Lights & Sounds for Squirrels: Will They Work?

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In order for lights and sounds to work on wild animals, you're going to need to make sure the animal is actually afraid of lights and sounds — that's the point of using these two approaches for squirrel removal. You are trying to naturally encourage the animals along; to find somewhere else to live that isn't your home.



Squirrels aren’t nocturnal, so there is a big chance that using lights won't work to evict them. They will be looking for somewhere dark to set up a nest spot, especially a pregnant or nursing female squirrel, but using lights to steer them away from that spot isn't always going to work. Lights just don't have the same effect on an animal that isn’t afraid of the light to start with.

Sound, on the other hand, might have some effect. If you make a noise near a squirrel, it will scamper away. Finding a squirrel in the back yard is easily rectified by you going out there, clapping your hands or shouting. The squirrel will think that you are a dangerous predator and scamper off, but it’s probably going to come back right as you turn your back. If you do this enough times, the squirrel might eventually give up the game and not come back, but no one realistically has time for that.

Ultrasonic sound devices can step into your shoes when you have an actual life to live. These are battery-operated, mains-operated, or solar-powered, the latter being the most economical to run. Mains or battery operated devices, however, will require a drain on your already expensive energy bill, or constant replacement batteries. After a while, these costs will soon mount. You can't rely on a repellent — any repellent — to last for long.

Some homeowners have had great success with ultrasonic sound devices, but more often than not they don't do the job you’d want. Very few of them have a range that is actually as impressive as what it says on the box, and some of them can even be heard by human ears, making them very annoying for you or your neighbors.

And then, of course, there’s that massive point that everyone always forgets about when they rely on repellents to get rid of wild animal invaders — what will happen when you STOP using the repellent? If you haven't done a thorough-enough job of sealing up the building, you won't have solved the problem at all.

Although lights and sounds might help you to encourage a squirrel (or other wild animal) to leave, you will still need to seal up the building properly to make the problem go away. If you want our genuine opinion on whether or not you should rely on lights and sound repellents for squirrels, it’s a negative — don’t waste your money on them.

Go back to the Squirrel Removal page, or learn tips to do it yourself with my How to Get Rid of Squirrels guide.