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#70681 10/11/06 12:09 PM
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 115
H
Haligan Offline OP
Member
And is it rare or common?

And while I'm on the rat subject,
If we're going up in an attic with rat scat all over, what sort of ventilator mask would be needed? We have the little disposable masks that are good for drywall dust, but I have doubts about them. I've heard scary tales about rat crap. Makes me nervous.

#70682 10/11/06 12:26 PM
Joined: Jul 2002
Posts: 717
M
Member
It is really common to find it in my area. There is a certain type of little finch bird that lives around here that loves to peck at the screens covering the "bird holes" in freeze blocking. Then they build nests inside the attics. The rats come after the eggs and then take up residence. I've seen brand new houses with chewed up insulation on cables. Dust mask is not good enough, wear a real resparator, and gloves.

#70683 10/11/06 01:04 PM
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 886
H
Member
Squirrels will do that too.

-Hal

#70684 10/11/06 01:08 PM
Joined: Jul 2004
Posts: 9,923
Likes: 32
G
Member
Rats like to chew but a certain target will be a cable that gets in their way. If they want to get through a bored hole and a cable is there they will open up the hole. It really seems to be a radial chew, making a nice round hole through the whole circumference but they will certainly take the wire down to the conductors and beyond.
(had it happen in my boat)
They also just pick a wire and chew it but that still may just be in the way of where they are going.
Rats are just a fact of life around here. They are "country rats" (Roof rats rattus rattus AKA fruit rats, tree rats or the chamber of commerce name "palmetto squirrel") but there are plenty of them.
I really don't see much difference between them and the fuzzy tail squirrels.
The big Norway and brown rats more likely what you see in the big city.


Greg Fretwell
#70685 10/11/06 08:04 PM
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 265
S
Member
Mice will chew the insulation also. Here's some information on hantavirus which can be found in rodent droppings: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/hanta/hps/


Sixer

"Will it be cheaper if I drill the holes for you?"
#70686 10/11/06 08:31 PM
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 2,876
E
e57 Offline
Member
Ya know I don't think they 'eat' it, they do however make nests out of it for sure. It's kind of funny when you find a NM sheath lined nest in the fiber-glass.

And personaly I do not think it is grounds for a full-blown resiparator, IMO a simple dust mask is sufficiant. It is only dander and funk dust. And the bio-hazard threat is not as high as one might think - but gloves and washing your hands is definately a good idea.

I once found one in a wall as skelital remains, it apparently locked on as it got through the insulation - it was a funny find. I remember saying 'your problem is right here' as I wacked my hammer through the rock, as I had to open the wall anyway to replace the cable, and out comes the rat dangling by his teeth.


Mark Heller
"Well - I oughta....." -Jackie Gleason
#70687 10/12/06 12:52 AM
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 524
Member
... Ive seen the damage they can do,..and yes,... squirrels love to "nibble" on the jacket.. As an attic rat myself, tho', I've never gotten used to the taste...I much prefer the older cloth covered version as opposed to the new vinyl stuff, as it tends to get stuck betwixt my teeth... [Linked Image] [Linked Image]


.."if it ain't fixed,don't break it...call a Licensed Electrician"
#70688 10/12/06 01:15 AM
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 272
L
Member
What about charging extra for working conditions? Those old home's that were built back in the early ninteen hundreds. Guaranteed to have all sorts of vermin in the attics and crawl spaces.

Yes I know, sometimes electrical work is not pretty. I'm way used to that. Sometimes, when I am literally crawling and squeazing my way under a house and around all sorts of dead 'carcasses' makes me wonder if I should charge more.


Luke Clarke
Electrical Planner for TVA.

#70689 10/12/06 09:32 AM
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 98
A
Member
I charge more when I encounter fecal matter in attics and elsewhere. One job had several bushels of raccoon droppings removed from the attic, plenty stank!!! and in the end, the business with the client smelled bad too. Go back to the Business discussion and in my thread Contract Clauses... there is a clause contributed by Sixer thst sddresses the above, I refer to it as the poo-poo clause.

#70690 10/12/06 10:00 AM
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 482
Z
Member
I used to work in old movie theaters, and I'll never forget the smell, especially when of the little bast#$rds would cuddle up next to a hot light fixture and drop dead.

Here's a bit of wisdom: alway, but ALWAYS keep your mouth closed when you pop up a T-bar ceiling panel...did I mention ALWAYS?!

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