Marietta, GA
Stop repeat break-ins at the roofline for good.
Scratching sounds at dawn, torn soffit screens, and dark grease marks near the roofline usually mean squirrels or raccoons found a gap. These openings almost always sit where roof material meets an old vent, fascia board, or ridge cap. Marietta's older ranch homes, especially the ones on tree-heavy lots, tend to have this exact problem: pine needles and moisture soften the wood over the years, and a raccoon doesn't need much room to squeeze through.
We start at the ground, looking up. Every gap, gnaw mark, and loose soffit panel tells us something, and the entry point isn't always where the homeowner thinks it is. Many Marietta homes built in the 1970s and 80s still have open soffit vents with wide slats squirrels squeeze through without much trouble, so we check those first, along with where the roofline meets brick, where fascia boards have pulled away, and where old pipe boots have shrunk and cracked.
Fall brings heavy pine straw and leaf litter across Marietta that piles up right at roofline gaps, hiding the exact spot animals are using. We clear it back before we make a call on where mesh needs to go, and we take photos of everything so you're seeing the same gap we're seeing.
Mesh doesn't go on until the roofline underneath is solid. We pull back the fascia and soffit trim first, since there's often soft wood or an old gap hiding behind it. Stapling mesh over rotten trim just gives squirrels a softer wall to chew through, so we repair or replace any wood rot found underneath before the mesh goes in. We measure and cut galvanized wire mesh to fit the gap exactly, fasten it with corrosion-resistant screws instead of staples, and reinstall the trim over it so the roofline looks finished, not patched.
One squirrel entry point rarely means one problem spot. Most homes we check have a second or third weak area once we're up there looking closely, so we walk the full roofline afterward, not just the spot you called about.
Most inspections are scheduled within a few days. Late summer and fall get busy, so calling early keeps the repair simpler.
We check every side of the roofline up close, looking at soffit vents, ridge seams, pipe boots, and old repair patches for gaps or chew marks.
Homes built in the 1970s and 80s often have open soffit vents with wide slats that squirrels squeeze through easily.
Yes, but only when installed over solid wood. We repair rot underneath first, then fasten galvanized mesh with corrosion-resistant screws.
Yes. Sealing an active entry point with the animal still inside creates a bigger problem than the one you started with.