Large rodents are causing high-dollar damage to homes. Three times in the month of December, rats chewed through three different water pipes in Lois Stevenson’s Yuba City home.
“Never in my wildest dreams would I have known that rats where, like, in my attic having a great time,” said Lois Stevenson.
Stevenson said she had major water leaks in the ceilings and walls of her home. The damage was so extensive Stevenson had to stay in a hotel while her home was fixed.
The problem is not isolated to her house.
“I have seen them chew through the black PVC drain line,” said Sarah McNelly, with Rainbow International Restoration and Cleaning service.
This winter, McNelly said she has had four times the number of phone calls about water damage from rats chewing through pipes. According to McNelly, wet weather is forcing rats out of their homes and into yours.
“The shelter they typical find is an attic. They are not bothered by people up there and there is a ready water source for them,” McNelly said.
Repairs for this kind of damage usually runs into the thousands. At the Stevenson home in Yuba City, it has taken more than a month for repairs to be made and for life to get back to normal.
Stevenson said she hopes she won’t have this problem again.
“I have not had any problems since we caught the little sucker,” Stevenson said with a smile.
