Latest / More Organised Less Clutter / 237. Pest management and long-term prevention strategies
Transcript
- speaker-0: Welcome to More Organized, Less Clutter, a podcast to empower individuals and neurodivergent families with practical, realistic tools to create a more organized, sensory-friendly, clutter-free, and intentional home that works with your lifestyle and brain, not against it. I'm Narelle King, a professional organizer and neurodivergent mom who understands the unique challenges of family life. I help people just like you simplify your space build sustainable organisational systems and create more breathing room physically and mentally. Every fortnight, you'll hear solo episodes and guest conversations filled with practical strategies on decluttering, home organisation, routines for neurodivergent families, mindful living and how to build a home that feels safe, calm and functional. You'll walk away with actionable takeaways you can implement even if you only have 10 minutes to spare. Have you ever heard scratching in the walls, spotted droppings in the cupboard or found mystery holes in your pantry and thought, don't let this be mice or worse rats. If you've ever worried about what might be hiding behind your walls, under your floor or in the roof and how to deal with it, today's episode is for you. Today on More Organised, Clutter, I'm talking with David from Rodent Stop, the company behind the Home Defence Kit, a behavioural disruptive and exclusive system. that gives homeowners access to professional grade rodent control strategies without having to call in the technician every time. We're diving into smart pest management, how to protect your home long-term, and practical steps you can take to make your space less inviting to rodents and pests. You'll walk away feeling more confident, more informed about what to do if you do experience pets and rodents in your home. This conversation is a video recording that you can watch on YouTube. Let's jump into this more organised less clutter episode with David from Rodent Stop. Today on more organised and less clutter, I'm talking with David from Rodent Stop, a business that developed the home defence kit, a behaviour disruption and exclusion system that gives homeowners access to professional grade rodent control systems. Today, though, I've asked David on to help share with us ways that we can that he can help us with pest management. and also some long-term prevention. Welcome, David. ⁓ no, thank you for making your time. And I know that you're on the other side of the world ⁓ in America, so it's great to have you here. Let's start, though, with just to get to know you a little bit more, is if you were a kendal, what two accessories would you come with? speaker-1: Hi, thank you. glasses and ⁓ cape. speaker-0: and cape. speaker-1: and a cape. speaker-0: Yeah, so explain that to us. What's the cape for? speaker-1: ⁓ I'm just always carrying so much on my shoulders and I'm just always always carrying so much on my shoulders. speaker-0: So if you could fly, that would be better. speaker-1: Yeah, if I could fly that would be better, yes. speaker-0: Yeah, yeah, yeah. So if I was a professional organizer and if I could come over to you in America, what's an area in your home that you would love some assistance with? speaker-1: I mean, I think that, you know, we're a big family. you know, we have a lot of clutter. mean, a lot of stuff, you know, you got Amazon, FedEx, UPS, all fighting at the door. Who's going to get in first? Because my wife loves to shop, you know, so we're getting a lot of stuff all the time and we have a lot of stuff and we constantly actually trying to. get more space, draw the space, you know. So we developed a few things which I can definitely ⁓ let the listeners know about. For example, like our attic, you know, was a stenadic up there. So we went ahead and re-insulated, cleaned it all up, re-insulated it and then put a whole ⁓ boards which gave us a lot, a lot of space up there for a lot of things. speaker-0: ⁓ fantastic. ⁓ that's a great idea. speaker-1: Yeah, I mean from suitcases to baby carts and we have a lot of things, know, and we actually have three kids and now we're about to have twins. so, yeah, and so like we just go up there and grab stuff and we just have so much. speaker-0: But that's great that you've got a space to store it so you don't have to repurchase it. You've got it there and you can go and grab it. And so, yeah, I can see the cape. You're needing that cape because you've got so many kids as well and two more on the way. speaker-1: And I actually did that in a bunch of the attics. So we probably gained another 1500 square foot of just space. speaker-0: Yeah, yeah. But it also probably allows a downstairs area more space as well by having that upstairs storage place for you to put the things that you don't use very often. speaker-1: Yeah, exactly. You know, just out of the way. speaker-0: Yeah. So if homeowners don't realize that clutter can like attract rodents, what's some common, you know, clutter habits that people that you see that make, you know, the rodent problem worse in people's homes? speaker-1: So a lot of the things is things that are sitting right against the house. I mean, if you actually put it a foot away from the house, it's better. But the very close to the wall is not good because this is where they go sneak under and use that a lot of time, you know, as a hideout. In addition, again, you know, if you have dogs, definitely recommend cleaning up after them daily because that attracts rats. ⁓ Another thing is, you know, just rubbish, garbage, things that are laying around should be cleaned up. And I get it, you know, nobody wants to go out there and clean up regularly. But, you know, if you're dealing with rodents, ⁓ they're very problematic and very smart and have very strong teeth and they could do a lot. And so if you are dealing with rodents or you don't want to deal with rodents, make sure you get rid of the