Rodent proofing
Where Rodents Get Through in Friern Barnet Buildings
Proofing follows rat or mouse treatment: it closes the small gaps they used so the next ones cannot. In a converted building those gaps are mostly where services cross walls and floors; in a house they are mostly at ground level outside. The most common entry points gives the general list, and this page is about the ones typical here.
Service holes through thick walls
A waste pipe from a new kitchen or a cable to a new consumer unit may pass through a wall far deeper than a modern one. Where the hole was cut oversize and only its face was filled, there can be a void behind the filler. Gaps like this under sinks, behind washing machines and around boiler pipes are the ones most often reachable inside an apartment. Proofing pipe and utility gaps explains the approach.
Boxing and kitchen plinths
Pipe boxing and the space behind kitchen plinths hide the points where services enter the apartment. A gap at the foot of the boxing or behind a plinth can lead straight into a service run. Stopping mice getting behind kitchen units covers that part of the room.
Houses near the North Circular and retail park
On the surrounding streets the gaps are outside: a cracked air brick, a hole where a pipe enters the wall, a worn door threshold or the space under a garage door. Gardens near the southern edge are the ones most likely to have rats looking for them.
What the Hour Covers
The service is up to one hour sealing small holes and gaps that can be reached. In an apartment that might be the pipe entries under the sink, behind the appliances and around the boiler, depending on how many there are and how easy they are to get at. In a house it is more often air bricks, pipe entries and door gaps.
Some work sits outside the hour: opening boxing that is sealed shut, repairing masonry, anything inside risers or corridor ceilings, and work to the outside of a converted building. Those parts usually belong to the building rather than to you, so they are for the freeholder or managing agent, and structural repairs are a builder's job. You will be told if something needs that kind of work.
Treatment Comes First
The sealing happens only once the rats or mice have been dealt with. Sealing a gap they are still using can shut them inside boxing or a wall void, where they will gnaw a new way out. Book mouse control or rat control first and proofing when activity has stopped, judged by several quiet nights in a row without fresh droppings rather than one; before or after treatment explains why the order matters.
Booking Proofing in N11
When you book rodent proofing, say whether you had rats or mice, when treatment finished and where you think they were getting in. In an apartment, clear the cupboard under the sink and pull out what you can from in front of the plinths and the boiler. In a house, move bins and stored things away from the walls and the garage door.
Afterwards you will hear which gaps were sealed and whether anything needs a builder or the managing agent. If fresh droppings or gnawing appear by a sealed gap, get in touch. Which holes rodents are using helps you tell an old hole from a live one, and Rodent Proofing Barnet covers the rest of the borough.
