If you run a business and discover a rat pest problem, you may be asking: how do you remove rats from a business property. Find out why rats are a problem and how to solve the rat pest problem.
Keeping Your Commercial Property Rat Free
Arguably rats are one of the most detested pests in the world. With their wiry hair and speedy movements, most people jump at the sight of one. Not only this, but Rats are regarded as a major risk to public health as they contaminate food with diseases like Salmonella, Weils Disease and Typhus, all of which can be lethal.
What's more, Rats are known to inflict damage to structures by gnawing, digging and burrowing through walls, floors and cables. Rats are considerably persistent at entering homes or workplaces, leading to severe damage and weakening of structures. It's best to contact a professional pest controller before extensive damages are caused.
Rats are an incredibly adaptable pest; wherever there's food and water, they can reside. Whether the food is in cupboards or rubbish bags left on the floor, rats will find a way there, the best preventative measure is to ensure food is sealed and rubbish is disposed of properly. It's easy to detect the presence of rats. Simply look for droppings, freshly gnawed patches or even the rat itself. Once you've identified the access point to buildings, they can be closed up, and traps can be laid.
It's incredibly important that Rats aren't nesting, feeding or reproducing in or around the workplace. Serious consequences can occur if rats are protruding into a work environment from legal, environmental and social perspectives.
Premises can be issued fines or even closed down if Health and Safety regulations are being breached; moreover, the company's reputation will be damaged by both the employees and customers.
If you have a rodent infestation on your work premises and a customer or client notices, likely, they won't return or complete business with you.
- All rubbish should be disposed of in bins with air-tight lids
- Avoid leaving scraps of food lying around inside and outside
- Use chicken wire to cover drain pipe ends (prevents rats from climbing into roof spaces)
- Keep surrounding vegetation short to prevent rats from nesting there
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Clear any fallen fruit, spare bird food, and pet waste from outside the premises
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Regularly check buildings for access holes or gaps, and fill them in
Business Consequences of Rats
Rats can cause various issues for a business, from customer dissatisfaction to collapsing structures. Business owners must monitor anything that encourages rat infestation, from waste disposal to the local biodiversity and ensure they contact a professional pest control service to entirely remove the infestation. Even if the rats are in garden areas or outside the premises, it can present a great risk and possibility of infestation.
Below some of the main consequences of a rodent infestation are noted:
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Alert... Rodent infestation can immediately reduce the trust, perceived hygiene level and sense of safety that customers and employees feel. This can be magnified if your business is in the food processing, industrial & manufacturing and food & beverage sectors.
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Damage... Goods and equipment can be damaged by rodents gnawing at them, including wires, pipes, computers and other electrical appliances.
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Loss... The damages caused by rodent infestations can demand product recalls and can lead to a loss of contracts. Both can cause financial loss and damage to company reputations.
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Legal... If businesses don't follow the legal regulations set out by governments, they may be eligible for fines or, even worse, be closed down.
Controlling pests yourself: The dangers of rats
Pathogens and disease
Similarly to dogs, Rats are known to mark their territory and communicate with other rodents by urinating everywhere they go. Obviously, this poses a great risk to public health, and the removal of rats as soon as they're noticed is vital. Rats carry various diseases that can spread to humans. These include:
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Toxoplasma gondii
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Hantavirus
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Black Plague (disputed claims)
- Leptospirosis (Weil's disease)
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Salmonella
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Listeria
Property damage
Rats not only pose a risk to public health, but rodents also cause extensive structural damage. Characterised by their large sharp teeth, rats can gnaw through various structures and materials.
They do this in order to retain their sharp gnashes, with the most popular spots being near electrical cables and pipes, which can lead to flooding, gas leaks and fire risks. Nevertheless, the relentless rodents can chew through almost any material, from metal to bone, proving their ability to cause extensive damage to your home or workplace.
Keeping a lookout for chewed cables and pipes can help highlight the development of a rat infestation before it's too late and damage is irreparable.
