It’s hard to get rid of rats once your home or lawn is infested with this annoying pest. There are plenty of ways to get rid of them, but does bleach keep rats away?
Yes, it does if you can make them drink it. Some people call it the homemade rat poison! It’s the cheapest and easiest way to get rid of them instead of hiring a professional to exterminate rats and mice.
And in this article, I will show you exactly how to keep rats away using kitchen items like bleach, baking soda, and even salt! Keep reading…
Keeping Rats & Mice Away With Bleach
Bleach has a strong smell. Not just you or anybody nearby it, even the mice and rats are bothered by that. Among all the smells that keep rats away, bleach is the strongest one!
You may not be bothered too much with the bleach smell, but the rats hate it too much. The reason is pretty simple. They have a strong sense of smell than their eyesight. So, they just leave the place!
But they may come back whenever the smell goes away. So, the bleach can’t solve the problem permanently but it will keep them away temporarily for sure.
They just move to a new place where there is no strong smell exists. Also, if you just keep the bleach on the shelf, it won’t just work. Instead, follow these proven methods:
- Spray Bleach On Rats Coming Out Places
If your yard or lawn is infested with rats and you can clearly see their places of coming out which is obviously signs of mice, just spray enough bleach on such places. But make sure to provide them enough escape routes.
This will not kill the rats but they will leave those places. You should wear your hand gloves and mask while spraying those bleaches.
Also, keep in mind that bleach tends to whiten things whatever comes in touch. So, be mindful while placing this.
- Use Bleach Soaked Balls
Sometimes, you can’t simply figure out where those rats are coming from. It’s true if your house is infested with rats and you can’t simply spray bleach here and there inside the house.
Instead, you should identify all the suspected places where rats might be coming from. Then make some balls with cloths and dip those balls with bleach.
Now, place those bleach-soaked balls in all the suspected places. The rats will simply disappear from your house.
- Shutdown The Holes
Definitely, there are sockets and holes through where rats are entering your house. To give you some ideas, rates use air conditioning vents, cable holes, door gaps, and windows as their entry points.
Spray bleach or put bleach-soaked balls in those places. This will simply shut down their spots of entering your house. Without any entry points, they can’t create any nuisance inside your home.
- Disinfect The Nest
The first job is to destroy the rat and mice litter containing viruses and bacteria. Yes, bleach can work as a disinfectant in addition to having a strong smell. This will ensure a safeguard against rat transmitting diseases.
Doing is important if you have kids in your home. There are a couple of things you need to keep in mind while disinfecting rat nests with bleach.
First, you must wear gloves and a mask during the entire process. And you should not sweep the disinfected place to avoid spreading virus and bacteria all over the place.
- Add Peanut Butter To Attract & Kill
If you can make the rats eat the bleach anyhow, it will them damaging their stomachs. But rats don’t bleach!
So, you can add peanut butter with the bleach to attract the rats and mice. They love peanut butter!
This is how you can do it…
Add 2 tablespoons of peanut butter with the bleach. It will attract the rats reducing the smell of bleach too. They will surely eat the mix and die within a few days.
Does Bleach Kill Rats And Mice
Yes, it does only if you use them in large quantities or they eat bleach. Bleach can help you 2 ways when your house or lawn is infested with rats. One – even using a decent amount will keep them away. And two – using a higher amount will kill them.
How To Keep Rats Away Permanently?
Bleach and other rats repelling homemade solutions will give you some temporary solutions. But they won’t keep them away forever.
They will come back once the strong smell of bleach or baking soda disappears (which happens a lot quicker). So, I don’t consider bleach as a viable option to keep them away.
Instead, I am more into permanent solutions. If you have kids and are afraid of rat-borne diseases, you should adopt such permanent solutions.
Here are some preventive measures you can take to keep rats away forever:
- Cut The Food Sources
Never let any food debris sit idly on your floors or counters. Rats come into your house in search of food. If they don’t find anything to eat, they won’t bother invading your home or yard.
Don’t leave the pet foods out on the bowls as well. Always store your foods in glass or metal containers with lids.
If your lawn or yard is infested with rats, never let the compost pile sit idly as well. Pick your garden fruits and vegetables as soon as they are ripe.
In a nutshell, eliminate all the food sources and they won’t bother infesting you.
- Cut Climbing Sources
Most people have vines or trees around their homes. Rats and mice climb those trees and get access to your home.
If they can land on the roof, they can get inside your home. They will find a way! You should cut the branches that the rats may climb to get inside your home.
- Get Rid of All Hiding Places
Remove everything that rats may use as their nests or cover like long grasses, piles of firewood, debris, brush, etc. If your house or yard is free of such shelters, they won’t be bothering you.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Any dirty homes where there are spilled foods all over the places will attract rats and mice. Apart from that, if they find shelters to hide like woodpiles, shrubs, debris, etc.
Apart from the smells of rat predators like raccoons, cats, ferrets, etc. they hate the intense smell of chemicals like bleach.
Yes, it can get rid of rats, mice, and rodents.
To keep your lawn or yard free of rats, plant the following herbs and plants:
Onions.
Black Pepper.
Garlic.
Lavender.
Marigolds.
Tomatoes.
Yes, but only if they eat it. You can mix it with other rat-loving foods like peanut butter and let them eat the solution. If they don’t eat, the smell of vinegar will at least keep them away.
Baking soda is enriched with bicarbonate which reacts badly with the rodent’s stomach acid and kills them ultimately.
Yet, onion is a natural rat killer. Put some onion slices nearby the holes of rats. They will eat it and die in a few days.
Conclusion
So, I repeat, the bleach does keep the rats away temporarily with its pungent smell. But to have a permanent solution, it’s not a viable method to approach.
Rather, you should follow the permanent methods of preventing them I just mentioned in this article. Share your proven methods to repel mice and rats in the comment box.
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Thank you for your article. I found it very helpful and will be using bleach while we seal off their access points.
Now I need to locate easy instructions for sealing off their holes!