Top Home Remedies to Rid Your Home of Rats
Rats are not usually picky eaters. Therefore, they will quickly devour food that is left open and unguarded. There are a few natural repellents that you could use to keep these pests away from your house and property without harming them. Most people are concerned about the presence of rats in their houses.
This is because these animals dig holes, gnaw through walls and destroy all household items. Sooner or later, they will begin to spoil your food and wear out your shoes.
So, what is the best home remedy to get rid of rats? While there are many effective home remedies to get rid of rats, some of the best remedies include peppermint oil, human hair, onions, garlic, ammonia, mint leaves, instant grits, mint jelly, and more!
Often when people are looking for a home remedy and they search for the best one, they do not have the proper supplies on hand. Therefore, due to this, I will give you a myriad of home remedy options to get rid of rats in your home. What kind of rat do you have?
There are three types of rats that you could have. Roof rats, Norway rats, and the most common house rat known as the brown rat. All three are very similar in their behaviors and affect a home or business. While there is no “wonder cure” to eliminate a rat infestation, there are several steps one can take at home to help control and eliminate your rat problem.
How to Prepare To Get Rid Of Rats
While you will need to identify what kind of rat it is, to best determine the cause and type of damage, here are some things that can be done before performing a home remedy:
- Remove all food supplies (this includes pet food)
- Caulk all holes along baseboards and around pipes where they can travel
- Store all food in strong metal containers with tight-fitting lids
- Keep garbage in a container with a tight-fitting lid and remove it daily
- Eliminate any sources of water by repairing leaky faucets or installing filters on your outside hose bibs
Why Get Rid Of Rats?
Rats are a common problem in most places and so their control is important. They can be dangerous as they may chew on electric wires and interfere with electrical appliances such as valves, switches, or any other electrical gadget that gets into their way.
Their excrement and urine are also highly poisonous. Rats are known to spread diseases through their urine and excrement, which gets into the human body through ingestion or even exposure to it by breathing it in or having it enter open wounds on the skin. Rats are also responsible for destroying crops, nests, furniture made up of wood, etc. They have also been known to damage the wiring of the homes.
If one is looking to get rid of rats, the most common and basic solution would be rat poison. But this poses a great danger as it may rot in the stomachs of other animals such as dogs, cats, or even birds and they might end up ingesting it and dying due to its toxicity.
This is why I will share all-natural home remedies with you today.
Home Remedies for Rats
Here are the most effective home remedies for getting rid of rats:
1. Use Peppermint Oil to Drive Away Rats
Rats hate the smell of peppermint. Rats are repelled by strong smells, thus they will stay away from any area that has a constant odor of peppermint.
You can use this method if you have an enclosed space where you want to keep the rats out of, such as your basement. Peppermint oil is readily available in supermarkets and health stores.
2. Use Human Hair to Deal With Rats
If you have a lot of hair or by any chance, there is one rat that you know well enough, then you can use it to get rid of other rodents in your house. You can easily catch a single rat by using traps, but this would only drive away from the rat temporarily.
Once you have captured it, collect some of its furs and sprinkle them in areas where you think there are more rats. The smell will keep other rodents away from your house.
3. Use Onions to Repel Rats
Rats hate the smell of onions. You can use this method in your backyard and basement, and particularly in areas where you’ve placed traps that have been unsuccessful so far.
Cut an onion into thick slices and place them near the burrow or inside it. You can also tie a few pieces of onion on trees where rats frequently climb around.
4. Use Garlic to Keep Rats Away
If you have a rat infestation in your house, then you can use garlic as a strong repellent. Just cut a few cloves of garlic and place them on paper plates or anywhere else where the smell would be concentrated.
The smell will drive the rodents out of your home temporarily. You can also mix it up with peppermint oil for better efficacy.
5. Use Ammonia to Repel Rats
Rats hate the smell of ammonia. All you need to do is mix water and ammonia in equal parts, and spray them on areas where you’ve seen rodents foraging for food. It is best used alongside traps; however, make sure that there are no open flames near the place where you are using it.
6. Use Mint Leaves to Repel Rats
Mint leaves are another strong repellent that can keep rodents away from your house. You can grow mint plants in any part of your garden, or you can simply cut the stalks off and put them wherever rats might be hiding.
7. Use Instant Grits to Get Rid of Rats
Instant grits are another simple method for getting rid of rats. Mix fine-grained grits with water until it forms a thick paste, and put the mixture in shallow plates or bowls around your house.
You can also tie thin strings of the mixture on trees where rats usually climb around. Rats despise this mixture and will leave your house as soon as they get a chance to.
