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Sep 30
2007
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I have beveled wood siding - cedar I guess - on a 40 year old house. I had an instance last fall/winter where mice found an entry point in my garage. The entry point was just outside the door frame where it meets the bottom run of siding, underneath. It appears that all of the bottom run of my siding does have a little space (an inch or so) up behind it, and overtime, at least at the door frame entry point it appears that time took it's toll and allowed the mice to squeeze in. The house is in really good shape, but I was thinking of using caulk (or something) to fill in that inch of space around the entire house as a precaution. Is that a sound step to take?
Thx
Bill
Bill,
Rodents love cedar, especially that which might be decayed closer to the ground level. If field mice “want in” there’s little that can be done to keep them out, but you can make it tougher for them while you put a program in place for eradication.
Think about replacing your bottom boards with decay-resistant cement composite (“Hardiplank”) or PVC. Typically, you do NOT want to fill that bottom lap with sealant, for that has to allow any water that gets behind your siding to “weep” out. Rather, use a hardware mesh or Cedar Breather which will allow moisture to weep out, but deny access to critters.
Mason
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