So that’s what that noise was last night… (with pics!)

linuxrunner

Last night about 1:30AM we were woken up by quite a racket, it sounded like a large animal walking around on our roof or in our attic. It than changed to this cracking and crunching sound like somebody was ripping apart our attic above our head. By the time I got up and got out a latter to take a look in the attic the sound was gone.

Later that day when returning from work I did a quick walk around the house to see if I could find where the noise was coming from… bingo. Not sure what caused this but it gives me the shivers.

waterman1971

Racoon?

loneframer

That could be squirrels. I've done some repairs on cedar in the past due to them.

Attached Thumbnails

 

__________________
It's not that it took him an hour to make 100 bucks, it's that it didn't take you 10 hours to save 100 bucks.

linuxrunner

Now that is interesting, we have squirrels EVERYWHERE around here and they run up and down the roof all day... but i don't usually see them at night. Do squirrels come out at 1:30AM?

By the way your repairs looks great!... So much better than mine

loneframer

Thanks, I've had plenty of experience with cedar shakes, on roofs and walls.

As for squirrels being active at night. I'm not sure, but your house is being invaded as shelter, so they may be trying to find a nest for raising little ones.

Once they establish a home there, they are very persistent and killing them or trapping and relocating may be the only solution. Depending on your location, neither of those options may be legal. A pest control service may be necessary.

Funny story. I just talked to someone who has relocated 16 of them in the last 2 days.

__________________
It's not that it took him an hour to make 100 bucks, it's that it didn't take you 10 hours to save 100 bucks.

Gary in WA

Probably raccoons, if at night, squirrels feed in the daylight. Looks a lot like this someone else posted here; pp.15: http://www.google.com/search?q=pictu...iw=836&bih=472

Treat the new cedar after installing so they don't stand out like a sore thumb, for a professional looking job, one of many treatments available: http://www.ehow.com/how_4530724_arti...es-siding.html

Gary

__________________

linuxrunner

Judging by the other pics from GBR's post and the loud heavy thumping we heard accompanying the ripping noises i am going to guess that this was done by a raccoon. We repaired the hole and secured a large piece of wire mesh over this section of the roof in the hope of stopping a repeat attack.


loneframer if you don't mind me asking, that roof you pictured looks to be about as steep as ours. How do you stay up when working on a roof of that pitch? i had to use a climbing harness strung over the top of the roof to do ours.

loneframer

I extended a ladder up matching the slope of the roof, then backed the truck up to it to prevent it from sliding down the driveway.

This repair was a favor "while I was there".

__________________
It's not that it took him an hour to make 100 bucks, it's that it didn't take you 10 hours to save 100 bucks.

DrHicks

The cause:


The cure:

kwikfishron

I agree on the raccoons, I’ve seen a couple of times the damage they can do to a roof. Both times in the spring, probably looking for a place to nest.

While you have the ladder out cut back the limbs or whatever it is that’s giving them access to your roof.

__________________

dpach

Definitely racoons. Here's a funny story for you.

Couple years ago my wife and I rented a cabin for a week. A couple days in, one night we heard this god awful load racket coming from the roof.

Took a flashlight to check it out. There were two racoons sitting on the roof, using their claws to peel/tear away the asphalt shingles, and were throwing them over the side of the roof edge.

So I threw a couple stones at them, only to have them look at me, snarl, and then proceed to throw the shingle pieces down the roof slope at me. Yeah, that's right, the racoons were actually fighting back, mocking my pitiful efforts to scare them.

I actually found it so unbelievably funny that my wife and I had to sit down to finish laughing. Since it was a rented cabin, we went in and tried to go back to sleep. After another hour of noise, my wife gets up this time, goes outside with the flashlight and politely asks them to get off the roof so she could get a couple hours sleep..............yup, you guessed it........they climbed down off the roof and didn't come back until the last night we were there (I'm sure just to say good-bye).

Gary in WA

Better hang on to her... she has a way with guys. My neighbor watched the mom and dad nest in my attic and the babies from them for 2 months without telling me I had live-ins there. They would roll down the roof slope and sink their claws in the three-tab to stop just short of the edge. Such fun....... Played a radio in that bedroom area nearby on "talk radio" (24/7) three weeks later they left (music puts them to sleep).

Gary

__________________

federer

crazy stories! i hope i wont have one to tell

linuxrunner

It's official, it's a racoon...

Got another visit last night, it was a good way into another hole when i came outside. i was throwing rocks and sticks at it, but it was just sitting there staring at me while contenting to dig into my roof . After a few shots into its side with the pellet gun it ran away in a hurry. have not seen it back yet, wish i didn't live right next to a large police station or i could try shooting it with something a little bigger next time.

waterman1971

I knew it! What do I win?

I had one a while back in my attic.

Here is what my raccoon left behind for me.



Luckily a local vet took them in.