gutter pests and rodents

Squirrels, mice, and other small rodents.


These rodents shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone because we’ve all seen squirrels running around on our roofs, but the question is what the rodents are attracted to gutters.


Safe and Comfortable
Most all rodents are always on the lookout for a better place to move into. Gutter provides such a place, especially if the gutter is full of debris like leaves or twigs. The rodents will use this material to build themselves a nest. Being high off of the ground is a bonus for them because they are safer from their natural predators. See this post about keeping your gutters cleaned 


The issues they cause


Their nests block the flow of a working gutter causing a multitude of issues. The water will begin to overflow onto the ground causing erosion, also sometimes leak onto the side of your home causing damage. The rodents also tend to like the seclusion that the inside of a gutter provides so they make their home there. This is worse because it is much harder to remove and if the rodent gets stuck and dies it will smell bad and attract small insects further messing up your gutter and home.




Bees, Hornets, and Wasps


Bees and wasps enjoy building their nests in damp and moist areas just like a gutter. While these pests won’t affect the gutters as much, they are difficult to deal with and remove. You should always use caution when dealing with them.




Mosquitos, Ants, and Termites


These guys can cause some of the worst damages and are a pain to deal with.


Signs of an infestation 


It can be difficult to spot signs of these bugs from the ground if they are living in your gutters. Mosquitos are typically the easiest to see. They love still stagnate water. If your gutters have any sort of clogging drainage issues it will cause water to stay in the gutters that they allow the perfect breeding grounds for mosquitos. 


Termites and carpenter ants eat wood. The biggest issue with these boogers is you won’t know they’re up there until it's too late. The best way to help prevent this is to have your gutters cleaned regularly and check the surrounding areas for any damage. Also, this will ensure that your gutter isn’t attracting other pests If there happens to be a clog or dead rodents.

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