Re: Any BAT experts out there..?
If the bats are there over an extended period of time, like a week or more, they are getting in and out regularly. This is almost always the case, so don't be fooled into thinking that if you catch them in a net you're done. You must find their source or sources of entry, get them out, then plug entry points. This is usually done over a 14 to 20 day period during warm or atleast reasonably warm weather. Once one-way devices are put in place to let them out, just wait a couple weeks. In a log cabin, finding the entry points could be difficult, but if you and atleast one other keep a watch starting an hour before dusk, you'll see them leave, and you won't believe how many there are. I used to grab a chair and a few beers, sit out-side and wait, to find mine.<br /><br />Bats who have found a home (yours) will leave every dusk and return before dawn. Once entry points are found, pros attach devices on the dwelling exterior that allow the bats to leave but not re-enter. There are pro devices made for this purpose, but most make their own from 2" diameter PVC pipe. Take a 12" length, cut a 25-30 degree angle on one end, and tape or attach 6-7 inches of nylon screening around the other end. Duct tape the angled cut end to the house's entry hole or point, angling the device downward. The bats will exit at dusk, and not be able to re-enter due to the screening attached to the pipe end (ruffle the screening so that it's not just round like the pipe and allows them to get back in, make cuts at the end opposite the pipe so it flops). Over several days they'll all leave, but they'll need a new home or they'll try to find a way back in. A bat house about 200-300 feet away helps.<br /><br />Rather than go through all the details, here's a site that describes everthing...how to find entry points, when and why all bats must be out, different types of bats, etc.
http://www.batmanagement.com/Batcentral/batboxes/howmany.html <br /><br />Depending on the type of bat, some hibernate for the winter, some leave for the winter. I've been fortunate, I'm in a cold climate and have always dealt with small brown's that leave for the winter. Although I've used the technique mentioned above to vacate the bats, winter is the reprive to bat proof the eaves of the house. I've even had bats hide in the triangular space where clapboards tuck under a gable end rake board. It scares the hell out you when painting and a wet agitated bat is on the end of your brush...damn near fell off the ladder three or four times. <br /><br />Don't listen to advice that says to leave them alone, even if they're confined to an attic. They excrete where they live and it's not healthy for you to have a pile of excretement building up in your house. In many instances, particularly on a log cabin, if they are hiding behind something that's attached to your house, like an electrical or phone box, you'll come to recognize and notice their urine stains. It looks just like dried pine sap on the side of the house, eminating from the bottom of whatever is attached.<br /><br />Don't be dismayed...there definitely is a way to solve your problem, but be careful. You probably already know that bats are rabis carriers. You don't want to be bitten....<br /><br />Oh...almost forgot this last tid-bit of info...if they're flying around inside I have had success blasting them with a CO2 fire extinguisher. The burst temporarily freezes them, and is harmless to use in small amounts indoors, especially when the windows are open.<br /><br />A pro would charge about $400-500 in the northeast to rid bats of a small, fairly new house.
The ladder truck will make quick work of them 20 foot walls.
