the furniture. Additionally, it will protect your furniture for months.
The most crucial step is to wrap the furniture with permeable plastic to avoid moisture accumulating beneath the cover. You may use mouse-proof storage boxes for this purpose.
Clean Your Tools & Apparatus
Apart from all the mentioned ways, cleaning the tools and apparatus of your facility is vital to keep rats away from your storage unit. Trash and dust, and eatables are great allurements for rats.
Thoroughly clean any device associated with food, such as a toaster, oven, or refrigerator, before placing it in your storage unit. Rats may draw to food scraps that are sticky and left in the bottom of refrigerators or the toaster’s crumb tray. Thus, you should keep all these items away from rats by regularly cleaning all the appliances.
Use Peppermint: A Natural Method to Control Rats
Among all the natural methods to control rats, the peppermint sachet is the most effective one to control rats. Rats have great sensitivity to smell, so spraying peppermint oil around your home will deter them and stop an infestation. A great place to apply peppermint oil is near any spots where you see feces or passages.
If you choose sturdy peppermint products, you may hang them in the neighborhood. Moreover, you may also put a few drops of peppermint oil on pine cones and hang them along the wall by covering them with a thin piece of cloth. Rats dislike the peppermint smell, so they rush out of your storage unit after noticing its smell.
Use Big SteelBox Containers
If you can’t keep rats away from your storage unit, you may rent a BigSteelBox container to store your items. BigSteelBox containers are water and rats-proof because they have rubber-coated doors that form a tight seal.
Additionally, they provide a Lock Box that shields your bar from bolt cutters. Therefore, you can rest easy knowing that your belongings are secure inside the airtight BigSteelBox wherever you put them. So, use the box container and chill out yourself.
Set a Trap to Catch Rat
The best method to knock rats out of your storage unit is to trap them. There are two common types of traps to kill a rat: a glue trap and a snap trap. Select a wooden base snap trap and enlarge it by securing it to 2-inch cardboard. Now, place this trap along the pathway of rats. To lure the rats, fasten the traps with bait like cheese slices and peanut butter.
According to Automatic Trap Company in the USA, these traps are inhumane to kill rats, so you can use A24 traps for catching rats. These traps kill rats quickly and efficiently.
Use Cedar Blocks in Your Storage Unit
Cedar block or cedar oil is a natural repellent to control rats in your storage unit. Cedar oil obtains from conifer trees. The best thing about cedar is that it is not harmful to you.
You can prepare a cedar block by soaking a cotton ball entirely in cedar oil for a few minutes. After that, place these blocks along the pathway of rats. Above all, distribute the cotton balls (cedar blocks) across a broader area because they emit disseminating smell.
Call a Professional Rodents Control Company
Maintaining direct and open communication with a professional rodent control company is the best way to prevent rats from entering your storage units. Although sanitation and maintenance undoubtedly have a significant impact on several rats, the above tips might fail if the conditions inside the storage unit become out of control.
Direct and immediate contact with a rodent control company helps to prevent future damage. So, if you are unsure about controlling rats, call a professional control company and protect yourself and your storage unit.
Conclusion
Rats are among the nuisance rodents that can adapt according to their circumstances. They can survive on just one ounce of food and water each day, so when they move into an area and have access to meat, vegetables, and grains, they tend to stay.
The above tips will undoubtedly assist you in getting rid of rats, even if they find their way into your storage unit and begin harming your possessions. However, storage facility operators and renters of storage units both need to cooperate to keep rats at bay.
Lastly, if you have been dealing with rat issues for a while, call a professional rodent control company to ease your worry.
FAQs
What Deters Rats in Storage Unit?
Rats are among the most common rodents in storage units. They can nibble anything from eatables to furniture. If a rat gets into your storage unit, you can deter it by below steps:
1- Before storing anything in your storage unit, check for any sign of rat infestation e.g. scratches or footsteps of rats.
2- Remove food items from appliances that may attract rats.
3- Use shelves and tables to keep items above the ground.
4- Further, make an unseen barrier with a repellent smell that rats cannot cross.
How Do Rats Get into Storage Units?
Rats can quickly find their way into a storage unit and start multiplying. They are skilled at sneaking into places and performing acrobatic maneuvers, allowing them to enter without drawing notice to others.
Likewise, rats can change their shape according to the size of the hole or bill. Small rats can squeeze through a quarter-sized hole, so even little gaps can give access to rats living outside or in another storage unit in your area.
Can You Sue a Storage Company for Rats?
You may file a lawsuit against a storage company for rat infestation only when there has been negligence or you have complied with the terms of the lease. Before accusing the company, verify that you are not the cause of the rat infestation.
First, you check that you didn’t lure rats by storing sweets in your storage unit. After that, immediately contact the owner of the storage company. Next, look over the rental agreement to see if it demonstrates that the rental facility is not responsible for your damage. The company should compensate if there is genuine physical harm. If there is not, you should write a letter for compensation.
What Is a Common Storage Pest?
An insect or other animal that ruins or damages preserved food or other preserved valuable organic matter is known as a storage pest. Although there are several types of pests, rats and mice are well-known for gaining entry into storage facilities and apartments.
Due to the absence of people, food residue on appliances and dishware, and the ability to build nests in personal things, these rodents can enter storage containers.
Are Storage Units Responsible for Rodent Damage?
Yes, storage units are responsible for rodent damage. If a facility owner or a renter could maintain the storage unit, rats may make their way into the storage unit and start damaging the property.
The company owners should regularly inspect the facilities. If they fail to do so, it would be negligence on their behalf, and they will be responsible for it.
Does Renters Insurance Cover Rat Damage in Storage Units?
No, renters insurance does not cover rat damage in storage units. Your insurance company believes that rat damage is due to poor maintenance and general negligence on the part of the insured or the landlord.
Renters’ insurance only applies to damage that occurs instantly and uncertainly. However, since renters don’t own the storage unit, their landlord usually ends up bearing the brunt of the responsibility for fixing any damage.
References
- Department of State- New York State
- Statista
- Orkin Pest control company
