How To Get Rats Out Of The Garage

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What makes most people terrified of having rats in their space is that they can get into almost anywhere that they want to – the sewer, the attic, in the walls, in and around trash bins, and even in your garage. More so, getting rid of rats can be a herculean task if it is not handled with the right information and methodology.



Rats get into a garage through pipes, ground vents, or most often, through the door bumper at the ends of the garage door. These do not quite extend all the way to the ends, and the ensuing gap is often capitalized on by small animals like rats, mice, and lizards.

Rats are even more fond of the garage because an average garage is full of hiding places; stashed boxes, bicycles, tools, summer toys, and so on.

The singular most effective way to keep rats out of your garage is to block their entry into the garage. Without an opening to squeeze through, there would be no rat to remove. That being said, if you already have rats inside of your garage, here is what to do:

Set Traps
Traps are a great and effective way to get rid of rats already living in your garage. There are several types:

One-way exclusion funnel
All identified rat entry holes into the garage must have been identified and sealed off except for one (and it should lead outside) prior to setting this up. Place the funnel over the one remaining entry point and carefully fix it over the mouth of this opening. Once the rat goes out through it, it would be unable to go back inside. After successfully removing the rodents, proceed to seal off this one remaining opening to prevent any re-entry.

Glue Trap
It consists of a really strong adhesive to which rats get stuck by their paws as soon as they attempt to walk over it. Include a bait in it and lay several glue traps across the garage. Remember to check frequently, so the rat does not stay stuck to the glue trap for hours, days or even weeks, finally dying inhumanely of hunger and thirst.

Snap Traps
Here we have a heavy gauge, steel spring bar that traps rodents and kills them instantly. The trap goes off when a rodent steps on its trigger plate, usually drawn by a juicy bait; the spring system is released, snaps and kills the rodent instantly.

Go back to the Rat Removal page, or for more instructions read my How to get rid of rats guide, or learn specifically about How to remove rats in the attic and 21 Simple Tips to Keep Rats Out of Your Garden.

Hello! First of all, THANK YOU! Your website is fantastic and loaded with incredibly helpful info and photos. Secondly, thank you rats (I guess) because right now my garage has never been cleaner! A silver lining of sorts... Okay, so we have rats. We discovered them in our attached garage. We know how they got in and that is now boarded up. My first question is should we secure with metal right away or use the presence of wood shavings created by rat(s) trying to escape to let us know they are still around? We did look around the exterior of the house and looked in the attic and do not see another way into the house. We have not checked the roof. We believe the main nest was under the bathroom vanity (never in the vanity). This was accessed via the garage wall. The walls have been cleared of insulation; the holes covered with hard wire mesh. We also know the rats have gone up the wall and into the ceiling. This is where I now want to call a professional! Here is my next question...I am in Seattle and used your site to recommend a professional. Your site gives me "Eastside Wildlife Removal" but the phone number gets me "Eastside Exterminators"...Is this correct? Is this a company you recommend? I do have an appointment set up with them next week. My husband is very handy but I would like a professional to go over the property so we can make sure we are approaching this correctly. We have traps laid all over the garage and a few in the ceiling but haven't caught a rat yet, however, the few traps that went off last night suggest a route. Someone suggested sprinkling a layer of corn starch, powder or something like that to discern routes...is that a good or bad idea? Assuming we have blocked the entrance/exit, and there is no more food source in the garage, how long will rats survive? Thank you for your time. Your website really is marvelous and has a helpful/calming affect for an otherwise very unsettling situation!

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