Chicken wire
A raccoon tears it. It is not a close.
The hole gets built shut
Exclusion
Exclusion is the hole, built shut, after the animal that can leave is out. A trap with the soffit still open does not finish the house.
The close is metal or hardware cloth. Chicken wire, insect screen, and foam fail on the animals that tear or chew.
Call or text. Tell us which opening you can see. The inspection is free. The price depends on the animal and the opening.
- Free inspection
- Metal close
- Brevard and Orange County
- Open 24 hoursCall or text (321) 205-4972.
- Free inspectionWe look before anyone names a number.
- Central FloridaBrevard County and Orange County.
- The hole stays shutA trap alone does not finish it.
What fails
Insect screen
Teeth and paws go through it.
Foam
A squirrel chews it out the same week.
What you notice
Call when you can see the door: a vent, a soffit panel, a fascia chew, a sweep, or daylight around a pipe.
- A gable vent with a hole, or one soffit panel out of its track.
- A chewed fascia or a torn screen. Foam stuffed in a hole is not a repair.
- A worn garage sweep, or an open ring around a pipe.
- A deck or shed with a low gap. The skirt waits until that space is empty.
- More than one hole. Gray squirrels keep a spare. Bats will use the next quarter-inch gap.
- A one-way door still screwed to the fascia. That is a temporary exit, not the finished close.
What exclusion covers
The gap
We count the openings before anything is closed. Interior noise is a clue. The exit is the work.
The material
Hardware cloth or metal, fastened to sound wood. Mesh size and wire weight are chosen together. Light wire that stops a bat will not stop a raccoon.
The timing
Nothing is sealed over young that cannot leave. A one-way door comes off when the animals are out. The finished job is the opening, built shut. Bats also follow Florida’s exclusion calendar.
What stays true on every job
- YoungWe do not seal animals in, and we do not set a one-way door over ones that cannot leave.
- BatsFrom April 16 through August 14, Florida’s rule blocks exclusion devices on a bat roost. The bat page has the rest of that rule.
- The chimneyA cap goes on only after the flue is empty. A flue that still has an animal, or a bird nest we have not identified, does not get capped.
- What failsChicken wire, insect screen, and foam. A vent still has to move air. A solid plug trades the animal for a wet attic.
How exclusion works
- InspectFind every opening and name the animal using it.
- RemoveThe animals that can leave come out first.
- ExcludeBuild it shut. A one-way door comes off when the animals are out.
- RepairThe screen, the panel, or the cap goes back with the close. The full steps are on the homepage.
Exclusion questions
Is trapping enough?
No. A trap with the soffit still open does not finish the house. After the animals that can leave are out, the hole is built shut.
What do you close the hole with?
Metal or hardware cloth, fastened to sound wood. The mesh and the wire weight are chosen for that animal. Chicken wire, insect screen, and foam fail. A one-way door is temporary. It comes off, and the opening is built shut.
Can you seal it the same day?
Not if young cannot leave. Bats have a separate closed window in Florida’s rule, April 16 through August 14. We do not seal flightless young of any animal.
Do you cap the chimney?
Only after the flue is empty. A cap on an occupied chimney, or on a bird nest we have not identified, is not the job. Screen stuffed down the flue is not a cap.
How much does exclusion cost?
The inspection is free. The price depends on the animal and the opening. Call (321) 205-4972 or use the form and we look at the job before anyone names a number.
When you call
Tell us which opening
Vent, soffit, fascia, chimney, pipe, or under the deck. The inspection is free. The price depends on the animal and the opening. The line is open 24 hours.
The rest of the work