Hearing Strange Noises In The Walls Or Ceiling?

One of the issues with figuring out the identity of the critters in the attic or walls is that most of them will make more or less the same sound—scratching, clawing, squeaking, shuffling, etc.

One way figuring out what type of critter you’re dealing with is noting the time at which you hear the noises.

If you’re hearing critters in the attic or walls during the day, you know you’re dealing with diurnal—or day dwelling—creatures. 

Squirrels are prime examples of the type of pest you’ll find making noise in the attic and walls during the day, with most activity being during the morning and late evening when they return from scavenging for food. If they have babies, you’ll no-doubt hear extremely high-pitched squeaking throughout the day.

Of course, you’ll probably hear some scratching noise in the ceiling at night as well. Squirrels in walls are less common but they do manage to make their way in there sometimes.

Squirrels are high-energy creatures so you’ll likely hear a lot of racing and fast-paced movement. A single squirrel in roof spaces and the attic is enough to distract you, much more so an entire squirrel infestation.

Nocturnal creatures will wake you up at night with shuffling, bumping, and scratching in walls. Some of the most common nocturnal creatures that can infest your home are mice, rats, bats, and raccoons.

If the sound is at night and very loud, you’re probably dealing with a raccoon or opossum, although you’re pretty unlikely to find them running around in your wall voids as rats and mice are prone to do. You’re more likely to be trying to figure out how to get rid of raccoons in attic spaces than from your walls.

The next loudest thing you’ll hear are squirrels, as they are surprisingly heavy creatures that can make a lot of noise.

The next one down would be smaller rodents—rats and mice in walls sound like faint shuffling, scratching, and squeaking.

Bats are probably the quietest animal in attic that you’ll hear—nevertheless, they’ll still make enough noise for you to notice if there are a lot of them.

How to tell the difference between rats or bats in your wall: Bang on the wall—rats will probably stop what they’re doing after going on “alert” mode, whereas bats may start to scratch and bump around more aggressively.

Snakes, for the most part, are going to be pretty much silent. But there are other ways you can tell if you have a snake infestation—seeing shedded snake skin, slither tracks, snake droppings (usually light in color), and a distinctive cloying or musky odor. 

Seeing chewed up wood, nests, and little droppings are clear signs of rodents in attic and wall spaces that are making their way throughout your house at night.

Bigger messes like garbage strewn about the yard and larger property damage to your house’s siding is indicative of raccoons and opossums.