Mice in the house
Mice, from the first noise to the last check
Most Minneapolis mouse calls come between the first cold nights and the thaw. Here is what we look for and what we do.
Signs you have them
Scratching in a wall or ceiling after dark, droppings along baseboards or in drawers, chewed food packaging, a stale smell in a cabinet.
Where they travel
Along walls and pipes, up inside wall cavities and through gaps behind cabinets and appliances. A mouse seen in the kitchen may have come in at the foundation.
How many visits
Most jobs take an inspection, a sealing visit and one or two check visits. A big house or a long-running problem takes more, and the estimate says so.
What we do
Seal the gaps, then trap in covered stations
We start outside and work in. When the gaps are sealed we set snap traps where you have heard or seen activity, and come back to check them. If traps keep catching mice after the check visits, we go back to look for a gap we missed.
A list of what was sealed, spot by spot
Traps placed out of reach of children and pets
A check visit, and a count of what is left
Mice
Questions about mice
How long until the noises stop?
Most homes are quieter within a week or two of the first trapping visit. It varies with how many mice there are and how many gaps were open.
Can't I just trap them myself?
You can, and traps are what we use. The difference is that we close the gaps first, so there are fewer mice to catch.
What about droppings and nests?
We vacuum and bag droppings in the area we worked, wearing respirators. Nests and matted insulation are priced separately, on the estimate.
Before the first hard frost
Book a fall inspection
Mice start looking for a way in when nights turn cold. An inspection now means the gaps are sealed before they do.