Bat Proofing & Bat Exclusion
We find every way bats are getting into your house, let the colony leave on its own, and seal the building so they can't come back. No poison and no handling the bats — just one-way devices, careful carpentry, and a house sealed up right.
- Smallest Gap
- 3/8 of an inch is all a bat needs
- Method
- One-way devices — bats get out, can't get back in
- First Step
- A phone call and a free estimate
- Service Area
- Genesee County & Surrounding Counties
Keeping Bats Out Is a Building Problem
A spray or a repellent doesn't fix a 3/8-inch gap under your fascia. Closing the gap does, and it stays fixed. Bat proofing is exterior carpentry done carefully and in the right order — which is exactly what a general contractor is built for.
Signs you have bats
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Scratching at dusk or dawn
Bats head out to feed around sunset and come home before sunrise. Noise in the attic or walls at those hours points to bats; daytime noise is more often squirrels.
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Droppings under a gap
Small dark droppings piled below an opening, on a windowsill, or stuck to the siding. Bat droppings are dry and crumbly; mouse droppings are hard. Don't touch either bare-handed.
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Dark rub marks
Oils in bat fur leave greasy brown staining around the edges of a gap they use every night. It's one of the easiest ways to spot an active entry point.
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Bats leaving at sunset
Stand outside at dusk and watch the roofline for twenty minutes. If you see bats dropping out from under the eaves or near the chimney, you've found your answer.
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Stains or a sharp smell
A colony that has been there a while leaves urine staining on ceilings or siding and an ammonia smell in the attic.
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A bat in the living space
One bat indoors often means there's a way into the building somewhere. Here's what to do first.
Where Bats Get Into a House
On a typical Genesee County home the openings are almost always in the same handful of places. Most houses have more than one — so we inspect the whole envelope and document every gap, not just the one you can see from the driveway.
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Soffit & fascia gaps
Where the soffit meets the fascia, or where it returns at a corner. Boards shrink, rot, or were never fitted tight.
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Ridge vents
Ridge vents that were never installed right or have no proper end closure leave a warm, protected slot along the peak.
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Gable vents
Unscreened or poorly screened gable louvers open straight into the attic.
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Chimney flashing & flues
Flashing that has pulled loose from the roof, and open flues with no cap.
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Top course of siding
Loose, lifted, or storm-damaged siding — especially the top row tucked under the eave.
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Roofline junctions
Dormers, valleys, and anywhere a lower roof meets a wall or two planes meet at an angle.
How a Bat Exclusion Job Works
You can't just seal up a building bats are living in — they'd be trapped inside, and you'd have a much worse problem in your walls. So the work happens in a set order, and every step has a reason.
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Inspect the whole house
Ladder, flashlight, roofline to foundation. We find and document every opening — active entry points and the gaps bats could use next — and walk you through what we found before any work starts.
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Seal everything that isn't in use
The repairs look like any other exterior job: soffit and fascia repaired or replaced, gable and ridge vents screened, chimneys capped and reflashed, loose siding refastened and sealed.
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Fit one-way doors on the active entries
Exclusion devices go over the openings the colony is still using. A bat can push out through one at dusk to feed, but it can't get back in to roost.
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Confirm it's clear, then close it for good
Once the roost is confirmed empty, we pull the devices and permanently close the last openings.
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Come back and check
Buildings move over time, and any weak spot will show itself. We return to make sure the seals are holding and there's no sign of new activity. That follow-up is part of the job, not an add-on.
What We Do — and What We Don't
We're a general contractor. Our part of a bat problem is the building side of it, and we'd rather be clear about that up front than have you find out later.
We handle
- Whole-house inspection and documentation of every opening
- One-way exclusion devices on active entry points
- Permanent sealing once the building is clear
- Soffit and fascia repair or replacement
- Gable and ridge vent screening and closures
- Chimney caps and flashing repairs
- Refastening and sealing loose or damaged siding
- Removing and replacing soiled attic insulation
- A return visit to confirm the exclusion held
We'll point you elsewhere for
- Handling the bats themselves. The one-way devices mean we never have to. If your situation ever calls for a licensed wildlife control operator, we'll tell you.
- Possible bat contact. If someone may have been bitten or scratched, that's a call to your doctor or the county health department first.
Bat Proofing Questions
How do I know it's bats and not mice or squirrels?
The time of day and the droppings are the giveaways. Bats are active at dusk and before dawn, so that's when you hear scratching or faint chirping; squirrels are busy during the day. Bat droppings collect in piles under a roost or entry point and are dry and crumbly, often with shiny insect bits in them, while mouse droppings are hard. Don't handle either with bare hands. The surest check is to watch your roofline at sunset and see whether anything flies out.
How do you get the bats out?
With one-way devices over the openings they're using. The bats can get out when they leave to feed, but they can't get back in. Nothing is poisoned and we never handle the bats. Once they're gone, we seal the house for good.
Do you replace attic insulation?
Yes. Insulation that bats have soiled stops doing its job, and we can pull it out and put new insulation in as part of the repair. We'll show you what we find up there and tell you honestly what it needs.
What should I do if a bat is inside the house?
If there's any chance someone had contact with it — a bat found in a room where someone was sleeping, or near a young child or a pet — call your doctor or the county health department before you let it go, because they may want it tested for rabies.
If no one was exposed, close the interior doors, open a window or exterior door, turn off the lights, and give it time. It will usually find its own way out. Then give us a call: a bat in the living space often means there's a way in somewhere in the building.
How much does bat proofing cost?
It depends on the house: how many openings there are, how high up they are, and how much repair the soffit, fascia, vents, and flashing need. We don't guess over the phone. We'll inspect the house and give you a free estimate.
How long does a bat exclusion take?
It depends on the size of the house and how much repair it needs. The sealing and carpentry are scheduled like any other exterior job. The one-way devices then stay up until the roost is confirmed empty, and we come back to close the last openings. You'll get a timeline with the estimate.
Do you serve my area?
We work throughout Genesee County — Flint, Grand Blanc, Fenton, Davison, Burton, Clio, Flushing, Swartz Creek, Linden, Mt. Morris, and the surrounding area — and we also take work in Lapeer, Shiawassee, Livingston, Oakland, Saginaw, and Tuscola counties.
Want the longer version? Read Bat Proofing a Michigan Home: How Exclusion Actually Works on our blog.