Written by a Zeus Services Certified Technician
We provide same-day rat control 24 hours a day across every London borough, including drain surveys and full rodent proofing.
Why Autumn Is Peak Rat Season
Norway rats (brown rats) — the most common species in London — spend summer largely outdoors, nesting in burrows under decking, sheds and garden borders where food is abundant. As temperatures drop from September onwards, natural food sources become scarcer and the search for warmth intensifies. This is when rats actively seek entry into buildings, following pipework, cables, roots and drains that lead directly into loft spaces, subfloor voids and wall cavities.
Early Signs to Check For Now
1. Scratching or Movement Sounds at Night
Rats are most active after dark. Scratching, gnawing or scuttling sounds from the loft, behind walls, or under floors — particularly in the evening and early morning — are often the very first sign homeowners notice.
2. Dark, Banana-Shaped Droppings
Rat droppings are up to 14mm long, dark and tapered at the ends. Look along loft joists, in the back of kitchen cupboards, behind appliances and along skirting boards, especially where they meet corners.
3. Fresh Burrows or Disturbed Soil Outdoors
Burrow entrances roughly 6–9cm wide, often under decking, sheds, compost heaps or dense garden borders, are a strong sign of an active outdoor population that will move indoors as it gets colder.
4. Gnaw Marks on Wood, Cables or Pipes
Rats' teeth grow continuously and must be worn down by gnawing. Fresh gnaw marks on skirting boards, loft timbers, cables or plastic pipework are a serious warning sign — gnawed electrical cable is a recognised house fire risk.
5. Grease Smears Along Walls and Skirting
Rats travel the same routes repeatedly, and their fur leaves dark, greasy smear marks at floor level along walls, especially near entry points and along frequently used runs.
Why Treatment Alone Is Not Enough
Baiting and trapping deal with the rats currently present, but they do nothing to stop new rats entering through the same routes next month, or next autumn. Rats can enter through gaps as small as 15mm, and common entry points — broken drains, gaps around pipework, damaged air bricks, missing mortar — remain wide open after treatment unless they are physically sealed. This is why rat control without proofing so often turns into a repeat callout the following year.
The Fix: Treatment Plus Proofing, Backed by a 2-Year Warranty
Zeus Services documents every entry point found during treatment and seals it permanently with stainless steel mesh, expanding foam and mortar — materials rats physically cannot gnaw through. Every rodent proofing job is backed by a written 2-year warranty, the longest in London. If rats find a way back in through any area we've proofed within those 2 years, we return and fix it completely free of charge.