Rats rats rats . I forgot that they like streams too.

[Patrick]

So after being more active on site in recent weeks again, happen to come across the local rat population living in the stream/culvert next to the house , daily . They have no worries and tend to wonder around quite bravely. Now I know that there is pretty much nothing I can do to eliminate rats ,specially in my location , apart from a basic best practice of no food sources .

.. .

But really would like to discourage them from turning up around my yard and specially , don't want them in the house (cavity???) Later on . I read a little on the forum about what people did to get rid of a rodent problem , but just wanting to double check what is meant by "rodent barrier " for example . Is there something I need to plan now for the building to be fairly rat-proof and is there any steps to drive them from a certain area ( I guess a cat might help ).

[Russell griffiths]

Lots of stainless steel mesh. 

Dont scrimp on this, used behind your cladding at the top and bottom 

around any pipe penetrations and ducts. 

In the ducts and sealed over. 

 

With your other topic of your ring beam out of the ground, have you considered using gabion baskets against the stream edge so you can back fill over the ring beam, this could stop them digging under the ring beam and under your floor. 

[Mr Punter]

We are near a river but it is a brick faced concrete wall between it and us.  The bottom of downpipes are directly on the gulley grilles.  Base of cladding at first floor level has proper metal vents.  Sewer pipe has a non return valve.  Outside is all paved.

 

What they really like is food.

[ProDave]

A well built air tight house will be rodent proof.  A mouse only got into ours when I was fitting a roof window and left it overnight with the window in but not sealed.  We had previously hear the mouse scratching around on the roof under the roof tiles.

 

Put poison down for the rats inside a tube near where they live.

[Onoff]

Where I live, bottom of a valley and a seasonal watercourse, the common practice years ago was to put a layer of broken glass, lots of it, under the oversite. Either sheets laid down then broken or bottles smashed up. 

[Patrick]

1 hour ago, Russell griffiths said:

With your other topic of your ring beam out of the ground, have you considered using gabion baskets against the stream edge so you can back fill over the ring beam, this could stop them digging under the ring beam and under your floor. 

Thanks for the suggestions.I did consider this and it might be the right way to go . I am also considering just putting a small  brick reatining wall where the watercourse is .

[Temp]

In a previous house with pantiles they climbed gutter pipes and got under the tiles an into the roof through the membrane. Couldn't get into the house but made a lot of noise in the roof until we capped the down pipes with leaf guards.

Edited May 5, 2020 by Temp

[Russell griffiths]

1 hour ago, Patrick said:

Thanks for the suggestions.I did consider this and it might be the right way to go . I am also considering just putting a small  brick reatining wall where the watercourse is .

Unless you put in a massive footing it will move and crack, sleepers would be better as they wouldn’t show up any movement. 

[Reiver]

Borrow or better still get yourself a terrier or a sausage dog - they'll sort them out and you'll have years of fun with them too.
 

Edited June 4, 2020 by Reiver

[Onoff]

8 hours ago, Reiver said:

Borrow or better still get yourself a terrier or a sausage dog - they'll sort them out and you'll have years of fun with them too.
 

+1. Far better than a cat. Once saw the MiL's Jack cross take two caught rats released from a cage. It chased the second up the side of the old weatherboarded house. Mind the dogs can be destructive. Same dog burrowed through a sack of pony nuts to get to the rat nest behind it. 

Edited June 5, 2020 by Onoff