# Attic Clean up (rat feces)



## oh'mike

We have a couple of pest control people here that might be able to give you some idea of the cost---your location will help---

also what type of insulation is in need of removing---one story house or two?

I worked in an attic filled with squirrel droppings---and ended up with a lung infection---so do be sure that ,whoever you hire , wears proper respirators and has worker comp insurance on the workers.

Pricing questions seldom get good answers here----a better question would be," What type of contractor do I call for this type of work?"


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## Hammer450R

First order is to get house pest free for good...then worry about attic.

Once they lived there like this, and all future rats smell the urine, they will keep trying to come back in.

The attic is as easy as rolling up the old insulation and bag it, shop vac the whole thing, spray attic with a bleach water combo or something similar. Then have a company come blow 12" of some animal retardant insulation.

When i pulled down the ceiling of my old houses master bedroom, there was no insulation left and about 4-6"of **** came tumbling down on the floor. This was a squirrel infestation tho.


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## goldencrow

Its basically a 1 story, but there is a basement. (if that makes sense).
I live in Southern California. (LA COUNTY)

The insulation is the High R value stuff.

There is only 1 way into the attic, and its just an attic no storage.

The house was redone in 1986, and all the wiring was put in flex, and it does not look like the rats damaged anything, except for the insulation and the feces everywhere. 

I "DIY"ed the drywall in the laundry room, in a room that was 12' x 10' with a lot drains pipes and ducting. Took me "rookie" a couple weeks, because of warped joist's and all the piping. The laundry room had feces in it. I did save $1000 +/-
considering the estimates were all around that price. Which was great.

I want to do my attic myself, But I'm just 1 person. 

I have keyword searched pricing, but can't get an answer.
So I would assume it's going to be pricey. 

I know this is a DIY forum, but I got a draw the proverbial line somewhere.


Thanks for the help.


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## user1007

Your best bet will be to get local estimates from two or three companies local that can come and look at the job. 

Make sure they are not getting up through the walls? As mentioned, you have to identify and and block all ingress or egress points. Have you consulted an exterminator?

Do heed the post about respiratory illness from breathing the stuff. Raccoons have to be destroyed in Illinois because organisms in their feces can be fatal and the older and younger folks are most susceptible. Make sure you wear a mask, or better yet, an aspirator working up there.


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## goldencrow

am looking at over $3000 for a 1600 sqft attic?


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## oh'mike

Only a local company will be able to tell you that----I would not think the cost will be as high as that----I could get a crew in to clean that out and blow in fresh insulation for that much or less---


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## goldencrow

when you say clean out, your talking rat S#$T and all, and then blow in cellulose. total? all materials paid in a price that high?


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## SAVga

*Attic Restoration after rats excluded*

I had roof rats, found one called TruTech that deals with wildlife. I was charged $1200 for vacuuming the feces and spraying 1.5 gal of DSV. Two guys were here 2 hrs. The area is approx. 1054 sq. ft. of what can be accessed. They just about filled 2 filters (about a gal. each). Most of it was loose insulation - only .5 gal. total between the two filters was feces. My attic is not meant to store anything, cannot stand up. Entry through closet ceiling is small (no big person will get in). I recently looked at it since I was to have the very low insulation topped off - was surprised how much they did not vacuum. Looks like they concentrated on the area above the furnace closet and that is what they vacuumed, no insulation there now. I feel I overpaid for what was done. Can anyone give me some insight?


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## gobug

I suggest that you do it yourself. You might find a duct cleaning company that would rent the equipment to suck out all the insulation and droppings quickly, or charge a fee.

Considering your locale, rats are a common problem. Clean up the droppings and remove the insulation. This job is almost all labor. You do need a respirator (a real respirator with appropriate filters - not a dust mask). 


Close the rat "doors" before you begin. You may not be able to eliminate the rat population in your neighborhood, but you can limit their access to your abode. Their access can be on the ground or above ground, like trees or electric service wires. With a basement, they could also be getting to the attic by entering below ground and going up through the walls. Find their pathways. A blacklight works great to make their pathways fluoresce. 

Rats eat a lot more than mice. They also like to eat in certain locations within their foraging areas. Find their food source and limit their access to it, if possible. If it is landscaping, like fruit trees, good luck with neighbors. If you can find where they eat, place rat poison if you have a good childproof baitstation. Otherwise, limit or forget the poison.

good luck again
Gary


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## bkwildlifecntrl

Hopefully i can assist you in this area since i do own a Wildlife Control company. 

It is very hard to price your area so local estimates need to be made. Big difference in cost in LA then in Oklahoma.

Problem with rat feces is that it trails through the attic and depending on the infestation will decide how much of that attic actually needs to be serviced and new insulation installed. A good inspection needs to be done by a qualified wildlife control tech. Many places offer free inspections but don't be fulled with them, many times a paid inspection is better. Now back to the feces, a proper tech will prod an test multiple areas of attic not just looking at the surface of the insulation. Understand rats pee too so urine i a concern. Once this is done a proper estimate can be given.

Many small businesses like mine do these jobs. I have our own vacs large and small for my guys. All my guys go in fully hepa masked and with protective clothing while vacuuming out any species of feces. All vaccums are hepa bagged too with hepa filters

Contaminated insulation removal and clean up done properly can range from 1.5 a square foot and up it really depends on location and equipment needed.

Please let me know if you have any questions i will answer to the best of my ability.

Sent from my iPad using DIY Forum


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## Red Squirrel

Personally I'd just leave it and it will dry up eventually. Sounds gross, but you are not really breathing that air anyway provided there's no leaks in the vapor barrier and that the attic has proper ventilation. If it does not have proper ventillation spend your money on fixing that instead. And try to find where they're coming in from so no others enter, but that can be tough. I had mice in my attic, and I'm still not sure if I found out where they're coming in or not. I'll know in summer/fall.


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