Squirrels in the Loft in Pinner – What Should You Do?

Ready to book?Need squirrel control in Pinner? View our Squirrel Control Pinner service →

First: Is It a Squirrel?

Timing is the best single clue. Squirrels are diurnal and noisiest in the morning; rats and mice are nocturnal.

Read nextMorning Loft Noises in Pinner – Squirrel, Rat or Mouse? →

Second: Check the Cabling

• Squirrels gnaw continuously — their incisors grow throughout life
• Cabling in a loft is exposed and the right diameter
• Look for stripped insulation and bare copper
• Look for scorch marks on timber near cabling
• If you find damage, get an electrician, promptly
• Older houses often have runs added over decades, some in poor condition to start with
• This is the genuinely urgent part of a squirrel problem

Third: Do Not Block the Hole

• Sealing an animal in means it dies in the void
• Which brings odour, flies and often carpet beetles months later
• Or it gnaws out through a ceiling, doing more damage than the entry point ever did
• Or a female is separated from young left in the roof
• Trap first, proof second
• This is the most common self-inflicted problem we are called to

What Else Not to Do

• Do not put down poison. Restricted, inappropriate, and it creates a carcass in the roof
• Do not try to catch it by hand. A cornered squirrel bites hard
• Do not corner it in the loft — go down and close the hatch
• Do not use glue traps. Their use is restricted in England and they are inhumane
• Do not go up alone at night to investigate
• Do not assume it has gone because it has been quiet for two days

What You Can Safely Check

• Droppings — larger than rat droppings, rounded, often in a scattered latrine area
• Shredded insulation pulled into a nest
• Gnawed timber, particularly rafter edges and joist tops
• Stored food — nuts, bulbs, fruit stones
• Daylight visible at the eaves or a fascia
• Gnaw marks on a water tank or pipework
• Stains on a bedroom ceiling, which mean urine and a longer occupancy

The Damage in a Period Roof

• Original rafters and purlins gnawed and fouled
• Ceiling laths and lime plaster damaged from above and expensive to repair properly
• Cold water tanks gnawed, which floods a ceiling
• Handmade tiles and lead flashing displaced and costly to make good
• Insulation shredded and fouled, needing replacement
• Cabling, the fire risk
• A small soffit gap enlarged into a permanent entrance

The Programme

• Inspection and species confirmation
• Trap placement in the roof void
• Repeated checking and clearing visits
• Removal — release is not lawful for grey squirrels
• Confirmation that activity has stopped
• Proofing survey, with the works quoted separately

After They Are Gone

• Proof the roof promptly — an open roof refills within a season
• Replace fouled insulation
• Have gnawed cabling checked
• Check tanks and pipework
• Cut back overhanging branches; squirrels jump several metres
• Check consent requirements before external work on a listed or conservation-area property
• Inspect the fascias and verge annually

Related Questions

Will they leave on their own?

A loft is warm, dry and safe. They rarely leave voluntarily.

Are they dangerous to people?

They will bite if cornered or handled. Otherwise they avoid people.

What about a squirrel in a chimney?

It can happen and it needs handling carefully. Tell us and do not light the fire.