Are you annoyed figuring out where those rats are nesting? Mice and rodents destroy household objects, appliances and transmit disease, so it’s best to keep them away. And another thing that adds to the tension is the droppings scattered in your kitchen. One rat can make your head spin; that is why you are here.
Everyone is going through a crisis of rat infestation. They are running around and chewing everything they want. Having rats may also affect your daily life, especially if you are using your entire kitchen for business or you expect important visitors. But rats are still chasing one another in your kitchen with all of your efforts. So what should you do? To know the hacks, keep on reading this blog!
KEEPING RATS AWAY USING KITCHEN STOCKS
Rats are very unwelcomed in every household. They can be a severe problem, especially if they have reached your kitchen. That is why I’m giving you this list on how to get rid of rats practically fast.
🐀 Storage
The best method to stop the rats from being lured into your kitchen is to store your food properly. The smell of your leftover dinner may attract rats, and once they’re in contact with the food, you can get into the hospital the moment you take a bite. So cover your food tightly. You can buy sealed food containers or just don’t leave any food exposed in your kitchen.
🐀 Portal of entrance
Rats can’t get inside if there are no available portals of entrance in your house. This principle may seem complicated because we know that rats can destroy almost anything just to get inside. But it is worth trying to make your doors well-sealed, especially with door frames. Windows are also a way of a rat’s entrance. So it is advisable to put screens or just keep them close unless necessary.
🐀 Garbage
One thing rats love to stay in your kitchen is because your garbage is piled up. Aside from flies, rats can also hide in your garbage bin and spread the bacteria to your food and things. So, it would help if you placed your garbage outside the kitchen as much as possible. Or, if you really want to have a trash bin in the kitchen, make sure that it is far enough from food contact and is properly sealed.
Aside from this, change the garbage lining frequently so that you can avoid rats and other insects from crawling to your bin. You have to do this hack in order to halt the spread of the garbage odor around your home.
🐀 Aluminum foil
Aluminum foil is a magical thing that can keep the rats away from your kitchen. Though there are cases where this doesn’t work, there are still successful stories that we can say “it’s worth trying.” You can just cover your food container or any entrances with foil. But don’t overdo it because it can be annoying in the sight because of its shiness and loudness when crumpled.
🐀 Herbs
Putting mint or mint oil in your kitchen has a double purpose. It can make your kitchen amazingly fresh and can scare off rats away. Just put mint leaves on where you last saw a rat or put drops of mint oil in a piece of cotton ball or any cloth and place them in every corner of your house.
If you don’t have mint in your kitchen, you can use any herbs that have a strong odor, such as cayenne pepper and garlic. These have a similar effect to mint, so start putting garlic on your windows not only to prevent vampires from coming in but also rats.
You can also use onions as a rat repellant because it is pungent enough to make the rats hate them. The only downside to this is that onions tend to rot quickly and can be toxic to pets. That is why you have to replace it every other day with a fresh one.
🐀 Potatoes
This might surprise you, but yes, potatoes can also keep rats away from your home. This is an excellent method, primarily if you use potato powder. You can sprinkle the potato powder anywhere you think the rats are likely to stay. This will act as their food, but the effect will work after ingestion. The potato flakes will swell up in their intestines and can kill them eventually.
🐀 Cocoa
This may seem impossible to work, but cocoa also helps. Just mix cocoa powder with dry plaster of Paris, then spread the mixture on the areas where you think rats frequently enter. The principle behind this is to make the rats thirsty until they die of dehydration.
🐀 Coffee grounds
Aside from cocoa, we can also use coffee grounds. Please don’t throw away your old spent coffee grounds because we can utilize them to fight off rats. Put coffee grounds (or tea bags) on the bottom of your trash bin to do this. This works by masking off the garbage odor so that no rats can be attracted to it.
