Squirrels
The Garage Roof as a Stepping Stone
A side garage with a felt or asphalt flat roof is a common feature of interwar houses in Edgware. Its edge is low enough to reach from a fence, a water butt or a climbing plant, and its surface runs right up to the side wall of the house. From there a squirrel only has to climb a downpipe or a short stretch of wall to reach the eaves. Why garages suit other pests is on Pest Control Edgware.
Where the garage roof meets the house
The joint between a flat roof and the house wall is sealed with flashing, and old flashing lifts or cracks. That gap, or the soffit directly above the garage roof, is often where a squirrel gets into the loft or into the void over a room above the garage. How squirrels get into a roof lists the other points to check.
Squirrels in the garage itself
Now and then a squirrel gets into the garage rather than the loft, through a gap at the top of the door or under the roof edge, and uses stored boxes as a store for food or a place to nest. The same service applies.
How a Squirrel Job Runs in HA8
1. Making sure it is squirrels
Rats also climb onto garage roofs and into lofts, and they need a different service. Tell us when you hear the noise and what you have seen; if it turns out to be rodents, rat control is the right booking. Squirrels or rats in the loft helps you tell the difference.
2. Trapping
The £280 service is for trapping the grey squirrels using your roof space or garage. You will be told what it involves and what you need to do, such as keeping the loft hatch closed and leaving anything that has been set up alone.
3. Checking the space is empty
The entry gap must stay open until the squirrels have gone. A squirrel shut in will chew its way out, and in spring and summer there may be young that cannot leave by themselves. How long squirrel control takes depends on the roof and how many are using it.
4. Repairing the way in
Once the space is quiet, the gap needs a lasting repair. Where it is at the flashing or the soffit over the garage, that is usually a roofer's job, so it pays to have one lined up. Stopping squirrels getting back in describes a repair that lasts.
5. Taking away the ladder
Cut back climbers and branches that reach the garage roof, and move water butts or stored items away from the side wall so the roof edge is harder to reach. Use a tree surgeon for large trees. A lifted flashing left unrepaired can also suit a wasp nest the following summer.
Timing Across the Year
Grey squirrels can move in at any time, but late winter into spring, and again in summer, are when females look for a place to raise young. If you hear them in late winter, booking straight away gives the best chance of dealing with the adults before any young are born. A gap left open after one year's squirrels is likely to be found again, which is why squirrels return to the same loft.
Grey Squirrels and the Law
The grey squirrel is classed as an invasive non-native species in Britain. Once one has been caught, it is an offence to release it or allow it to escape into the wild, so taking it to the woods beyond neighbouring Mill Hill and letting it go is not allowed. The legal position on release is set out in our guide, and Squirrel Control Barnet has the borough-wide picture.
