If you don’t want to contract histoplasmosis from inhaling bat droppings, then follow these 8 ways to prevent bats from nesting in your home.

The first thing to do is find the bats' hiding place – an easy task, if you follow the smell that will lead you to bat poops. These uninvited guests can usually be found lurking in the attic, old rooms, dusty and unused stuff as well as in the porch and the pergolas on the terrace.

Ways-to-Prevent-Bats-From-Nesting-in-Your-Home

Here are 8 tips and tricks that will prevent bats from nesting in your home. For obvious reasons, you can only effectively employ all techniques at night, when they go out to hunt their prey.

1. Moth Balls

Ways-to-Prevent-Bats-From-Nesting-in-Your-Home-2The number one solution to prevent bats from nesting in your home is the good old moth balls, also known as naphthalene balls. Tie them in a soft cloth and hang around areas where they reside.

2. Sealants

The next best thing is to seal off the place where they've made home. As soon as they leave at night, clean it off and use all netting materials, hard boards, or sealants you have around to quickly block all entry zones. Don’t forget to place some naphthalene balls after they move out to ensure they won’t come back.

3. Phenol

Bats hate the smell of phenol so spritz a bottle of phenol all over the areas where they congregate. Do this on a regular basis until the bats become irritated enough to be forced to leave your house.

4. Mylar Balloons

A creative yet simple way to chase the flying mice away. Hang helium-filled Mylar balloons in bat colonies around your property and tie them up in such a way that they will be in constant motion. No bats will ever want to stay in that place anymore afterwards. Plus, the fact that there would be also moth balls hanged all around as well.

5. Aluminum Foil

Aluminum foil hangings produce a chime-like sound and light reflection that disturb them. Use this technique especially at their nests and on the entry points.

6. Mirrors

Small mirrors all around the area where they reside can extremely make them disorientated and leave eventually.

7. Cinnamon

Sprinkle cinnamon liberally in the bat colony. Its scent is annoying for them – an effective but a non-toxic way to chase bats away from your home.

8. Eucalyptus and Peppermint

Eucalyptus oil and peppermint may be relaxing for humans but it is irritating for bats – which is a good thing so they won’t go back to their former hiding places around your property.

Additional Tips and Tricks:

  • Get rid of bats before their actual breeding season, usually February and March.
  • Repeat bat evacuation plan on a regular basis or at least for a week so that the bats never turn towards your home again.
  • After bat evacuation from home, take time to clean even the smallest stains on the spaces where they inhabited to ensure you don’t re-invite the bats to your home.
  • Keeping your attic cool, as bats don’t reside in low temperature.
  • Don’t try to catch them – you might get bitten and contract rabies afterwards.
  • Avoid using pesticides and bat poisons to get rid of these little mammals from your house. They may kill the bat but dead rotting bats may be hard to find which may pose noticeable health problems. I
  • Call in the pest control service to get rid of serious bat infestation at home.

Although they're annoying in your house, these are very important creatures for keeping insect populations down. You can learn more here: http://www.defenders.org/bats/bats .