Yes. Openings around foundations, pipes, cables, and other utility penetrations are common places for mice to enter a structure.
No home is perfectly sealed and no home can be perfectly sealed. Homes need dozens of connections between indoors and outdoors. Windows and doors are the obvious ones, but there are also water and electrical lines, cable, HVAC components, and vents. If these transitions aren’t tightly sealed, mice might get inside, particularly when the weather starts to get colder.
Openings don’t need to be large. Rodents are tiny, after all. Mice can squeeze through openings around 1/4 inch wide. That’s why, in the fall, it makes sense to walk slowly around the foundation of your home and look where pipes, wires, conduits, and cables enter the structure. Also check basement windows, door frames, vents, siding transitions, and the junction between additions and the original building as well. All of these are places where rodents tend to get inside.
Inside, keep an eye out for signs of rodents. These include the presence of droppings and gnaw marks as well as shredded material which they use for nesting, such as insulation and cardboard. You might also hear them scurrying in the attic or inside the walls, especially at night.
As you seal gaps, make sure you use durable materials suitable for rodent exclusion. Rodents are able to chew through many materials, so you want ones that aren’t easy for them to get through. Required vents should remain open and properly screened.
If you suspect you have a rodent infestation, call a professional. They can help you get the rodents out first and then seal up the entry points afterward.
If mice are active around or getting into your Greater Lansing property, Mosquito Squad of Greater Lansing can help identify rodent activity and determine an appropriate control approach. Call (517) 798-8681 or request a free quote online.
