Rodent Control in North Overland Park

North OP is mostly about older houses and the mice that know them. The neighborhoods between I-35 and I-435 filled in from the 1950s through the 1970s, with ranches, split-levels and two-stories on tree-lined streets off Metcalf, Nall and Antioch.

These are well-built homes, but they've had 50 or 60 winters to settle. Basements get finished, new lines get run through old walls, garage doors wear down. Each change can leave a gap, and mice find them every fall.

Lower Levels in Split-Levels Off Metcalf and Nall

A split-level's lower level sits partly below grade, usually with a family room and the laundry. That's where a lot of north OP mouse calls start. Mice come in along the sill plate or around the dryer vent and nest behind the paneling or in the furnace room. Mice in a finished basement covers where to look. The tech rarely has to open a wall. Most of the work happens in the furnace room and from the outside.

Older ranches usually have a one or two-car garage with the original door tracks, and a lot of these houses have had the AC line set rerouted more than once. Those are the spots that get sealed up. Look for droppings behind the washer and dryer, check the seal on the door between the garage and the house, and keep the storage boxes off the floor down there.

Backing Up to Indian Creek Near Nall Hills

The Indian Creek Trail runs through this part of town, past Nall Hills Park and Switzer Park. Houses that back onto the greenway see more mice and the odd rat, since the wooded banks give them cover all year. Woodpiles and bird feeders near the back fence add to it. The ground rolls down toward the creek, and the big shade trees drop seeds and acorns all fall.

Rats tend to turn up near the creek, around sheds and compost, and close to the older retail strips along Metcalf. Burrows by the foundation or big droppings call for rat control. When you call, mention it if your lot backs onto the creek or a common area. The trail keeps going east toward Corporate Woods.

An August Walk-Around

The first cool nights in late September and October bring the first wave. By November most calls are about mice already settled in the lower level. A smaller wave comes in spring when mice leave the walls for the garage and shed. So take a walk around the house in August. Look low along the foundation, at the AC line set, the dryer vent and the garage door corners. Anything you can see daylight through, a mouse can use. North OP runs right into the older streets of Downtown Overland Park and Prairie Village, and the houses tell the same story.

Around North Overland Park: Nall Hills Park · Switzer Park · Indian Creek Trail · Metcalf Avenue · Antioch Road · Oak Park Mall area (ZIP 66204, 66207, 66212, 66214)

Also serving Downtown Overland Park, South Overland Park and Blue Valley, Corporate Woods and College Blvd, Leawood, Lenexa, Olathe, Prairie Village, Shawnee, Mission and Merriam.