Interim Bat Proofing
If bats are in your area but not inside your actual house yet, there are steps you can take to keep your building
secure, including a close inspection by a wildlife professional and elimination of gaps or structure
holes 1/4" or larger.
If bats are found in your attic or anywhere else in the home, bat removal, or
"exclusion", can
only be completed at certain times of the year due to bat breeding and hibernation cycles.
However, preparation can begin at any time and it is also possible to proof the living areas of your home
during the interim.
Keeping Bats Out Of Your Living Areas Temporarily
The below guide is meant to provide a temporary solution, a way to make you and your family safer
during the interim until the exclusion proofing process can be completed.
These precautions will be unsightly, depending on how you do them, but they are mandatory.
Once again, keep in mind they are temporary.
Most of these efforts are designed to segregate rooms and possible openings. Once you've
located where the bats are entering, doorways and other precautions can be uncovered,
leaving only the needed barriers.
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1.
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Go to your local hardware store. Lowes, Home Depot, Menards, Westlake Ace hardware.
Your favorite store should have the following items that you will need to keep the
bats at bay until September.
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2.
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Purchase the following items: Colored 1"-2" painters tape: this is easily removed,
depending on the color. Clear plastic sheeting. Push pins. A water soluble caulk.
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3.
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Before affixing tape, always test it on the same surface in an inconspicuous area in
case the tape will remove the paint, stain, or finish, once the tape is removed.
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4.
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Close your fireplace flu(es). Tape plastic over the face of the fireplace, including the floor.
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5.
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Your next goal is to find every INDOOR gap that measures 1/4" or more.
Bats can fit through any gap that size or larger. These must all be sealed,
at least until the full exclusion process can be preformed.
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6.
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Any open doorways or arches must be closed off with plastic, tape and / or stickpins.
Affix the tape all the way around, including the floor.
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7.
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Check can lights, all light fixtures, attic openings, closet ceilings,
above ceiling trim, all door gaps, bathroom vent fans, kitchen range hoods,
and so on. Remember, this is only temporary.
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8.
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If you plan on painting soon anyway, use caulk to close up any gaps, where applicable.
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9.
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If this is a house, when you go to bed, tape yourself and your children
in their rooms. When morning comes, check the entire home / dwelling.
The bats cannot get out of a taped up room except for where they entered it.
Remove any bats, and start over again. Repeat this process until you are
certain that there are no more bats entering the dwelling. You can slowly
eliminate plastic and tape as you see fit and appropriate.
This bat proofing process should allow you to sleep better at night.
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