Mice in Walls Removal in Jacksonville, FL

How mice end up in walls

House mice use wall voids to travel and nest. They get in at the bottom, through gaps where plumbing comes up through the slab or subfloor, and at the top, from the attic down along wires and pipes. Once inside the wall, they can reach cabinets, the space under the tub, and the gap behind baseboards.

The sound is lighter and quicker than rats: scratching, scurrying and sometimes faint squeaks, most often at night and early morning. Rats in walls sound heavier, and roof rats are more often heard in the ceiling. A rodent noises at night guide covers the differences.

Opening walls is rarely the answer. Technicians set traps where mice exit the wall: under sinks, behind the stove and fridge, in the attic where wires drop into the wall, and in the garage where the wall meets the slab. Then they seal those gaps. Mice inside either get caught or leave and find the way back closed.

What a thorough job includes

For mice in walls, a good provider will:

• Listen for activity and check the likely exit points room by room
• Inspect under sinks, behind appliances and in the attic above the noisy wall
• Set traps at the exits, not in open rooms
• Seal plumbing and wire penetrations under cabinets and in the attic top plate
• Seal exterior entries such as weep holes, garage corners and line sets
• Return to check traps and confirm the walls have gone quiet
• Locate a dead mouse inside a wall if there is an odor, with the smallest opening possible

Step by step

1. Describe which walls are noisy and when you hear it.
2. The technician inspects the walls' likely entry and exit points inside and out.
3. Traps go at the exits under cabinets, behind appliances and in the attic.
4. Interior penetrations get sealed with mesh and sealant.
5. Exterior entry points get sealed so new mice can't get in.
6. Return visits continue until the walls are quiet and traps stay empty.

Mice in walls in Jacksonville homes

Block homes and frame homes behave differently. Many Jacksonville homes from the 1950s through the 1980s are concrete block with stucco outside and furring strips and drywall inside. Mice run in the narrow space between the block and the drywall and come out under kitchen cabinets and behind baseboards. Weep holes and gaps around hose bibs are common entries.

Newer two-story homes in places like Nocatee, Fleming Island and the Southside are wood frame over a slab. Mice get into those walls from the garage, from the attic, and around the plumbing for second-floor bathrooms.

In raised wood-frame homes in Springfield, Riverside and Murray Hill, mice come up from the crawl space through gaps around pipes and through old floorboards.

Shared walls in townhomes, condos and apartments mean the problem may start next door. In those cases, see apartment and multi-unit rodent control.

What to expect in the first week

The first few nights after traps go in, you may hear more activity, not less. Mice are curious about new objects, and the University of Kentucky's pest control material notes they will investigate things placed in their territory. That is part of why traps at the wall exits work well.

Catches usually come in the first several days. As the gaps get sealed, the noise moves less and then stops. If it suddenly stops along with a faint smell a few days later, a mouse may have died inside the wall. Tell the technician so they can find it before the smell gets worse.

Keep food sealed and wipe counters at night during this stretch. With nothing to eat in the kitchen, mice go to the traps sooner. Don't block the exits under the sink with stored items, since the traps need to stay where the mice come out.

Mice in Walls Removal questions

Related reading

• Mouse Control
• Exclusion and Sealing
• Dead Rodent Removal
• Mice in the walls
• How small a hole a mouse can use
• Rodent noises at night