Rats in your student house in Groningen
Heard heavy scratching under the floor, or found droppings that look too big for a mouse? Rats are a different problem, and a more urgent one: they carry disease and they gnaw through cables. Here is how to tell them apart, and how to get it dealt with without waiting for your landlord.
Rats in student housing: act quickly
Groningen is a city of water and old sewers, which is exactly what the brown rat likes. Student houses add the rest: bins that are full, a shared kitchen, a bike shed, and a crawl space nobody ever looks into. A rat problem grows faster than a mouse problem and does more damage, so it is worth acting in days rather than weeks.
Rat or mouse? How to tell the difference
Most people never see the animal itself, only the traces. These are the differences that matter:
- Droppings. Mouse droppings are the size of a grain of rice, three to six millimetres. Rat droppings are around two centimetres, thicker, and often pointed at one end.
- Sound. Mice make a light rustling or scratching. With rats you hear real gnawing, thumping and dragging, usually under the floor or in the ceiling.
- Damage. Mice nibble packaging. Rats gnaw through wood, plastic pipes and electrical cables, which is why a rat problem can become a fire risk.
- Where they are. Mice stay close to food, so kitchen cupboards and drawers. Rats come from outside: the crawl space, the garden, the bin area, a broken sewer pipe.
- Size of the gap. A mouse gets through six millimetres. A rat needs about two centimetres, so the openings are bigger and usually easier to find.
Not sure which one you have? Send us a photo of the droppings and we will tell you. If it turns out to be mice, we have a separate page about mice in your student room in Groningen.
Why rats are more urgent than mice
Rats can carry diseases such as leptospirosis (Weil’s disease) and salmonella, mainly through their urine and droppings, which end up on the floor, on your bike, in the shed and in the kitchen. They also breed quickly, so a small problem can become a large one within weeks. And because they gnaw on cables, a rat in a crawl space is a risk to the whole building, not just to your room.
If you see a rat during the day, that usually means there are more. Rats are active at night; one that comes out in daylight often means the nest is crowded.
All of that is a reason to call the same week rather than to wait for an answer from a landlord. Call 06-22528717 or send us a message and we will tell you what you are dealing with.
Who pays? You do not have to wait for your landlord
You can arrange this with us directly. You call or email, we come out, and you get an invoice in your own name. You send that invoice to your landlord and ask them to reimburse it. You do not need their permission first and you do not have to wait for them to organise anything.
In the Netherlands vermin in a rented home is normally a defect the landlord has to put right, unless the tenant caused it, so the cost usually ends up with them anyway. With rats that is even clearer, because the work is often in the crawl space, at the sewer connection or on the outside of the building. We set it all out, including an email you can copy, on who pays for pest control in student housing in Groningen.
What you can do today
Keep all food in sealed containers, take the bin out daily and make sure the bin outside actually closes. Do not leave bags of rubbish next to the container. Clear away food scraps in the garden, including from a barbecue or a bird feeder. Keep the door to the crawl space shut.
Do not put down poison yourself. A poisoned rat usually dies somewhere you cannot reach, and the smell in a student house is worse than the problem you started with. It is also dangerous for cats and dogs.
What we do when we come out
We look for how they get in before we treat anything. With the brown rat that is usually the sewer, the crawl space or a gap behind the facade. We place bait boxes on the routes they actually use, and then close the openings, with steel mesh or mortar because rats gnaw straight through foam and sealant. We come back to check, because one visit is rarely enough with rats.
We work in the city of Groningen and the surrounding area. If you would rather we spoke to your landlord ourselves we can do that, but you do not have to wait for it.
Housemates, and the rest of the building
With rats we almost always treat the whole building rather than one room, because the nest is usually outside your room entirely: the crawl space, the sewer or the bin area. So it is worth reporting it together with your housemates and booking it as a house. That is cheaper per person, and one invoice for the whole house is easier to put in front of a landlord than five separate ones.
Are you a landlord or property manager? Then see our Dutch page about ongediertebestrijding voor verhuurders en studentenhuizen. We work with fixed inspection rounds for landlords in Groningen.
Also in Dutch
Prefer Dutch, or want to forward this to your landlord? Our Dutch page on rattenbestrijding in Groningen covers the same subject.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
The questions students in Groningen ask us most often about rats.
How do I know if it is rats and not mice?
Look at the droppings. Mouse droppings are about the size of a grain of rice, three to six millimetres. Rat droppings are around two centimetres and thicker. Rats also make much more noise: real gnawing and thumping instead of a light rustling.
Are rats dangerous?
They can carry diseases such as leptospirosis and salmonella, mainly through urine and droppings. They also gnaw on electrical cables, which is a fire risk. That is why we treat a rat report with more urgency than a mouse report.
Who pays: me or my landlord?
You can book us directly and you get an invoice in your own name. Vermin in a rented home is normally a defect the landlord has to put right, and with rats the work is usually in the crawl space or at the sewer connection anyway, so the cost almost always ends up with them. Send the invoice on and ask to be reimbursed. Step by step, with an email you can copy: who pays for pest control in student housing in Groningen.
How did rats get into the house?
Almost always from outside: a broken sewer pipe, an open crawl space, a gap behind the facade or a gap around a pipe. A rat needs about two centimetres. Bins that do not close and food left in the garden make a house much more attractive.
How long does it take to solve?
Usually a few weeks, with more than one visit. Rats are careful about new objects, so bait boxes need time to work. Closing the entry points is what makes it permanent.
Can I use poison from the shop myself?
We would strongly advise against it. A poisoned rat usually dies under the floor or inside a wall, and the smell can last for weeks somewhere you cannot reach. It is also a serious risk for cats and dogs.
Do you speak English?
Yes. You can call, email or send a message in English and we will answer in English.
Do you have a question about rats in your house?
Just ask
We are happy to help and we are reachable almost any time. We reply quickly to messages sent through this form.