Master Certified Bat Removal Expert
Serving South East, MI
Oakland/Macomb: (248) 361-1528
Greater Ann Arbor: (734) 926-5493
Genesee/Livingston: (810) 922-5495
Greater Lansing: (517) 599-7859
Genesee/Livingston: (810) 922-5495
Greater Lansing: (517) 599-7859
Bats in My Basement
Do you wake up every so often with a bat flying through your basement? Your Probably wondering how in the heck are these bats showing up in my basement. Chances are you have a bat problem and it is coming from your attic or chimney. Yes the attic in fact is the housing unit for your Michigan bats. Depending on the temperature outside will often depict on when you get a bat in your basement.
Bats move up and down your walls depending on the temperature of your attic. As it get colder or hotter the bats will seek a sheltered area that fits the comfort. Older homes or balloon framing homes are generally the most problematic with bats in the basement. Most older homes do not have fire blocking in between homes, therefore the bats have free rein to network up and down your wall.
Bats in the basement during the winter months is often when you see them the most. During the summer bats will hang or roost in higher sheltered areas in order to freely leave their roost of feeding. During the winter there's no food source for the bas to eat so they go into hibernation. The temperature in Michigan changes so frequently causing discomfort for the bats so they seek warmer sheltered areas all the way down your wall and end up into your basement.
Newer homes in Michigan will often have an attic chase that runs from the attic to the basement to allow for plumbing, heating, electrical, etc. Bats know no difference between an attic and a basement. They are just seeking sheltered areas to hibernate for the long cold winter months. Some chases to the basement will run through the chimney stack or along side it. make sure the chimney's are capped and screened in order to keep the bats out. In years passed we have found bats in the furnace filter, register vents, and cold air return vents.
Bats do not usually enter lower than 7-8 feet from the exterior of home. Bats enter high up and then move down a wall. So therefore the bat probably didn't come right into your basement from the exterior of the home. Exception to this rule is if you have a walk out basement with openings. Bats will enter the walk out basement through open doors, cracks in the wood, and around framing.
How to Get Rid of Bats From the Basement?
Once the bat is in the basement it is nearly impossible to find them. Sometimes you will get lucky and find the bat roosting on an open wall, in this case refer to bat in the house in order to get rid of the bat. If you have windows or a walk out basement door, open these to allow fresh air flow and the bat should leave within 10-15 minutes. If you don't have any of these options your best bet is to wait until the bat returns to flight, capture it and release it outside. There are no traps or repellents to get rid of get bats in the basement.