Noises under floorboards at night!

[dee dee]

Hi, Hope someone can help. Over the past 4/5 nights we have been kept awake by loud, intermittent, scratching, rustling and tapping noises coming from underneath the floorboards in my sons room. It seems to be just inside the door and about 6 feet away from the outside wall. (So loud my son has taken to wearing earplugs, which is not helped by there being no carpet just bare boards.) Last night I heard the same rustling, scratching and tapping under the boards in my room (only in one place) as well. If it were mice surely they would be roaming further and the noise would be most of the time. If it is a bird that has become trapped we presumably still need to find it as a rotting carcass would be unbearable to live with during the summer months. But surely a bird would have died within a few days of being stuck under the boards of starvation. Any advice please guys. Note: It is only me and my boys so whatever remedy needs to be as simple as possible please! P.S Have also inadvertently posted this on the wrong forum, sorry.

 

[joe-90]

Rats or mice I'd say. They may be nesting at this time of years so you could well be over-run if you don't sort it. Inside the house you can usually contact the council vermin control officer for free treatment.

 

[dee dee]

Thanks Joe,
If the noises stop over the next few nights do you think it could have been a bird?

 

[joe-90]

Unlikely that a bird could get under there. They fall down chimneys but not under floorboards. We had squirrels in our place once.

 

[Shytalkz]

No wonder. They'd heard that the biggest nut of all time was in there.

 

[solo]

We recently had a bird living under our bathroom floor. It had got in through a small hole around the bath waste pipe. You could hear it picking away at the expanding foam on the inner leaf, usually early in the morning when you're not quite ready to get up. It's gone now, thank ****.

 

[dee dee]

Thanks guys, Had not considered squirrels. But would'nt I hear them during the day when its all quiet? And with mice or rats would'nt I hear them scurrying?

 

[RigidRaider]

You need to get one of these universal mouse control devices:

 

[Watchmaker]

If the noise does persist, it is unlikely to be a bird and may well be a small rodent, or squirrel. When we had a similar and regular noise, a few years ago, I installed one of those sonic rodent deterrents. It plugs into an electrical socket and emits a high pitched sound which cannot be heard by the human ear and does no harm at all to domestic pets. We never heard the noise again.

 

[satansbrother]

You need to get one of these universal mouse control devices:

Sorry, far too cute. You need my Satan's Little Helper, A.K.A. 'Big Harry'

Untitled

• satansbrother
• 11 Apr 2008
• 6

 

[megawatt]

You've not had any plumbing work done recently have you?

Plumbers are notorious for leaving their apprentices behind under the floorboards with all the other cr@p they sweep there.

MW

 

[roughcaster]

You're talking about plumbers mate are you Mega?

Roughcaster.

 

[Steve]

It plugs into an electrical socket and emits a high pitched sound which cannot be heard by the human ear and does no harm at all to domestic pets.

I can hear it.

My dog can hear it.

One of my neighbours has one outside, it drives me round the twist when I'm outside at night and its otherwise quiet.

 

[Space cat]

Do you keep losing stuff? Do you put new batteries into your radio only to find them flat next day? Have you ever noticed the smell of cooking coming through the floorboards?

You have borrowers!

 

[breezer]

lift a floorboard and put a rat trap baited with a slice of mars bar