How to Keep Squirrels from Damaging Your Long Island Home

How to Keep Squirrels Away and Prevent Squirrel Damage

Compared to many pests we see on Long Island, squirrels aren’t so bad, right? They’re fluffy, cute, and always down for a snack! Loveable as they may be, squirrels are a major nuisance for Long Island homeowners each winter. With their agile bodies, strong legs, and sharp claws, squirrels can quickly cause significant and costly damage to Long Island homes. Luckily, by taking the proper precautions, this can be avoided. So, how do you keep squirrels away from your home? Can you prevent squirrel damage?

Identifying Squirrel Damage

These are the tell-tale signs of squirrel damage:

• Chewed-up wires
• Holes in your roof
• Damage to insulation, vents, rafters, and personal belongings

If you’re dealing with a squirrel problem in your home, you may also find droppings or start to smell a musty odor from the squirrel urine. Hearing something strange? Squirrels also make scratching, gnawing, and chewing noises, so if you’re hearing any of the above, it’s time to get your situation checked out! 

Of course, many other common household pests on Long Island like rats and mice can cause some of these same issues. If you’re noticing any of these pest issues in your home, be sure to contact Suburban Exterminating’s team of trained wildlife control professionals to identify the type of pest you have. 

How Can You Prevent Squirrel Damage?

If you think you may have a squirrel problem indoors, consider what’s going on outside in your yard, too. Squirrels will often uproot plants and flowers, leave remnants of eaten fruits or nuts, dig up small holes, and even damage birdfeeders, leaving behind chew marks.

Inside, you may find these pests setting up shop in your home’s soffits, eaves, or even the attic. When squirrels build nests, they often leave damage by chewing openings and holes straight through a structure’s siding and eaves underneath. They may even gnaw through unscreened chimneys and make their cozy nests there, then once they’re comfortable in their new nest, they’ll move on to chewing up your home’s insulation and wiring, putting your home at risk of fires and shorting out transformers.

The fact remains that if squirrels do manage to get inside your home, they will cause damage. Therefore, the only sure way to prevent squirrel damage in your home is to prevent them from getting inside in the first place.

How Do Squirrels Get in the House in the First Place?

Squirrels in general, and red squirrels especially, are clever creatures and will attempt to enter a home through a variety of methods. Uncapped chimneys are an easy target for them, but as mentioned earlier, they don’t mind chewing a few holes here and there to get the job done. Are tree limbs touching your house? That’s an easy walkway for an agile squirrel right to your home. As with any household pest, any small opening in your house makes you susceptible to squirrel damage.

Fortunately, there are several easy maintenance tasks you can do to lessen the likelihood that squirrels can get inside.

How to Keep Squirrels Away from Your House

With a little bit of maintenance, you can drastically decrease the possibility of squirrels breaking into your home. Here’s what we recommend:

1. If you have any tree branches touching your house (or within 6 feet of any portion of your house), trim them back.
2. Keep doors closed when not in use.
3. Seal all possible entrances securely, including openings at siding joints, overhanging eaves, and anywhere that utility cables or pipes enter your home.
4. Cover your chimneys and vents with mesh screens to keep squirrels and other wildlife creatures from entering.
5. Call Suburban Exterminating’s wildlife team – our exclusion services can turn your home into a squirrel-free zone.

Need Squirrel Removal from Your House? We’ve Got You!

Dealing with squirrels in the attic? Don’t sweat it! At Suburban Exterminating, we have a full team dedicated to wildlife control specialists on Long Island. Whether you’re dealing with squirrels, raccoons, bats, or rats and mice, our team will help you get rid of your unwelcome guests. Call us now to schedule a free squirrel control estimate!