Snakes

We don't get many or any poisonous snakes up north here, but I have read that naphthalene (moth balls) works well at keeping snakes away. You might try getting some of the moth flakes or powder and putting that into a garden sprayer with water and saturating the ground under the house. Really soak it down. Maybe do it a few times just to be safe. My grandparents had a place down in Brevard County, Florida and I can remember seeing pygmy rattlers on the roads in the morning. They are little guys for sure and would be hard to spot in leaf litter.

Good luck.

Nate
 
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Once it has dried, sure. I'd rather do that than toss handfuls of moth balls under the building. If there was even the slightest possibility of a venomous snake under the house, I'd do whatever it took to make sure there was nothing nasty there before I climbed under it. The snakes aside, I'd also worry about black widows and/or brown recluse spiders. It doesn't sound fun, any way you slice it.

Nate
 
I'd probably cut the floor out and work on it from above...even though there are no snakes and spiders at my house..yep...that's the ticket.
 
They must be thick down there in your neck of the woods!
The only time I have seen them in the open is on dirt roads at night, especially after a rain.
They might be small but they are still venomous.
Like others have said, I'd try to do the work from the topside!
 
Remember the scene in Aliens when Sigourney Weaver had to go back into the nest to find the girl, and she had a flame thrower, machine gun, grenade launcher, and a few other goodies? That would be me before going under the house to do anything! A few good bursts from the flame thrower would clear any critters out from there.

If it has more than 4 legs, is hairy, and can move fast and not in a straight line...it must die! I have goose bumps and the hair on the back of my neck is up!

Nate
 
Maybe I'll just go catch a couple of King snakes and throw them under the house for a few days. That should clean out the others if they are there.LOL
 
if the underneath of the house is enclosed for you to be able to apply enough of anything, be it mothballs, liquid napthelene, sulfer, or gasoline, to "drive" the snakes out you'd have to crawl under the house to do it......so now your under the house with "stuff" which you are applying to chase them out......and your under there with them when you piss them off and LIKELY between thm and the door.....see where this is going?

That makes the King Snake idea sound very appealing cause all you have to do is open the little door in the foundation, slip em inside and stand back....this as opposed to trying to run while you are in a reclined position under the house....

I'm seeing Ballard written all over this one and yet another picture of him standing in his house "BROKEN".....

Steve
 
Sorry steve,,Guess I forgot to mention the back of the house is quite open.Just the front and sides have been closed off for now.

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Tim, is it that dog turd looking thing near the water? Copperhead?
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There could be a dog turd in there also, they have a heard of them around there, but yeah it looks a little like a turd.

marchsnake2.jpg

Looks a little less like a turd and more like a cottonmouth up close. I asked her how big it was but she said she couldn't tell running the other way. They get a few copperheads at the right (or wrong) time of year. Lots of rat snakes but I don't think that is one of them.

Tim
 
and you don't have to lay down or nothing then I wouldn't be afraid of no booger man.....just wear boots and if you drop something on the ground make sure it isn't laying on top of a snake before you pick it up and you're good to go......

Open and not having to lay down makes a snale like a Pygmy Rattler a none problem in my mind....you'll stand to be hurt worse by the hammer....

Steve
 
Neil,

Where in central La. are you living? I'm from West Monroe originally.
Try the moth balls only sew up some pourous sacks from something like cheese cloth. That way they;ll be easier to remove so you can work under there. You may also try putting some containers of gasoline with open lids, then be able to close them off and remove them also. A fan or some other ventilator apparatus to get the fumes out and there ya go. Still it may be a rather interesting time under the house.
Good luck.
 
What's with all this gasoline advice? Good Lord! The only experiences I ever had with gasoline vapor has been bad and worse. They have non flamable gas down south or something?
 
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What's with all this gasoline advice? Good Lord! The only experiences I ever had with gasoline vapor has been bad and worse. They have non flamable gas down south or something?
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Took the words right out of my mouth Lee.
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Kevin,,I live in Ruby,It's south of Pineville about 15 miles and about 2 miles from the Red River. Just so this is cleared up,,,I would not be worried if I had room to stand or even kneel. This is going to be a face down crawl untill I get in a ways and then only slightly higher where the work will be done. Also I killed a medium one last week about 10 feet from the house with the weed eater so I know they are about. Oh well "It's got to be did"
 
Hell get in there with the weed whacker slice those babys up! As for gasoline do you really want to contaminate the ground around your house? Do you have a well near by? the worst thing would be contaminating the ground and area around your house with chemicals! Use the moth balls in cheese cloth atleast you can remove that afterwards. Many people each year get sick from moth balls just being in the house. Remember it is an insecticide!
 
I'd probably cut the floor out and work on it from above...even though there are no snakes and spiders at my house..yep...that's the ticket.
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Lee...that reminds me a of a famous story my dad used to tell about my uncle in college(God rest there souls). This was before my uncle introduced my dad to his younger sister(my mom). They lived in a house in Bloomington, Indiana they referred to as the "Shit Palace". It was there until the late 80's and the city finally tore it down. Anyway, they were living there and my uncle was upstairs with a girl and couldn't hear the music on the Hi-Fi so he went to the neighbors and borrowed a chainsaw and proceeded to cut a giant hole in the bedroom floor which happened to be the living room ceiling. This of course was during a party. Problem solved! This was the same place that had a terrible rat infestation and they were shooting the rats with BB guns and then they'd line them up on the stairway as trophies. The stories have been confirmed by many of the years.

I can tell you with absolute certainty that I wouldn't even consider crawling under a house where there was the slightest chance of encountering a snake...even a fake rubber snake or a strip of cable that appeared snake-like. A kids jump rope or an old hose...no way, no how. That's why we have all the Mexicans running around. How do you say, "crawl in right there" in Spanish?
 
I'd probably cut the floor out and work on it from above...even though there are no snakes and spiders at my house..yep...that's the ticket.
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Lee...that reminds me a of a famous story my dad used to tell about my uncle in college(God rest there souls). This was before my uncle introduced my dad to his younger sister(my mom). They lived in a house in Bloomington, Indiana they referred to as the "Shit Palace". It was there until the late 80's and the city finally tore it down. Anyway, they were living there and my uncle was upstairs with a girl and couldn't hear the music on the Hi-Fi so he went to the neighbors and borrowed a chainsaw and proceeded to cut a giant hole in the bedroom floor which happened to be the living room ceiling. This of course was during a party. Problem solved! This was the same place that had a terrible rat infestation and they were shooting the rats with BB guns and then they'd line them up on the stairway as trophies. The stories have been confirmed by many of the years.

I can tell you with absolute certainty that I wouldn't even consider crawling under a house where there was the slightest chance of encountering a snake...even a fake rubber snake or a strip of cable that appeared snake-like. A kids jump rope or an old hose...no way, no how. That's why we have all the Mexicans running around. How do you say, "crawl in right there" in Spanish?
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HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! Man that ain't right!!! Sides we don't have any of those here. Also,,by the way,,if gasoline under there was even my lasy option,,NOT gonna do it..just have to put in a fiberglass tub and shower at that point.
 
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