How to keep mice out of your home: ‘Simple’ prevention methods to keep them away

Spotting a mouse scurrying about your home can be an alarming experience, and it can make you wonder what attracted them to your home. 

Mice, rats and other rodents can fit through a penny-sized hole, which makes it very easy to find an entry point into your home and find someplace to make their habitat 

However, pest control experts from CleanKi have explained that mice are more likely to enter your home at this time of year as they are looking for a secure shelter to shield them from the cold. 

In a post online, one expert named Paul explained: “To beat them, you need to understand what the rodent wants. This is very simple: food, warmth and security. 

“Your house is warm, you have food, you have materials to make comfortable nests, and you have dark spaces that offer security. This makes it an ideal target for the opportunist rodent.”

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Once mice have entered your home it can be very difficult to get rid of them due to their high reproduction rate, but is very important to not use poison as you are more likely hurt a loved one or beloved pet than take care of the infestation. 

Paul wrote: “In addition to the safety concerns over pets, children and other wildlife, using poisons when you don’t have the expertise to fully understand the situation you are dealing isn’t good for the environment and can, frankly, be a waste of money.”  

The best way to protect yourself from getting a mice infestation is to take a few simple precautions to prevent it from ever happening, and Paul has a few “top tips” to make sure you never see a mouse scurrying around your floors. 

How to keep rodents out of your home in winter 

Keep food in sealed containers

Make sure to keep your rubbish bins sealed and the lid closed at all times, and never leave anything containing food, such as a cookie jar or bread box, open. If mice have a difficult time getting food then they are less likely to be attracted to a home. 

Paul said: “Rodents love a free and easy meal. This will often be the thing that first encourages them into your property. If you keep your food sealed and hidden, they won’t be encouraged.” 

Tidy your garden

Make sure your garden has been cleaned up, as it can be very easy for mice to nest amongst plants, leaves and grass which can then encourage them to go in the home. If you have any climbing flowers in your garden, such as climbing roses or English ivy, then try to prevent them from growing near your home. 

Paul said: “Most people forget how good rodents are at climbing, they will use ivy or wisteria to access your house. So, if you can, keep it away from the house, but if this isn’t possibly, make sure it doesn’t reach the roofline – the attic is a great place for a rat or mouse to hide.” 

Keep water tightly shut off 

Make sure all the taps in your home are properly shut off so they are not dripping to try and keep mice from making your home their shelter.

Paul said: “It may be impossible, especially in winter, to remove all sources of water, but it is a good idea to reduce them. A rat requires 60 millilitres of water a day and so if you can reduce its availability in your garden, you are helping to discourage them.”

Seal up any nooks or crannies. 

According to Paul, a rat can enter your home through a crack “as small as two-centimetres” and mice only need an entry point around the size of a pencil’s width. Critically look around your property for any small areas rodents might be able to access, such as pipes or windows. 

Paul explained: “Ensure air bricks aren’t broken, check there aren’t gaps around your windows and doors, and fit interceptors to drains, to stop them being used as highways into your house.”