If those bumps in the night (and day, for that matter) are accompanied by chew marks, animal droppings, nests, and an increase in swarming insects around your gutters, odds are your problem is more pest than paranormal. Confirm the presence of any unwanted critters by checking for these four signs pests have invaded your gutters.
1. Nests Are Present in Your Gutters
Nests are one of the clearest indications your gutters have a pest problem. What says “clog” to you screams “home” to birds, mice, and even snakes. You’ll for sure know it’s a nest if you see animal droppings, bite marks, and scratch marks.
Not only can this concentration of twigs, leaves, and dirt clog your gutters and downspouts, but depending on their size, nests can also add more weight than your gutters can handle, causing sagging, cracking, and total breakage. In turn, this gutter damage can extend to your home itself, potentially leading to mold growth, siding stains, standing water, and basement flooding.
But before ridding your gutters of any nests on your own, consult a pest control professional — they’ll be able to determine if the nest is active and may be able to relocate it, rather than destroy the animal’s home altogether. Plus, if the nest happens to be that of a snake, you definitely want an expert tackling the job for safety reasons.
2. You Notice an Increase in Mosquitoes
Another side effect of animals nesting in your rain gutters? A mosquito boom. The nesting material buildup clogs your gutters, resulting in standing water inside of them — and mosquitoes love laying their larvae in standing water.
Besides just being gross, a breeding ground for mosquitoes can also be hazardous to your health. Some of these biting insects carry West Nile virus, malaria, dengue fever, and/or Zika virus; if an infected one bites you, they can pass on the disease.
Clean your gutters and use repellant to deter mosquitoes from gutters.
3. There Are Signs of Chewing and Small Holes
Over time (after about 20 to 50 years), gutters will naturally age and begin to show signs of wear and tear, like cracking, sagging, rusting, or breaking at the seams. If you start to notice small holes forming before then, it could be a result of pests like termites and carpenter ants chewing through your fascia board or other wooden areas of your home.
Since most gutters are made of aluminum, though, what draws these wood-eating insects to them in the first place? The amalgamation of twigs, decaying leaves, and dampness clogging your gutter system. A carpenter ant and termite infestation is nothing to play with, either, as these insects can destroy the structural integrity of your walls, flooring, foundation, and crawl spaces, as well as consume your home’s insulation, book collection, papers, and even parts of your landscaping (think mulch, trees, and shrubs).
4. Swarms of Bees or Wasps Surround Your Gutters
One homeowner’s trash is another pest’s treasure, and to bees, wasps, and hornets, your gutter clutter is the mother lode. The damp collection of debris is perfect for nesting year-round, as hives can be hidden more easily, the gunk works well as winter shelter, and gutters are out of reach of human interference.
As soon as you detect an uptick in the numbers of bees, wasps, and hornets around your home, call up a local pest control company to check things out. Leaving them be, even for a little while, can put your family at risk of stings and make it easier for these insects to find their way inside. Plus, hives can also increase the weight on your gutters, possibly causing damage to the structure.
While you can remove insect nests from gutters on your own, the safest method is to call a pro.
What Kinds of Pests Most Commonly Invade Gutters?
Besides restricting water flow and causing structural damage, clogged rain gutters do what? Say it with us: Attract pest infestations. Here are a few of the most common pests homeowners may find hiding in their gutters:
- cockroaches
- silverfish
- birds
- bees, wasps, and hornets
- termites
- rodents
- carpenter ants
- snakes
- mosquitoes
How Do I Keep Critters Out of My Gutters?
It’s simple, really — just clean your gutters twice a year. If your gutters remain free of any kind of debris, there’ll be nothing for animals and other pests to build nests with, so they won’t have a reason to go near them.
Other preventative measures include:
- installing gutter guards/covering downspouts
- caulking around fascia boards
- covering trash cans near home (reduces food sources that may draw them to gutters)
- trimming trees/branches that hang over or near gutters
When to Hire a Professional
Wrangling wildlife from a ladder several feet off the ground probably isn’t the best activity to DIY. Handle gutter pest problems safely by calling in expert help from a local pest control service. They’ll do a full inspection and relocate (or exterminate, if necessary) the invaders.
Then, once the pest management is under control, hire a local gutter cleaning pro to clear away all debris to prevent critters from calling your gutters home ever again.
Main Image Credit: Tim Windsor / Flickr / CC BY-ND 2.0
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