I'm going Batty

[confused]

I've had the cabin at the lake for several years. 2 yrs ago I get a bat inside in the middle of August. I figure it came in when a door was opened, no problem we got it out, everything is fine for the rest of the year.
Last summer bats twice, on one occasion 2 bats on the same day. We look over the entire house and can't see where they are coming in. Get them out and no more seen for the rest of the summer and fall.
This weekend I come up to the house. which is kept at 50 deg when we are not here, no one has been to the house in 2 weeks and low and behold I find a live, but lethargic bat laying in the sink. I thought they hibernated or migrated for the winter. I guess my questions are
1. Do I have a infestation of bats, is it a question of where there is one there are many?
2, How do I get rid of them once and for all? I am not happy sharing my home with them I want them out!!!!
3. Why would one show up in the middle of the winter? Was it hibernating or was it dying of starvation/thirst?
4. How do you find where they are getting in? I have gone around the house on the outside with a propane insect fogger to see if there are any leaks, I can't find a hole where they get in.
Any help, insight, words of encouragement are much appreciated.
Thanks

[jkjoshuatree]

Hey,
We used to have "bat problems" at our place on Bear Island. They were getting in under the eaves where the roof meets the side of the cottage. My dad would jam steel wool in the spaces (like mice, bats can't gnaw through steel wool) and our bat problem disappeared. So check out the entire place and stuff the holes/spaces with something to keep them out. Hope this helps.

[Acres per Second]

We had a similar problem when our wood frame place was new. Bats don't need a big place to squeeze in.

We caulked every crevice and the problem stayed outdoors. My dad inadvertantly tarred-in a bat, and it was left to me (being the budding zoölogist) to pull him out of the (real) tar glob. I spruced him up with a mineral spirits sponge-bath, and when released, he flew off like nothing had happened.

1) I don't think you have an "infestation" -- per se. They find a cozy "niche" and, come nightfall, forget which way was "out".

I think our main trouble spot was a vertical crevice -- and located high -- near the peak. Seal every crevice.

You'll likely always have them around outdoors. Limiting night-lighting might help. Night-time outdoor lighting bring moths. Moths are a too-easy protein meal for bats to pass up. Spiders, too, will set up shop near a light for the same reason.

2) Set up one or more "bat houses" away from the house, and out of the sun. The wire gauze inside -- and optimal spacing within -- make bat-houses an ideal place to hang out during the day. (Away from the house).

3) New Hampshire bats are supposed to know to hibernate in Vermont caves, when the cold weather limits the bug supply. Some bats, like yours, don't always get the message. He was most likely in "hibernate" mode, as you suggest.

4) I still get bats in little cubbies in the underside of the cottage, but none have gotten inside. You may need to check underneath your place, where openings were cut for wiring and pipes to pass through. New Hampshire's newest houses aren't being made as well as they used to be, and likely have more crevices -- for more appliances -- than older homes.

It may be possible to use an infrared heat sensor and simultaneously heat the interior while fan-ducting air pressure inside. It may be possible to analyze exactly where the heat losses appear outside, but don't know if that's a sensitive-enough indicator for your relatively small losses.

[KTO]

Just a warning. . . I hear bats can fit into a dime sized hole!

[dpg]

Chimneys, fireplace, etc.

[GTO]

We have bats living in our crawl space in the attic. I have been up there and seen them all huddled together near one of the dormers. We sat outside in the summer and watched at dusk as 17 of them flew out within a matter of minutes. Some have found ways of making it into the house and if your a good tennis player...well, I don't want to offend any animal lovers. All they need is a space, like KTO said, the size of a dime to get in and out. If you think they are nesting there, sit out at dusk in the spring and just stare at your house where you might think they are coming out. Wait an hour or two, make sure they are all out and then go clog up the hole. (duct tape, insulation in a can).
Bats will come back to the same "roosting" place every year. I heard them scratching on my ceiling last night. They crawl under the insulation and go the "bat" room anywhere they want.
Good luck

[SAMIAM]

Bats eat thousands of mosquito's ....people actually buy bat houses for them.

[GTO]

I agree Samiam, they are great for the insects. But try having one fly around your head inside your house at 2 in the morning. And the mess that they do cause in your house, yes, bat droppings.

[KTO]

Hmmm.. . . oh well, just a warning, don't chase one down stairs swinging a broom!

[glennsteely]

Dont you mean "Bat Dookie"....hahaha.......We always had them in our cottage, at least once or twice a summer. A broom always did the trick to "shoo" them back outside, after some substantial work chasing, and cornering the little guy. I dont think we ever made an attempt to keep them out.....it was just part of summer at the lake...... :)

[Sunbeam lodge]

We had bats in the bunkhouse until I evicted them. Because they did such a good job keeping the mosquito population in check I built 2 bat houses outside for them and they moved right in.

[Newbiesaukee]

Where can you get bat houses in the Lakes area?

[SPANKY]

the cheapo depot in tilton had them last year.....and they were'nt bright orange either!!