Squirrels are a serious concern as far as pests in Toronto go mainly because of their incessant gnawing and chewing. They will chew on your wooden support beams, electrical wires, plastic plumbing, insulation and anything else they can get their sharp teeth on and can cause a lot of damage in your roof. A squirrel on your roof is almost certain to find its way into your home.
These critters are intelligent and know how to spot and exploit weaknesses such as water damaged shingles or weaknesses at the roof eaves. Next, you’ll hear them squealing, chattering and scurrying in the attic.
Getting Rid of Squirrels on the Roof
If you are lucky enough to have the squirrels just on the exterior roof and haven’t made their way in, it is of primary importance that you prevent them from continuing to access your roof.
Start by observing the squirrels for a few consecutive days or for as long as it takes to notice their pattern. You are mostly looking out for how exactly they are finding their way onto the roof.
Trim long branches ensuring that there is a distance of at least 8 feet between the branch and the roof. Squirrels are great jumpers and can clear up to 8 feet in a single leap.
Cover your tree trunks with sheet metal at least 6 feet high and 2 feet wide. Hold the sheet metal in place with springs and wires to allow the tree trunk easy room to expand. The sheet metal is slippery and discourages the squirrels from climbing on the trees.
If you notice that the squirrels are gaining access to the roof via wires or cables, cover them with PVC pipes. Take about two-inch long PVC pipes and cut lengthwise to slide over cables or wires. The idea is the pipe spins when the squirrel tries to scurry across it and drops to the ground. Squirrels are impressive gymnasts and can fall from great heights without getting injured. You may need to contact an expert if the critters are accessing the roof via electrical wires.
Getting Rid of Squirrels in the Roof
The squirrels may have found their way into the roof and this will prove to be a more complicated process. The priority is to remove them humanely and the best way to do that is using a one-way exclusion door.
Find all the possible holes that the squirrels are using to get into the roof. Squirrels can fit through a hole the size of a nickel coin so be meticulous in your search. Seal lightly with cardboard or newspaper and wait a day or two and check back to see if the barrier is disturbed. The hole with the disturbed barrier is the main entry hole.
Seal all the other holes with metal flashing or galvanized steel mesh leaving only the main entrance. Install a one-way door on the main entrance. This allows the animals to leave the roof but blocks access from the outside-in. Check back every day or so for at least a week or until you are sure all the squirrels have left.
Remove the one-way door once you are sure the squirrels have left and seal with galvanized steel mesh or metal flashing. You still need to follow the steps prescribed in the previous section to keep squirrels off your roof moving forward. Also, professionals can clean up your attic after squirrel invasion and remove any squirrel poop and squirrel nests.
Hire a Wildlife Removal Expert to Remove Squirrels from Your Roof
Getting squirrels off your roof may seem straightforward but it is a nuanced job that requires expert knowledge of the animal’s behaviour. First off, the chances that you will find every single hole that the squirrel can possibly use to enter your home is minimal. This is especially the case for older houses. An expert’s trained eye and experience is the only way to guarantee that the house is properly wildlife-proof.
Another concern is trapping baby squirrels in your roof with indiscriminate use of one-way doors. You need to make sure that there is no litter inside the roof before locking the mother out. Baby squirrels will die of dehydration and starvation without their mother. The location of the litter may not be obvious at first since squirrels prefer to stash the kittens in hard-to-reach areas including wall voids.
Finally, the squirrel removal technician Toronto will help you remove attractants that lured the squirrels to your property in the first place including accessible garbage, wood piles and more.