If you discover bats in your attic, call a professional to remove them safely. Your insurance won't cover this expense, and cleanup will also be your responsibility. Here are a few ways to prevent bats from damaging your home: Inspect and seal any entry points using caulk, steel wool, or metal mesh.
They often occupy chimneys and attics. The cost of hiring a professional to remove bats varies based on a multitude of factors. Bat infestation removal cost ranges from $400 to $600, with the average cost of $500 for removing a small colony, including the initial inspection but excluding clean up after the removal.
Bat Problems in Your Attic
Bat guano can introduce health risks to you and your family and damage your attic. Guano provides a hospitable environment for the fungal spores that cause Histoplasmosis, a respiratory ailment, to grow. When droppings accrue, the spores become airborne and can be breathed in by residents.
Coverage is provided to repair the damage caused by bats. The most common damage is destruction to insulation caused by bat droppings. Often times, insulation needs to be removed and replaced and some cleanup needs to be done in the attic. Coverage is not afforded under the policy for removal of the bats.
To ensure bats stay out of your attic, it's crucial to not only remove them effectively but also take preventative measures to keep them from returning. Hire a professional wildlife removal service. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends that you do not try to get rid of bats yourself.
Histoplasmosis can have a harmless form - but it can also lead to death. So having bats live inside of quarters where you or other people live is a scenario that should be avoided.
If the temperature is too cold, then the bat colony will freeze in the cold winter months. Generally, this means that they need to snuggle up under insulation to get near the warm side of a ceiling or wall. This is why you rarely see bats hanging in an attic in the winter - it is just too cold for survival.
If you discover bats in your attic, call a professional to remove them safely. Your insurance won't cover this expense, and cleanup will also be your responsibility. Here are a few ways to prevent bats from damaging your home: Inspect and seal any entry points using caulk, steel wool, or metal mesh.
Liability and Insurance: Bat exclusion professionals take on significant risks when working on a property, from potential bat bites to the hazards of working in tight spaces or at heights. The insurance costs associated with these risks factor into the pricing structure of their services.
Dampen droppings with a water sprayer. Use a low-pressure stream of water. Clean up the droppings using soapy water and a mop or cloth. Disinfect affected surfaces with a bleach solution (1 part bleach to 9 parts water).
Since the bats have everything they need in the attic, they can stay and reproduce more to make a large colony. In fact, they'll live for generations if nothing is done, so don't assume they will vacate willingly. Instead, be proactive and find a way to get rid of these animals as soon as you can.
The most effective and humane way to remove bats is with a one-way valve (bat cone or bat valve). The bat cone allows a bat to leave your attic safely but prevents re-entry. Seal all potential entry points before installing a bat cone.
If you want to implement a practice to deter bats, putting up bright lights probably won't do the trick. It seems reasonable, as bats will avoid bright lights, but it often exacerbates the problem.
After a few very hot summer days, an attic may become too hot for the bats, forcing them out and sometimes into the living quarters as they search for cooler places to roost. In late summer, inexperienced young bats may fall down a chimney, fly down an attic stairway, fly through an open window, or land on the ground.
Natural repellents like cinnamon, peppermint, and eucalyptus oils can deter bats due to their strong sense of smell. Apply these oils on potential entry points or use them as a spray around your property.
Inspection. Even if you've already spotted telltale signs of a bat infestation, your pro will inspect to determine the size and location of the colony, as well as any entry points they created along the way. An inspection costs up to $300, but most pros will wrap this up in your final bill.
Bat infestations are considered to be a maintenance issue, because bats enter through preexisting holes on the roof, along with the siding, or in the walls. As nice as it would be, your homeowners' insurance provider will likely deny coverage for bat removal because of this.
They hate certain smells, like eucalyptus, bright lights, and annoying, loud sounds. They also do not like the smell of mothballs because of the ingredient naphthalene, but it is impractical to replenish mothballs since an enormous amount is needed to have any effect and they disintegrate fast and easily.
California Fish and Game Code §4150: This law classifies all bats as “nongame mammals,” meaning they cannot be taken, possessed, or killed without appropriate permits.
Homeowners insurance probably won't cover you for the removal of a bat colony in your attic or building. This is your responsibility, just as it was also your responsibility to make sure they didn't get in, in the first place.
If there was any possibility the bat had direct contact with a person or pet, contact your local animal control (link to animal control) to arrange rabies testing. If the bat escapes or is not tested for any reason, contact public health for a consultation on rabies 213-288-7060 Monday to Friday 8am-5pm.
If the attic damage was caused by a covered risk, such as fire or wind, your home's insurance policy may pay the cost of rehabilitation. Repairing or replacing damaged insulation, drywall, and other materials could be included.
The most effective and humane way to remove bats is by using a bat valve in conjunction with a full home exclusion. A bat valve allows for bats to exit your home but not re-enter. Once the bat valve is installed, all other entry points will be sealed, allowing for bats to only exit through the valve.
Yes, bats return to the same place every night. They will also return to a known roost after being gone for months or years. They remember the location, especially if they are looking for a place during the maternity season, and they will return.
Histoplasmosis is a fungal disease contracted through airborne spores in bat droppings. Histoplasmosis symptoms may be anything from a mild influenza to blood abnormalities and fever, or even death. An eye condition has been linked to the bat disease histoplasmosis and can lead to blindness in those who contract it.