Prevent Wildlife from Entering Your Home

Metro Orlando FL | Kissimmee - Sanford - Leesburg

Whether you have bats in your attic, squirrels nesting under your porch, or some other type of wild animal trying to make your house it’s a new home, you’d likely prefer if you never had to bother with nuisance wildlife in the first place. That’s where it’s important to learn how to keep wildlife away from your property. Heron Home & Outdoor is here to help you with some tips to make your property less attractive to animals in the first place. Read on to learn our best wildlife prevention tips!

7 Tips to Prevent Wildlife in Your Home

1. Prevent animals in the attic. Any mammal may try to get into your attic during the colder months, but the most likely culprits would be bats, squirrels, and raccoons. The best solution is to install screening over any vents, louvers, or other openings.
2. Cover dryer vents. Dryer vents are warm and appealing, especially to chipmunks, or squirrels. The best solution is to cover the opening of a dryer vent with a piece of wire mesh cloth or screening to keep these animals out.
3. Chimney protection. A chimney provides the perfect opportunity for nesting and it can attract raccoons, bats, and squirrels. You can prevent chimney nesting by installing an inexpensive screen or using hardware netting to deter nesting from wild animals. A chimney cap can also be utilized.
4. Protect your porch. The space beneath porches and decking is a perfect spot for many animals to make a new home. The best solution is to cover any openings under a porch or deck with mesh, wood, or hardware cloth. To stop animals from digging and tunneling under a porch, bury a barrier about 12-inches into the ground.
5. Cover overhangs and gutter. If the overhangs of your home are open, it can be a great place for squirrels, and raccoons to take refuge. To prevent them. keep facia and soffits in good repair.
6. Secure all food. Aside from shelter, animals are routinely drawn to our properties in search of food. Properly secure all trash cans, bins, or dumpsters, especially if they contain food waste. Use tight-fitting lids and, if possible, keep the containers in an enclosed area until they’re ready to be emptied.
7. Eliminate clutter and potential habitats: If given the change, wild animals can nest right in your backyard. Remove standing water or any piles of debris. Regularly trim trees, branches, and shrubs away from your house to make it harder for tree climbers like squirrels and opossums to use them as stepping stones into your house.

Our 22 Point Inspection to Prevent Wildlife

The key to keeping wildlife away from your property is to make your property less attractive to them in the first place. Heron Home & Outdoor’s 22-point inspection for wildlife prevention includes thoroughly checking areas such as:

• Chimney caps
• Roof vents
• Roof tiles and shingles
• Fan vents
• Fascia boards
• Soffit and soffit vents
• Roof flashing
• Utility lines
• Louver vents
• Siding
• Construction gaps
• Fissures in foundation walls
• Porches and patios
• Decks
• Foundation vents
• Pet feeding areas
• Garbage areas
• Garden areas & fruit trees
• Trees touching or near home
• Holes in fencing
• Shrubbery
• Debris

When Call a Professional Wildlife Prevention Expert

Following the above-mentioned tips will go a long way in helping a homeowner in keeping wildlife from taking up residence at their home during cold weather. If these tips don’t fully succeed in preventing wildlife entry to your home, consider reaching out to the wildlife control experts at Heron Home & Outdoor. Our professional wildlife prevention team will remove them quickly and safely. Get started today!