8. Use Mint Jelly to Get Rid of Gats
Mint jelly is yet another natural repellent that can be used to drive away rodents from your home and yard. Just like onions, the strong smell of mint leaves can be used to get rid of rats.
9. Use Dried Peppermint Leaves To Get Rid of Rodents
Dried peppermint leaves are yet another strong repellent that can keep rats away from your house. Just like onions, the strong smell of mint leaves can be used to drive them out.
10. Use Castor Oil Seeds to Get Rid of Rats
Castor oil seeds are yet another strong deterrent that can keep rodents away from your house. It is effective in repelling both mice and rats and particularly works well when placed near the baseboards of a house or any other place where rodents frequent.
11. Use Cayenne Pepper to Get Rid of Rat
Cayenne pepper is another strong repellent that can drive away rats. However, it is best to use it alongside traps. Just like many other home remedies, cayenne pepper is also quite messy and unsightly.
12. Use Gumdrops to Get Rid of Rodents
Gumdrops are yet another simple remedy for getting rid of rats. Rats simply detest the smell of spearmint and peppermint. Just like many other home remedies, gumdrops are also quite messy and unsightly. However, they will easily drive away rodents when placed in areas that you know they frequent regularly.
13. Use Black Pepper to Get Rid of Rats
Black pepper is another strong repellent that can be used to drive away rodents from your house and yard. Just like onions, the strong smell of black pepper can be used to get rid of them when they are in small numbers. You can sprinkle it on areas where they frequent or put it in their nests.
14. Use Soap to Get Rid of Rats
Rats hate the smell of soap; however, it is not as strong as other repellents. Mix some soap and water (or soda if you don’t have any soap), then spray them on areas where you’ve seen rodents foraging for food. It is best used alongside traps, however.
15. Use Steel Wool to Get Rid of Rats
Steel wool can be used as a simple remedy to keep rodents away from your house. Just twist some fine strands together into balls, then scatter them in areas where they are most likely to frequent. Rats won’t go near areas where they smell the strong scent of steel wool, and this will keep them away from your house and garden.
16. Use Chili Powder to Get Rid of Rats
Chili powder is another simple method for getting rid of rodents; however, it should be used alongside traps. Just like any other pepper-based substance, adding chili powder to a trap will help keep rats away from it.
17. Use Sulfur Powder to Get Rid of Rats
Sulfur powder is another simple repellent that can be used to drive away rodents from your house and yard. Just like onions, the strong smell of sulfur drives them out. It is best used alongside traps as a deterrent for keeping them away.
18. Use Tobacco to Get Rid of Rats
Taking some dried tobacco leaves and burning them is another simple way how to keep rats away from your house. The pungent smoke that it gives off is the strongest repellent that you can use, keeping rodents at bay for hours after being burnt. However, it should be noted that it is quite dangerous to humans and should be used with proper precautions.
19. Use a Blacklight to Get Rid of Rats
Black lights are another simple method how to keep rats away from your house. These lights send off ultraviolet rays that rodents cannot see, but that repel them nonetheless. It’s best to place these lights in areas that you know they frequent regularly – or even to put them on a trap and then place it there.
20. Use Mothballs to Get Rid of Rats
Mothballs are toxic and should be handled with care; however, they can be used as a simple method how to keep away rodents from your house. You can scatter them in areas where rodents frequent as a simple deterrent.
21. Use Ultrasonic Sound to Get Rid of Rats
Ultrasonic sound is another method how to keep away rodents from your house and garden. These can be purchased and placed inside your house around common rodent entry points like windows, doors, and vents. This makes an environment that is uncomfortable for them to live in.
However, if you get rid of them immediately, you may hurt one rat and the rest will retreat and remain in your house.
Removing Rats Safely and Carefully
Here are a few tips for safely removing rats:
Find Out Where They Live
To do this, it is enough to find one rat’s nest with droppings. Rats leave a large number of droppings throughout their habitat, which you can see with your naked eye.
Rats are very careful about hygiene, always scratching their parities with claws to get rid of the remains of food. It happens that they build nests under loose floor tiles or in some other hidden spot, but it is still possible to find them using a special detector.
Cover All Holes With Wire Mesh
Covering all holes with wire mesh will prevent rats from entering your house. This is very simple to do and you can make it on your own using materials found in every office supplies shop or hardware store.
Traps
It is also possible to use humane traps, which do not kill rats, but hold them until you take the trap away from your house. If the rat is small, it should be released at a considerable distance from your house.
I hope these home remedies work for you to get rats out of your home quickly and efficiently. Be sure to take the proper precaution when handling rats. As mentioned above, they are dangerous and poisonous creatures.