Do you know how to use baking soda for rats? Does this household agent work as a killer recipe? Find out.

Rats are a menace to have around as they cause lots of having and pose significant health risks.  Getting rid of these rodents is the most logical thing to do but how do you go about it? There are several ways to exterminate rats.

However, we’re interested in finding out if baking soda kills rats.

Killing Rats With Baking Soda

Baking soda is a common household item that’s found in most homes. Apart from being used as a baking or food ingredient, baking soda has been found to have a wide variety of uses.

These include serving as a good deodorant, used to relieve skin irritation as well as relief for insect bites.

Baking soda is also used for floor cleaning, as an air freshener, as a cleaning agent, and for boosting laundry detergent. More importantly (for this article) baking soda is used for pest control.

Are rodents (rats) included among pests killed by baking soda?

This is what we’ll be dwelling on. As you read on, we’ll cover a lot about the impact baking soda has on rats and if there are alternatives.

What Is Baking Soda?

Baking soda is a leavening agent used for baking purposes. Sodium bicarbonate is the chemical name it goes by.

Now, baking soda has become quite popular due to its utility in a wide-ranging of areas. These range from cleaning, deodorizing, air freshening and so much more.

Baking soda has also been found to be effective in pest control. This is why we’ve focused on one of the peskiest pests; rats. We understand that lots of related questions are being asked.

This article is written in response to such questions.

Rat Problems And Risks

There’s hardly anyone that hasn’t had or encountered rat issues.

Rats are known to cause a wide range of damage including chewing on electrical wiring which may lead to house fires. Rats will burrow through walls, chew on just about anything they can find, and destroy your home.

Apart from physical damage caused by these rodents, rats are also known to spread diseases. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), rats spread diseases that include Lassa fever and Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome.

Others are rat-bite fever, salmonellosis, Omsk hemorrhage fever, plague, leptospirosis, and lymphocytic choriomeningitis. There are dangerous diseases that have led to a lot of deaths.

As such, it’s necessary to take immediate steps to eliminate these rodents.

Are There Humane Ways of Killing Rats?

Before we get into the main details of our discussion, it’s important to consider the rat killing methods available. For a lot of people, even the worst vermin should be killed humanely.

However, the truth is with rats, there are actually no humane ways of extermination.

Instead, only a few inhumane ways are available. So, is baking soda one of them? We’ll need to first prove whether this baking product actually kills rodents or not.

With this said, let’s provide the answers you’ve been waiting for.

Can Baking Soda Kill Rats? 

Yes, it does!

Baking soda has proven to be a useful household item that can be used for rat extermination. The long list of things you can do with baking soda makes it one of the most versatile items you can find in households.

SEE: Killing Rats With Coke

Although baking soda kills rats, it won’t do so by simply sprinkling it around. You’ll need to know how to use it to have any meaningful results.

How Baking Soda Kills Rats

Having confirmed the efficacy of sodium bicarbonate in exterminating rats, we’ll have to know how it does this. The “how” is a better guide to explaining what goes on.

  • Inability to Digest Baking Soda

Unlike humans who ingest baking soda in many forms and digest the same conveniently, rats are unable to do the same.

These rodents are unable to pass gas which humans do with ease. What happens is a situation where there’s a buildup of such gases when they consume baking soda baits.

Baking Soda Baits

Rats are known to be creatures with big appetites. These omnivores will feed on just about anything they can find.

These range from flour products, cereals, oats, vegetables, oils, fats, and more. Based on this reality, making baking soda baits with any food items will prove highly effective.

Baking soda baits can be made by lacing certain foods with this baking product.

As expected, rats are killed when they ingest such foods. Baking soda won’t be as effective when used alone. This is because it’s odorless and isn’t seen as food.

However, when added to create a bait, it readily gets ingested by rodents.

  • Peanut Butter Poison

To make this bait, you’ll need some peanut butter (any type will serve) as well as your baking soda.

Mix both of these ingredients thoroughly until it forms a homogeneous mixture. Now, make or work the mixture into tiny balls and place them at strategic points.

These should mostly be hidden as rats are clever and will suspect when the bait is kept in the open. Once they ingest such bait, the baking soda commences action when it meets the stomach acids in rats.

  • Poisonous Powder

Another bait to consider is a mixture of cornmeal laced with sugar or chocolate powder as well as sodium bicarbonate. This trio performs a wonderful job of killing rats when ingested.

You’ll need to mix these in equal volumes before placing them along paths or areas with the most rat presence or activity.

As indicated above, the basic ingredients for your rat bait include baking soda, cornmeal and sugar.

Powdered chocolate mix can serve in place of sugar. These should be mixed in the following quantities; add a cup of flour or cornmeal to 1 cup of sugar or chocolate mix.

This is followed by a cup of baking soda. Mix these mixtures properly and place them around rat-infested areas. These rodents are attracted by sugar or chocolate.

When ingested, baking soda immediately begins to act. Rats are killed within a short time due to the reactions.

Baking Soda Rat Control: Alternatives

Diy strategies for rodent control have long been embraced by a lot of people. These have proven to be quite effective.

However, not everyone finds such methods attractive. In other words, certain persons may find this procedure overwhelming.

If you belong to this category of persons, there are other efficient and stress-free ways of getting the job done. The easiest strategy to kill rats is to call in a reliable pest management service.

Not every pest management service is reliable. Quite a lot aren’t as efficient as they claim. You’ll have to find out or sift through the noise to the most reliable pest management services. There are quite a lot of them.

Online reviews as well as inquiries from friends or family should point you to the right company. One of the ways to spot fakes is by the extremely low service costs charged. Although deals are great, you shouldn’t be so hung up on getting the lowest rates that you end up getting scammed.

The quality of the job should come first, followed by favorable deals. You may have to find multiple pest management services to compare their pricing structures for a better decision.

Conclusion

Is killing rats with baking soda possible? Yes, it is. This has been used successfully with impressive results. However, its methods of usage are equally important.

In essence, baking soda is a reliable and effective killer of rats when ingested. However, you must know how to apply it for such effects to be seen. Without applying the right techniques, there would be little or no real impact.

Baking soda can be used in its original form for rat control. A recipe can also be prepared.

This too is effective on rats.

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