clutter, seal up entry points, and of course, most importantly, clean up after your dog. Because yeah, the rats, they'll come for that. speaker-0: And so what's a way to then seal up the holes, the areas that they are getting into? speaker-1: I mean, there's a lot of different ways. mean, we use just maybe three different things at Road and Stop, from putting on new vents to sealing gaps with special putty and things like that instead of foam and that messy stuff. That's the thing, there's always new stuff coming to the market, which is great, and you could really combine and develop products. It helps solve problems. speaker-0: Yeah, yeah, which is great because I think that's one of the problems I do see is holes or vents missing and they're usually not the actual homeowners that's a rental and trying to get that fixed can be a problem. And the other thing is new developments. So there's lots of new developments around where we're living. And I find that the people who have moved in there, the rodents are coming from all the new development from around like their homes have been disruptive and then they're coming to their home. Even though they don't have so much lying around, it's just because they've been disrupted. speaker-1: Yeah, and again, if they have dogs or the next door neighbor has a dog that's usually that will attract because it's just basically so what happens if the urine is very similar. In fact, dogs and rats have a lot in common. A lot. mean, from me being mammals to being born pink to getting their hair to fur, like everything, all the steps are very, very alike. Their urine is very, very similar. 99 % of my my clients. have dogs and not to mention, you know, if they have a problem, they also want something that's safe for their dogs. So they don't want to use poison or chemicals. And that's another reason why they use our service or our home defense kit, because we don't use any poison. We're not really trying to kill the rats because we know we're not going to win the war against rats. The point is to stop them from coming, stop them from entering, stop them from being able to have a switch in their brain, get a, get switched on us and be aggressive. to actually chew through metal, plastic, wood, concrete with no problem just to get into that place. And there's so much biology and pheromones and so much stuff involved here. It's crazy. It's like beyond us. So all those traps and things that people have been setting and setting up, it's like by the time you catch one, 10 are born. You do that on a big scale, times a million homes, do the numbers. It's amazing. speaker-0: Yes. speaker-1: You know, enough to mention people are using poison, like poison, why? You know, your dog can, if the dog die, if the rat dies in the yard or somewhere in the house, the dog can catch it, start playing with it, licking it, whatever they do. And then the dog can get poisoned. Let's say the dog, the rat dies in the wall. Now you have a carcass in the wall. So after the flies and the smells and the maggots are gone, you still have a dead body in your wall. So poison is no good. If you want to kill them. I recommend glue traps are always a good way to go because at least you know where. But even so, ongoing trapping is not good. It's not a solution. speaker-0: So what are some of the ways that we could rodent proof our houses? So maybe three steps that you could suggest. speaker-1: Yeah, I mean, obviously, sealing up air vents, you know, looking behind, ⁓ you know, things like your air conditioning condenser that's sitting outside. I don't know how it is in Australia, but there's so many holes and gaps and anything the size of a quarter for rats and a dime for mice and baby rats. And so it's very small openings and very small gaps that they can get through. And those are very important to seal. So air vents, gaps. garage doors, the bottom seal, those are important. ⁓ Yeah. speaker-0: about clutter inside the house then? So ⁓ is it particular types of clutter that they're more attracted to, to eat and like I can, I can think of all the situations when I see them, but is there something like from an actual professional who's, you know, has the knowledge behind it? What is it that they're attracted to? Obviously dog smells, but is there other things in people's homes? speaker-1: The dog thing is the first thing. Usually someone without a dog would maybe deal with mice, not necessarily rats. It's the rats and dogs that have a very close. Okay, not the mice necessarily. But you know, it really depends on the situation because although their behavior, the rat's behavior is identical, there's still different homes and different situations. And yeah, you got to kind of address each one. speaker-0: So what about mice then? So is there anything, what is there different strategies that we need to do within our home to protect it and prevent mice coming in? Because we probably have a mice problem is really a major problem here in Australia, in particular in new housing estates. speaker-1: Yeah, they're mice, not rats. Yeah. So, I mean, again, sealing entry points is key. That's like the first step, because if you seal the opening, then you can trap whatever's left behind. Now, now you have, now let's say you solve the problem, but now if you want to stop it on a bigger level, remember what I told you about the aggressive and biting through stuff. That's when you need to get rid of their scent. So getting rid of their scent of direction with speaker-0: Yeah, yeah, yeah. speaker-1: You know, include eliminating urine odors, removing insulation that's infested with urine, ⁓ you know, doing a cleanup, like all these things that are going to basically call them back there. So seal openings, trap whatever's left behind, get rid of the scent. Now, because we invented this scent formula here in LA, and that's what we use for our customers, and that's why we give a lifetime warranty on any project. It's sprayed, that gets rid of their scent. It's not to kill