What To Do If You Find Rats In Your Compost Bin

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Having a compost pile is nice and all, until you realize that some creatures are enjoying it a little more than you. When rats take over your compost bin, it can often feel like a losing battle to try to get them all out — a major issue seeing as their waste can lead to diseases. Thankfully, there are quite a few tricks you can try, from sealing off your compost to changing up what goes into it. It can be frustrating, but with a bit of work, you can scare off these rodents for good.

While you can lay out traps to catch rats, the better option is to focus on fixing the root of the problem. Consider what you're putting into your composter. Foods like meats, oils, cheeses, and seasonings should never be put in a compost bin as they create dangerous bacteria. These are also often foods that attract animals like rats, so eliminating them from your compost bin is a win-win. 

However, potentially any food scraps can attract rats, so eliminating just certain items may slow them down, but not stop them entirely. You may end up having to pause on food scraps for a bit to keep them away. Thankfully, there are plenty of other items you can compost that won't attract animals, like hair, cardboard, grass clippings, coffee grounds, and tea. If you don't want to stop composting your food scraps, then you may need to look at other steps to fend them off.

The best option to prevent rats from getting into your compost bin is to get a container that fully closes. For example, the VIVOSUN Outdoor Tumbling Composter on Amazon doesn't have holes large enough for animals like rats to get in, gets warm for bacterial growth, and can be rotated to make sure everything is fully mixed together.

This is just one example, but any compost container that's sturdy and only has a few small openings for airflow is a fine option. DIY compost bins made from thin plastic may work for a while, but rats can chew through them, so they may need to be reinforced with something like wire. You can also bury your compost underground and seal it off using a secure lid to limit potential access points. Something else you can try is digging a hole within the compost for food scraps and burying them. This helps to hide the smell and make it harder for rats to get to. 

Though your compost is certainly attracting these rodents, it is worth figuring out how to clean up the rest of your property, too. For example, a fall yard cleanup mistake that could be attracting rats to your home is not picking up nuts and acorns from nearby trees. These food items bring rats into your garden in the first place, and then they quickly settle in near or inside your compost pile.

While rats looking for food is the most likely reason you're seeing them in your compost bin, it's not the only one. If your pile is dry and has a lot of brown materials, they may also consider it a good nesting spot. Keeping your mixture moist and rotating it regularly not only speeds up the decomposition process, but it may deter any rats from looking to make a home in your compost pile. 

You can also try spraying cayenne pepper liberally around your bin, as the spice may deter some pests like rodents. Another must-know trick every gardener should know to keep rats away is that certain herbs, like mint and citronella, can ward off rodents when planted nearby. Letting your dogs and cats around the compost bin can help as well, though you have to make sure they don't get into the food you've placed inside, either. 

If you've tried all of these tricks to no avail, it may be a sign that it's time to call in the professionals for a rat infestation and take a break from composting for a bit until you can get it cleared up. They can help you clear out any rats that may have made your yard home and perhaps give you ideas on how to keep them gone for good.