In this How To a friend is asking about the best way to seal their foundation and areas at ground level to help prevent pests from entering their home.
We have crickets and mice during the summer so we need to fill the cracks between our siding and foundation. We tried to caulk it with polyurethane caulking.
Well at least they made an attempt and although its pretty ugly work it may help some. Unfortunately bugs and critters like mice are pretty good at finding ways around bad caulk jobs and you may find that by sealing off one area that they just find another. But because this is probably a good idea we are going to give some tips.
When applying caulk you have to do it to a surface that has backing. Caulk will only fill gaps that are so wide and after that you are really asking for problems. It may be possible to fill the gap with a spray insulation foam and then cover it with silicon caulk that will last a long time and is flexible in different weather conditions.
This could end up being a pretty expensive project so you have to be careful about how you apply and wast your caulk. At about $5 a tube doing your entire foundation could cost you a couple hundred dollars.
As for pests like mice it is probably best to use traps to lower the population around your home. I don’t have a problem with small animals like mice if they remain outside and away from my home and garden. If they don’t then you need to defend your home or they will cause larger problems. One important thing to note is insects will attract other animals because they are a food source. If you remove the food source the animals will also leave. Mice and crickets will also attract snakes and other pests so its important to take care of this not only by trying to seal your home off but by reducing the population of pests around your home.
So, when you are trying to fill gaps you can use something that is ridged or you can use a spray foam insulation or maybe even standard insulation to pack a crack and then come back with a good quality caulk that will last 15 years or more because you don’t want to be doing this every year.
And learn how to use a caulk gun that work is just sad.