Rodents are among the most hated house pests in the United States. These perpetrators do not only bring life-altering diseases to your house but can potentially do significant structural damage. Along with contaminating your house and food with their urine, defecation, and skin cells, they can also be dangerous due to their gnawing and nest-building activities.
Do not underestimate mice and rats. They may appear small in size but can inflict damage of hundreds or maybe thousands of dollars. To save your hard-earned money and make sure your family remains safe, call Nampa pest control to solve the problem.
Structural damage caused by rodents
- Wires.
Rodents are mostly found in your house’s walls or the attic, which means they have full access to your home’s electrical wiring. While they do not eat wires, rats will gnaw away at it if they find it blocking their path or simply to shorten their constantly growing teeth. The wires used for regular homes are not rodent-proof and thus lead to electrical malfunctions, short circuits, and a risk of fire. Many residential fires have been traced back to mice and rats.
- Nests.
While the nests are not hazards for your house, but the way these rodents acquire the material to build their nests is. Rodent nests are usually made of paper, plastic, wood, cloth, and insulation. Therefore, they will tear these away wherever they find them in your house, causing significant damage.
- Framing.
Mice and rats damage the framing of your house to get into your attic, basement, or someplace else they find habitable. They can easily chew through wood that is used in the framing, including studs, roof trusses, floor joists, and headers. They can even chew through sheetrock and soft concrete. They have pretty strong teeth and can pretty much get inside your house easily.
- Ducts.
Rodents often build their nests in the heating and cooling ducts of your house. It can cause the HVAC system of your place to become less efficient, exposing you and your family to harmful bacteria and germs.
- Pipes.
Rodents may gnaw on your home’s pipes to shorten their teeth or collect materials for building their nest. Even the smallest holes in the shower, dishwasher, toilet, bath, or sink pipes can cause a flood and ruin the floorboard of your house and other things as well. If that is not enough, rats and mice can also chew through gas pipes, increasing fire risks.
If you find your house with significant structural damage due to rodents, you are not alone. The worst part is that most insurance companies do not compensate you for the damage done by vermin. So you have to pay everything out of pocket. To save your thousands of dollars from going to waste, call pest control today.