Vents to Remove Bats

Unprotected Vents

• Not all builders place wire or metal screens under plastic roof vents. In many areas, builders are not required to place any screening material under roof or other attic vents. In some cases, vinyl screen is utilized, but this material is easily torn by bats who want to gain access to the area. As bats are highly social, they normally do not arrive singly, but in colonies, which only adds to the problem. Although attic vents are normally used by bats as a means to gain entry to a home, all vents, including any louver vents, will need to be covered with mesh. In the case of louver vents, this mesh is best placed on the inside of the house, so that the louvers can still function.

Screens to Cover Vents

• In cases where the roof ridge itself has been correctly sealed, it is only be necessary to install a screen under the roof vent itself. On roofs that have loose ridges, both the ridges and ridge vents must be removed, in preparation to be sealed. Once the area has been opened up, the bat colony is disturbed and forced to leave. A continuous sheet of 0.25-inch mesh is then laid across the entire ridge area, with the exception of a single vent. A bat trap is connected to this vent, to catch any bats that have not yet left the attic with the main colony. Any bats that remained in the house after the colony was initially disturbed will be caught within the next two to three nights, as they attempt to leave the attic to feed. The trap needs to be checked daily and is normally removed after three days. Once all the bats have been caught, which is normally after three days, the last vent, to which the bat trap was connected, is sealed with wire mesh.

Bat Traps to Connect to Vents

• These traps consist of a box and a 1.5 to 2-foot long flexible tube. The tube connects the box trap to the vent. Bats leave the vent and crawl along the inside of the flexible tube to the box, which is partly wire lined, where they remain until removed.