them. Again, we're not trying to kill them, trying to get rid of their sense so new ones are not gonna come back to this house that's a big, big flag saying, come here, it's a safe place. speaker-0: And so do you find then that smell is also associated with mice as well as rats? Okay. speaker-1: Rats? Not as much. Not as much. know mice, a lot of times you hear the word field mice. Because they're usually mostly in the field. They don't really have the entrance and the goals that rats do. speaker-0: So if we are, that's, suppose that's what's happening is these poor field mice, their field is being destroyed to make new houses. And so they've got nowhere to go. And they're finding, you know, people's sheds and garages. Yeah. Yeah. Or boxes. I find them always in boxes is where I'll find it. And maybe they've eaten through like a wheat pack. It seems to be one of the things that I'll say, ⁓ there's probably something, something to do with the dog. Or there'll be a wheat pack in there. It's something that they need to eat. that they've destroyed and they've hung around. speaker-1: Yeah, I mean, they're there. And again, you know, I think that for the mice and stuff, yeah, you could probably just set some glue traps. I think glue traps are really good for both mice and rats, you know, because the traps is, the snap traps are very dangerous, you know, they're dangerous for the whoever setting them, they're dangerous for the pets. They're very dangerous, like that could break a dog's leg easily, you know? speaker-0: Yeah, yeah. So what's a glue trap? speaker-1: It's just a pad that's got very strong glue on it and you put it down, let's say in the attic or in the crowd, wherever you have the problem and they'll go on it, they'll die and you just toss it. You know, that's like a good way to go, not to snap-trap, they're dangerous. But like I said, focus on sealing entry points, finding out where, you know, like somebody who has clutter, you know, may maybe have a hard time cleaning up or what, so maybe they wouldn't be doing so much ⁓ tree trimming. so... You know, a lot of times those are also, so, you know, they'll get on the tree and then jump over to the roof. And then there's openings there, that probably need to get sealed, you know? And then you've got squirrels, raccoons, you got a lot of stuff that could come through. speaker-0: We have possums here that come into our roof space and come through, all birds as well is another problem that I have with clients is birds getting into their roof space as well. But possums are the one that we have. speaker-1: Too aggressive anyways, right? speaker-0: ⁓ they can be. Yeah, they can be and they can do a lot of damage up there, but they're also native to Australia. So we can't just trap them. We have to, you know, release them out as well. so for you, what would be, ⁓ you know, do it yourself. So if some family are like, OK, we can't afford to get someone in to do this. What is a way that they can prevent rodents coming into their house and some do it themselves solutions to protect their house? speaker-1: subscribe What you mean like, besides what? speaker-0: Yeah, like can they buy those glue traps? Obviously, they're going to be doing their ceiling up their other spaces that they might be possibly getting in. But is there anything else that they can do? Like there's sprays or anything else like that? Like you mentioned the urine spray. Is there anything else that they could do themselves? They could purchase it and then do it themselves. speaker-1: ⁓ I don't know what other products are available out there. ⁓ But you know, like if you have a very big area, like you can use some bleach because that would at least eliminate, help eliminate some of the smell. like if you end up going into your attic, for example, and you see you've had a problem for a long time, your attic is very infested, get out of there. Okay. But no, more than that. Yeah. You obviously need to be protected. you know, with the mask and make sure you protect yourself. ⁓ But to be able to see, you know, that your attic is very infested. I mean, this is like the biggest thing. even our spray, like, so our service includes doing an inspection and kind of figuring out what the problem is. Even though their behavior is identical, always still there's different situations, you know, different house, the way it was built, how long have they been there? All these things like, like The average rat could be in your house for three months undetected. So a lot of people don't know that eventually they see droppings in the kitchen and then all of sudden they say, okay, I have rats. If you see droppings in the kitchen that lets me know they've been around for at least three months already, they've had babies and now they're coming down, risking coming down there with the humans to bring food for their babies. So. Your behavior again is very exact all the time and we know the timing and like, like I could go into an addict and say, okay, this looks like a seven month infestation. You know what I mean? This looks like a four month. This looks like a two, like I could tell you. And so those are very important because if your addict is very infested, doesn't matter what you do, seal the holes, et cetera. Doesn't matter what you do. They're not going to stop coming. This is a big, big, big target and they're going to just. attract more rodents and they're gonna and literally you could fix your screens you could do that, but they'll bite right through it speaker-0: What's what is the danger of having obviously mice and rats in your home? don't want them. But what are the side effects that can happen with having them in your home? Like as in for us, the health as well as, you know, things to our house. speaker-1: I mean look, as far as the health, and again, you know, a lot of people are scared from hentavirus and things like that, but most of the time these droppings are in the attic in the crawl space. They're completely away from you. Okay, now, if