Rats! Here's what to do about these pesky critters
Traps
Common rat traps include snap traps, bait boxes and glue traps.
Snap traps are usually inexpensive and easy to bait with peanut butter, whole nuts, raisins and rolled oats - or, to catch nesting females, tufts of cotton. Rats especially love peanut butter, and it's harder than cheese to get at without setting off the trap.
The downside: Snap traps should only be set where no children or pets can get to them. If children and pets are a concern, the snap traps can be placed in a trapping station, said William Kern Jr., a rat expert and associate professor of entomology and nematology at the University of Florida's Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center.
Poison, either boxes of it or bait boxes filled with it, tends to be inexpensive and can kill multiple rats. A poisoned rat could stagger off and die anywhere, however, undetected until it starts to smell.
Traps are always recommended because that way you don't have a poisoned animal getting into someplace inaccessible like a wall void or attic and then causing an odor problem, Kern said. "With a trap you know where the dead animal is."
There also is a risk that children or pets will get into the poison, or that pets will eat a poisoned rat.
Electronic boxes that are baited to lure the rat in, then electrocute it, are another option. They often have an indicator that shows when there is a dead rat inside. Some kill only one rat at a time, and in that case the box must be emptied before it will work again. They tend to cost a bit more than some other types of traps.
Glue boards are cheap and meant to literally stop a rat in its tracks. The main con: They are unlikely to kill the rat, unless it is stuck there a long, long time. That means dealing with a live rat rather than a dead one.
Noxious fumes
Rat "bombs" that emit noxious fumes can be stuck down a hole to gas out the rats. They tend to be inexpensive. The cons include making sure you seal the hole and run away fast enough to escape the fumes yourself, and the possibility that rats will simply move back in after the fumes clear.
One household-pest expert swears by oil of peppermint, available at natural-food stores. Put some on cotton balls and place them anywhere you're having a problem, or put some in a spray bottle with water and spray around the house, said Myles Bader of Port Charlotte, Fla., who wrote a book called "Club the Bugs and Scare the Critters."
Rodents hate it, said Bader, who has used it to drive rats out of his attic. The key is to get oil of peppermint rather than the alcohol-based peppermint extract found at the supermarket, which would result in "drunk rats running around your property," he said.
A negative with peppermint oil: It's more effective indoors than out, where rain will quickly wash it away.
Homeowners also can plant peppermint or other plants that rats dislike, such as daffodils and hyacinths, around the house and yard, Bader said.
'Killer mashed potatoes'Other natural remedies include what Bader calls "Killer Mashed Potatoes." Leave a bowl of potato flakes and a small bowl of water out. Rats that eat the flakes and drink the water will be killed when the flakes expand in their stomachs, he said.
Ultrasonic devices
These range from inexpensive to expensive and can be found online and at hardware stores. They typically plug into an electrical outlet and are supposed to emit ultrasonic signals that repel rats, other rodents and insects.
The University of Florida's Kern said rats can hear it, but the devices will only be effective if the rats are out in the open. It might be possible to position the device to drive rats into traps, since they may try to get behind an object to escape the sound, he said.