Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

[BuzzStPoint]

Every night/morning around 1am to 3am I find myself running around in my skivvies chasing bat(s) in the house. I get woken up from the dogs chasing them.
This has been happening the last week and a half. 2 nights ago I caught on around 1 am and got woken up around 230 with another one flying around.
I've looked around the house and can't really seem to find any obvious areas where they are coming in. This bat problem isn't anything new, I've had bats in the house since I bought it. (4 1/2 years now) but I catch one or two per year.. This time it's one to two per night. I'm not sure if it's the same one or different. Tonight I'm gonna spray the one I catch with gold paint to see if it's the same one coming in.

 

[Fireman431]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

Start thwacking them with a tennis racket...

 

[mommicked]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

We had bats entering the house from a brick/block chimney, and/or an abandoned vent pipe for an oil furnace that was replaced w central heat and air in an old house we rented years ago. bats can fit through or into very small holes, like the channel of an old aluminum framed horizontally sliding window where I found one after 4 hrs of searching the house!! the space it had backed itself into was about 1/2" by 3/8"! A fishing net works well to catch or remove them if their perched. check all the screens for holes on any vents through the roof and the dryer vent.

 

[Jeep Man]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

Wait outside after dusk. You should see them coming out. When you find the spot, wait till after dark when they are ALL out before closing the hole.

 

[pydpiper]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

Found this site looking for a solution to my motor, coincidentally I do wildlife control for a living, specializing in bat removal. If you send me a picture by email of the front and back of the house I will show you where they are getting in as well as teach you how to get rid of them.
What you are experiencing is juvenile bats getting lost from their mother, highly unlikely it is the same bat over and over.
Still learning how to manuver on this forum, shoot me a PM with your email and we can go from there.

 

[BuzzStPoint]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

Here's the 4 corners of the house.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

LOL sorry .......... my Son just had a huge bat in his house with over a 1 foot wing span!!!! He caught it with a towel and released it.....he had left his 2nd floor sliding door open.

Consider this...... at least you will not have bugs!!!!

I have had it happen here too in my 150 year old home and between the 2 80lb Labs and the 3 cats the bat incident was VERY team oriented and exciting.

 

[BuzzStPoint]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

I do have a fishing net upstairs here to catch them.

On the upside. Under the eves there is wire mesh so they are not getting through there.
The only place I can see that they may be getting through..
In the pic with the Pool and full chimney stack. On the backside of the chimney they roofing cement looks like it's pulled away about 1/2 inch. Then along the flatter part of the roof there's a section of the siding that's pulled out about an inch on the bottom. (Figuring the ice dam did that one).

 

[veritas honus]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

Check out your attic. If you can smell stale urine up there (from bats), you've got to get rid of them fast; and bleach out the joist spaces and everywhere you can smell it. You'll need to use a respirator, not a dust mask, or have a professional remediation done. You can contract airborne rabies from the urine of bats. It takes hold in your upper and lower airways and lungs... Really bad stuff!!! I learned that from an animal control officer, not someone using scare tactics to sell a product or service. You'll also need to block all access points in the house. Where the soffits are vented, you can block spaces large enough for bats to get in, using steel mesh, like the stuff used in concrete.

 

[BuzzStPoint]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

No vented soffits, and no attic, There's a small area above the bedrooms but no access to that area unless a person could fit in the vent grates on the front and back of the house. Plus I dont have a ladder tall enough to reach that area.

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

My bet is on the roof vents and attic vents............... or maybe they found your hide-a-key!!

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

Simple answer, Shotgun, call your insurance company prior though....

 

[12vMan]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

We had the cat bring one in once - instead of a bird this time. Fishing nets work great! Those little buggers can fit through holes like a mouse.. they can flatten themselves out and squeeze through smaller spaces than you would think..

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

The holes in my net were too big You are best with a towel.

 

[pydpiper]

Re: Getting so tired of bats... In the house.

The fact that your house has siding is good indicator your problem will be easy to fix.
I see a few different areas you should be looking at, but my guess is going to be that chimney. In the pool picture the chimney contacts 2 levels of roof, the areas where one roof tucks up under the second can often leave a small gap due to the contractors inability to get under there to secure things, or often things get dislodged while a roof is being replaced.
Bats need a porous surface to land on, your house has two of them, one is the shingles on the roof, the other is that chimney. To gain flight a bat needs to drop, it is very difficult for one to simply leave the ground like a bird, again bringing attention to the chimney.
Do not block holes! If there are bats in there you may block them in and create a whole new problem.
When you are on your roof look at the areas where the roof lines meet up like that triple roof line below the chimney, as well as the one above the 2nd back door closest to the camera in the picture below the pool picture.
Once you find the main entry hole you will see evidence of bats. Like every other airborne animal they do their business before they take to the air to lighten the load before flight. This will be evident by droppings accumulating below the entry hole. And I am guessing you will find it around that chimney or the flashing by that second back door, or both.
Here is an example, this is a church I did yesterday, this is below the entry hole, a bit extreme, but gives you an idea of what your after:

View attachment 108495

Before you address the main hole you need to deal with any others, or they will simply relocate to a second hole once evicted from the first. If they are using the vents, and I have my doubts, you will see droppings on the wall each morning. Most of the guano will wash or blow away but some will still be there protected from the elements by the way your home is built. Have a look around that chimney for droppings, when you find them take a close up photo and I will build you a device to get them out.
Also not a bad idea to do some research on co-existing with bats, or the guano left behind by them. Bats are pretty harmless, but the guano can be pretty deadly stuff, from the construction of your home I don't see that being an issue though. The amount of droppings you find out there (at the entry hole) will be a great indicator as to the quantity, so try to include that in your picture.
I am not a company looking to sell a product or service, or use any scare tactics. I do however have 15 years of experience kicking bats out of houses, permanently.