🐀 White vinegar
Using white vinegar may help repel rats because of its strong smell. It has a spice scent that can sting rats and make them go away. Though rats have a solid abdominal structure, the acid of the vinegar can damage their intestines if they take a lick from it. Just spray diluted vinegar with water to the affected areas to do this. This will repel not only rats but also other insects like bugs and ants.
OTHER HOUSE HACKS TO REPEL RATS
If you saw a rat running in your kitchen, that doesn’t mean that it only stays in your kitchen. It is essential to take care of your overall household because if not, rats may only jump from one area to another.
🐁 Soap
Soap is not only to disinfect our skin and make it fragrant, but it can also act as a rat repellant. Some soaps have a more potent aroma that can be a nuisance to rats. Select a soap that has a strong smell and cut it into small pieces. Like what you did with mint and garlic, scatter the pieces in every corner of your kitchen, especially under doors and by windows.
🐁 Ammonia
We are aware that rats really hate strong odors, and ammonia will be added to the list. Get an ammonia from your local store and put small amounts in a bowl. Place the bowl near their favorite spots and wait to see the results.
🐁 Cat fur
You already know what does this means, right? We all know that rats’ number 1 enemies are cats, and rats are bright enough to sense their incoming danger. Though this may sound funny to do, but it is practically effective to put cat’s fur in places where rats may enter. This method will let the rats know that there is a cat inside your house, and coming inside will be a great danger to them.
🐁 Remodeling
One way to prevent rats in your kitchen is to remove all the contaminated materials such as rotten wood or damaged house insulators. It is also essential to make your kitchen as dry as possible. This is especially recommended for a kitchen made from wood. When the wood absorbs water, it can accumulate molds that can attract different insects and pests. So it is vital to put a critical barrier around those areas to prevent your wall from water and oil splatters.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (Rat’s Urine)
Now that you have prevented rats from coming into your kitchen, are you experiencing rat aftermath? Do you smell rat urine around your kitchen? If you can’t figure out what to do, this section is for you.
🗒️ How does rat urine still linger?
The urine of the rat migrates all over your property. This happens when a rat gets into your attic, then defecate and urinates several times a day. So let’s simply put it this way. In every corner a rat stays, it will surely dump and urinate. That is why the odor is hard to locate because it’s really anywhere in your house.
🗒️ What is the effect of the rat’s urine in your house?
Aside from having a loose bladder, rats urinate constantly to mark their territory so that they’ll know where to come back. They also do this to attract more rats to come over. To add more info regarding this urination, rats use their sense of smell to find a mate, and that urine odor will lead them to the property.
🗒️ Where do rats usually stay?
Remember that rats usually build their nest in the attic or ceiling. This is because there are lots of wall cavities where they can nest inside.
🗒️ What to do with rat urine?
You can go and run to your local store and ask for a specific enzyme treatment that will attack the rat’s urine. Follow the manufacturer’s special directions and apply them to any wood structure or drywall material. This enzyme works by soaking the material and killing any bacteria that are responsible for producing that foul odor.
🗒️ What material is the target of rats?
If there’s a case that you smell a sewage aside from urine, that is because your pipe has been a target. This is a common issue for any household owner because they can smell sewage odor, and they can’t find where it comes from. Remember that rats can chew through wood, plastic, and plastic. They will do anything just to get in your house.
BOTTOM LINE
To sum up, rats will not be in your kitchen in the first place if you clean every day. Proper hygiene is still the best way to prevent all the insects and pests in your house. Also, it is vital to use natural treatments as much as possible because we don’t want to contaminate our food and plates. And if you finally saw their nest and there’s already too much damage in your house, it’s time to get a professional pest control team.
Aside from cleaning your house, you must also clean the outer part of your house. You need to remove all the possible triggers to the rats to prevent them from coming in and inviting more families.
When cleaning your kitchen, you must also focus on your cabinets because these are where rats love to camp. Cabinets are their heaven because they are full of chips and snacks (also expired products). And if you notice some marks on your cabinets, better click this link to learn how to deal with them.