you have an active rodent issue and you have a baby crawling on the floor and it's picking up poop, yeah, that could be dangerous. Probably any feces, right? So that whole thing is actually very interesting because there's a lot of feedback. speaker-0: some of the problems like that, know, the health problems of having mycel rights in your speaker-1: So the hantavirus is a big thing again, but that's usually more from field mice. ⁓ Those are the problem. far as rodents, would say rodents, the most damage they cause is not so much to your health, but more to your home's health. So rodents are completely responsible for $20 billion a year in the USA in damages. Okay. They bite on wires causing fires. They urinate on the insulation, which is supposed to keep your house efficient. So now it goes down from a 10 inch efficient insulation to a one inch because it's urine and now there's no efficiency. So insulation, air conditioning, heating air ducts that they chew through and go through and poop through, personal damages, personal belongings, furniture, structural damage. ⁓ These are all things that rats coughs. And so it's very important because, you know, if they go through your whole air duct system, not to mention, let's say they go through one air duct, you know, that air duct is in your bedroom or wherever it points out to, and you're breathing now, whether it's hot air or cold air, whatever you turn on, but now you're breathing urine and poop and you don't even know it. And this is a big, big effect on the health, obviously. So having rodents, you know, is definitely something to avoid. It's probably the worst pest to have because they're very smart, they're strong, so they can cause damage. speaker-0: Yeah, yeah. David, thank you so much for all your information and sharing because I think people don't really understand the detail until unless they've had the problem happen to them. So it's really important for people to think about prevention rather than having to deal with the problem. What is the best way for people if they wanted to find out more information, what's the best way for them to get in contact with you? speaker-1: I mean, our company name is Rodenstop, but again, you guys are out there. We're here. I don't know what they would... speaker-0: That's okay. They can always look at look up ⁓ information, education from your website and I'm sure there's listeners that are listening that are in America who can definitely then be able to purchase your your kit and be able to look after their own home. speaker-1: Yeah, listen, my home defense kit, which we really didn't even get a chance to talk about, you know, for people who are in America for now, the home defense kit is amazing. It's basically our treatment in a box delivered to your door. ⁓ It has a bunch of gadgets and tools that we use, including a rodent activity detection light that you can see different activity that I don't see ⁓ scent disruptions, fears. ⁓ stickable vent covers so you don't even need tools. Yeah, yeah. So we made it really friendly for the homeowner. Okay, you don't need tools. You can just install everything easily, follow the instruction book, which, you know, has pictures and it's very easy to follow. And you do it that way. like, don't even need like this fears. You just throw them in the attic. You don't even go in there, especially if it's invested, right? So we thought of everything and we developed this amazing, amazing kit that gets rid of the problem the right way by sealing entry points, by getting rid of their scent, by, you know, trapping whatever's left behind. So even the traps, we have special glue traps that are pre-bated, has these special gloves that you put on. This way the rat doesn't smell the humans and they'll actually go for them. This is a big mistake. People just set up traps and they don't know why they don't go for it. But it's because... They smell, they smell that. And then we also have, it also comes with disposable bags that you, if you cut them, put it in a bag, seal it and put it in the trash so there's no flies, no nothing getting in or out, you know? But it's an amazing kit and yeah, it's an amazing kit and it's really amazing. It works really well. And again, it's been developed by me and my dad, you know, we've been doing this for 20 years. speaker-0: Yeah. ⁓ my gosh, I can't wait for it to be available all over the world because that is something that would be so useful for even myself as a professional organiser going into people's homes. And it's that cost for people to get someone out to do it. But if they could do some of it themselves, that's speaker-1: That's fantastic. DIY industry is huge here in the winter. There's a lot, you know, a lot of people just wanted to do it themselves now. speaker-0: Yeah. Well, it just also opens it up to, you know, everyone rather than just the people who can afford it. And, yeah, yeah, which is great. Thank you so much, David, for your time and for sharing your knowledge as well. speaker-1: Of course, of course I didn't get a chance to tell you that if to contact us if anybody wants to order the kit obviously here in America they can go to rodentcontroltoyourdoor.com and then they'll see you know the information about it. speaker-0: Yep, and I will include those in the show notes, the links to your website as well. Thank you so much, David. speaker-1: Thank you. Thank you so much for having me. speaker-0: Do you have nothing to wear but a wardrobe full of clothes? Imagine mornings when you jump up, choose outfits that reflect your best self. A comprehensive guide walks you through each step to help you create a wardrobe that's both functional, organized, and full of clothes you love. Head to simplyhappy.com.au to the resources tab to get instant access today. I'd like to acknowledge the Wathaurong people of the Kulin Nation on which this podcast is recorded as the traditional custodians of the land. I pay my respects to their elders, past, present and emerging.