Rodent control in Florida is fundamentally different from northern states for one reason: we don't have a hard winter. In Wisconsin or Michigan, outdoor rodent populations crash in December and homeowners get a natural reprieve. In Central Florida, mice and rats stay active and keep seeking entry year-round — pressuring the building envelope every month of the year.
The most effective rodent control starts with exclusion — sealing the entry points. Treatment without exclusion is a treadmill. Here are the nine entry points we find in Orlando homes most frequently.
The 9 Most Common Entry Points
- Gaps around utility penetrations. Plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and cable lines entering the home often have gaps around the penetration point — sometimes inch-wide gaps at the foundation. A mouse needs only 1/4 inch; a rat needs 1/2 inch. Seal with copper mesh and spray foam or hydraulic cement.
- Weep holes in brick veneer. These necessary ventilation points are standard-size entry for mice. Weep hole inserts (plastic mesh screens sized to fit) are inexpensive and block entry without compromising ventilation.
- The garage door seal. Most garage door bottom seals are made of flexible rubber that degrades in Florida's sun and heat. A degraded bottom seal leaves a gap that rodents enter easily, then access the home through the wall behind the garage. Inspect and replace every 3–4 years.
- Vents without screens or with damaged screens. Foundation vents, crawl space vents, attic vents — any without intact 1/4" hardware cloth screens are open invitations. Check all vent screens annually.
- Roof line gaps and soffits. Where soffits meet roof decking, gaps commonly develop in older homes — and roof rats (extremely common in Central Florida) use these to access the attic. Look for chew marks, trails of grease (from their fur), and droppings in the attic.
- Around plumbing under sinks. The pipe cutout in cabinet floors is rarely well-sealed. Steel wool packed around the pipe (not just foam, which rodents chew through) and covered with a pipe collar is the right approach.
- Door sweeps and thresholds. Exterior door sweeps wear out and lose contact with the threshold, leaving a gap. Check by shining a light under every exterior door at night — visible light means a mouse can enter.
- Crawl space access doors. Poorly fitting crawl space doors are extremely common entry points, particularly in older Orlando-area homes built on raised foundations. The door should close flush with no gaps larger than 1/4".
- The area around air conditioning conduit and refrigerant lines. Where the lineset enters the home there's often an unsealed gap. This is one of the most overlooked entry points — check where the insulated lines enter the wall near your air handler.
Exclusion is time-consuming but it's what makes rodent control permanent rather than perpetual. We offer a full exclusion assessment as part of every rodent treatment — we identify every entry point, give you a written list of what needs to be sealed, and can handle the sealing work for you or leave it to your handyman.