Rats around businesses
All property owners or occupiers have a legal obligation to keep their land free of rodents and inform authorities of any rodent infestation under the UK government's Prevention of Damage by Pests Act of 1949. For businesses owners, this is even more vital as a rodent infestation can heavily damage a company's reputation, and leaving or checking reviews has never been easier.
Review websites like TripAdvisor, Yelp or even Google are easily accessed online and allow customers to leave reviews that are as long and as honest as they want for all your business's potential customers to see.
Besides the damaged reputation, businesses can also be liable for quite significant fines if rodents are seen on their property, with repeat offenders facing more severe legal actions. The correct management procedures should be in place to prevent a rodent infestation, and without these procedures, the Environmental Health Officers can issue enforcement notices.
Advice for Controlling Rats
To avoid a rodent infestation, you should maintain a high standard of hygiene in and around your business by ensuring rubbish is disposed of correctly, entry holes are filled in, and nesting spots are removed swiftly. Below we offer 5 simple steps to help deter the development of a rat infestation.
1. Feeding the birds
It's fun and games feeding the birds in your garden space, but without realising, you could be feeding into a rat problem. If you feed the birds, ensure you use a bird table or basket to prevent seeds from dropping on the ground.
Furthermore, bringing the leftover food in overnight can prevent the night snatchers from coming to your home, or work garden spaces, for snacks and shelter.
2. Mind the Gap
Rats are incredibly adaptable and persistent when entering a property, any hole of 15mm will be enough for the rodent to sneak entry into your home or workplace. Gaps under and around pipes, sheds and entryways should be sealed up when noticed, using a mix of wire wool and quick-setting cement.
Any gaps at a low level are more accessible to the rodents and should be treated first, afterwards, higher entry points like roof damage or vents should be dealt with. Once all entry points are proofed, any rodents outside should be unable to enter the property.
3. Feeding the birds
It's fun and games feeding the birds in your garden space, but without realising, you could be feeding into a rat problem. If you feed the birds, ensure you use a bird table or basket to prevent seeds from dropping on the ground.
Furthermore, bringing the leftover food in overnight can prevent the night snatchers from coming to your home, or work garden spaces, for snacks and shelter.
4. Stop Nesting
Rodents are known to nest in overgrown garden areas surrounded by wood or other debris and compost heaps.
The removal of any potential nesting sites near your business is vital as it can prevent a full-scale rodent invasion in the near future and help avoid damaging government fines and customer reviews.
If you're unable to cut plants back or move a compost pile, use tight-knit wire mesh to cover them, preventing the rodents from harbouring there.
5. It's all a cover-up!
Any rubbish or household waste left uncovered is incredibly tempting to rodents and will almost certainly lead to a rat infestation if left unresolved. Any used recycling containers should be rinsed to remove food residues that can attract pests.
6. Pipes, Drains and Entryways
A key aspect of property protection from rodent entry is the drains. Drains should have functional drain covers, and any disused pipes are to be sealed off.
When to Call the Commercial Pest Control Experts
As a business owner, the best thing you can do is have efficient pest control methods in place, from rubbish disposal procedures to regular building maintenance policies. Although, if these methods fail to stop a rat infestation, you should contact a professional pest control team.
To truly eliminate a rat infestation, pest controllers use various techniques to entirely remove rodents and prevent further nesting. The task of removing an established infestation can be time-consuming and painstaking; therefore, it's best to contact a professional as soon as possible to get the problem solved. What's more even with the removal of all noticeable rats and entry holes, nesting areas should NOT be left as rats breed very easily and soon enough, your rat problem will return.
The damage caused by rats left to roam can be extensive and expensive as they gnaw through almost any material and structure, most notably wiring. And as nocturnal animals, they're often hidden away in the daytime, making them harder to spot unless you notice droppings or damage.
Rodents are also known to be carriers of various diseases that can damage human health, endangering employees and customers. The infestation must be dealt with effectively to maintain legal requirements for duty of care. Unquestionably, a professional pest control team should be contacted to deal with the infestation and aftercare, especially if the property in question is a business. Here at Redtail Pest Control, we offer a friendly and reliable service, so contact us today to effectively resolve your infestation and get your business back on track!
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