How can I get them to come out of my soffit? I tried opening the soffit and they won’t jump out. They seem to be young ones (2).
Chipmunks are mostly ground dwellers and typically nest in burrows dug under pine straw, compost piles, mulch or just the dirt in the ground. That being said, they’ll readily forage up downspouts and drain lines which lead to gutters. And once in the gutters, they can chew holes in soffits and start nesting in the homes attic and/or soffits.
To control this type of problem, you should first try to figure out where they’re going up the home. Once you locate the downspout or drain line they’re using, live trapping them is usually the best method of control as explained in our Chipmunk Control article.
Chipmunks: https://bugspray.com/articles98/chipmunks.html
Now if you’re unsure which of the downspouts or drain lines they’re using, simply set out some bird seed around any drains you think they might be using. Monitor the seed over the next few days by checking it 2-3 a day. And the first seed pile you find that appears to have something taking the offering is a sure indicator something is active you’ll be able to trap and where you should start making a set.
As for which trap to use; the GREEN LIVE TRAP works great. Just be sure to add some PECAN PASTE and BIRD SEED when making a set and you’ll get quick results.
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Add a teaspoon of Pecan Paste to a bottle cap and place it behind the trip pan.
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Lastly, pour 1/4 bag of our Mixed Seed over the back of the trap where the Pecan Paste has been set.
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If for some reason you think you need a larger trap, we offer the green one in a 7″ x 7″ x 24″
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Two other things; using any kind of poison in this scenario is risky. There is a good chance one will die in the home leading to odors and flies if try this method. Second, there is no doubt a readily available stash of food up in the soffit left by adults so any young ones up there can survive for awhile. Eventually this will run out and they’ll have to forage down and find your traps.
Now if you attempt to get them “chase” them out, you may only force them deeper in the home making it impossible to know where they move to and or worse yet, causing them to die and rot somewhere inaccessible. That means it’s best to let them be and trap them as described above.
Here are links to these items in our cart. Please show your support for our business by purchasing the items we recommend from the links provided. Remember, this is the only way we can stay around and be here to answer your questions and keep this valuable web site up and running. Thanks for your business!
Live Trap: https://bugspray.com/traps/cage/live-trap-5-x-5-x-18
Green Live Trap: https://bugspray.com/traps/cage/live-trap-green-5-x-5-x-16
Pecan Paste: https://bugspray.com/traps/lure/pecan-paste
Mixed Seed: https://bugspray.com/traps/lure/mixed-seed
Mildred McVey says
Trying to order kill traps for chipmunks. Video shows two sizes but the order form does not give a choice. Only has one item number. Want larger size. ?????
Tech Support says
Mildred,
Sorry for the confusion; this page needs to be updated and that will be handled know that we know about it.
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The larger trap is on this page:
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https://bugspray.com/traps/cage/live-trap-green-7-x-7-x-24.html
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Technical Support
bugspray.com
Mildred Mcvey says
You did not answer my question. If you will read again, you will see I was referring to the KILL traps. Check the video regarding KILL traps. It refers to two sizes. What’s the item number on the larger size. Look at your order form that pops up which is auto filled with item number. Is that for small or large size?
Tech Support says
Mildred,
Sorry for our confusion but regarding the kill traps; there is only one size we recommend. These can be seen in our Chipmunk article.
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The “single” trap with cover is here:
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Kill Trap: https://bugspray.com/articles98/chipmunks.html#chipmunk-kill-traps
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The Station fitted with two Traps, the setup I’ve used, incorporates the same sized Kill Trap as the one above. I actually got a chipmunk recently using it; you can see it on this video posted to our YouTube:
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https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-7ubDfljYW4
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You can find that setup lower in the chipmunk article here:
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https://bugspray.com/articles98/chipmunks.html#tamperproof-chipmunk-station-with-snap-traps
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Again, both kill traps are one in the same and you’ll need the large one.
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On this page, you can see all the options we have for the Tamperproof Bait Station fitted with Kill Traps and/or Rodenticide:
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Tamperproof Bait Stations with Traps/Bait: https://bugspray.com/equipment/stations/black-rat-bait-tamperproof-station
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Technical Support
bugspray.com
Mildred McVey says
Received traps with covers. Video I first watched did show two size of covers. However, having said this,looking at these, I can’t see what function the cover performs. Apparently, it just sits loosely on top of trap. No directions were included. Can you send photo of trap loaded with cover?
Tech Support says
Mildred,
Something sounds “wrong”. Visit our Chipmunk page to see the two traps we sell which are both “covered”.
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This link shows the section of the article with the bigger of the two. Its the one I’m using and have caught over 20 chipmunks in 2 years.
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https://bugspray.com/articles98/chipmunks.html#tamperproof-chipmunk-station-with-snap-traps
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We also have this one and I have caught nearly as many.
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Rodent Kill Trap: https://bugspray.com/traps/snap-snare-and-tunnel/rodent-lizard-snake-kill-trap-cover-kit.html
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If you don’t have either, I suggest you send back what you received for an exchange because these are the only options we offer for chipmunks.
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Technical Support
bugspray.com