With all the discussion of filling and fracturing and grading and whatnot, i thought I'd discuss my hole. I have a hole at the corner of my house that I believe was build by armadillos,and they remain to this day. But the whole is getting big, and it's time to fill it in. I also think it may have become home to a new of moccasins, which I AM not interested in cohabitating with.
So here's my dilemma: I don't want to provide a live burial to any innocent creatures that just think it's a nice p lace to hang. I want them out, then I lock the door behind them. So the question becomes how to safely remove them without sticking my hand/arm/face anywhere near that hole. Would running water flush them out? Some sort of indian call? Pamphlets?
jg
Mothballs generally do the trick. They worked to rid the crawl space under my grandmother's house of a family of skunks. However the mothball smell was almost as bad as the skunk smell.
If it's under ground though, the mothball smell may not permeate the house, and will likely not be a problem once the hole is filled.
YMMV
I have used this method with skunks, my parents used this method with skunks, my parent's parents used this method with skunks..
Always successfully.. Get a hose send it as far down the hole as you can possibly get it.. Turn it on very low, all you need is a trickle of water.. It will begin filling the hole very slowly (gives the residents lots of time to realize). This hole isn't as waterproof as we thought, and escape.. No drowning, no filling them in. This is a polite way to ask burrowing animals to leave.
If this fails, toss a lit smoke bomb down the hole!!
If you can't find one (of course you can you live in Florida every flea market has them for legal sale)!!! At least they did in 1986...
You can make one here, with ingredients you can legally buy and combine..
http://chemistry.about.com/od/demonstrationsexperiments/ss/smokebomb_2.htm
Even engineers emerge from their lairs for food. What do armadillos eat? (I assume it isn't moccasins.)
Water or fire crackers will get most critters moving.
Fill your yard with broken down cars and stop wearing pants when you are outside. Thats what I do when I want a neighbor to move.
In reply to logdog:
JG has already admitted to not wearing pants when he works from home, and considering he works for GRM I have to imagine there's a fairly high probability of finding a vehicle in a state of disassembly/reassembly in his garage/driveway/yard/curbside at any particular point in time. 
JG Pasterjak wrote:
With all the discussion of filling and fracturing and grading and whatnot, i thought I'd discuss my hole. I have a hole [REDACTED] But the whole is getting big, and it's time to fill it in. I also think it may have become home to a new of moccasins, which I AM not interested in cohabitating with.
So here's my dilemma: I don't want to provide a live burial to any innocent creatures that just think it's a nice place to hang. I want them out, then I lock the door behind them. So the question becomes how to safely remove them without sticking my hand/arm/face anywhere near that hole. Would running water flush them out? Some sort of indian call? Pamphlets?
jg
I just wanted you to see how your post would sound minus half a sentence
Take a car, add a hose on the exhaust pipe and stick it down in the hole. They will either come out the other end or enrich the soil in the surrounding area.
It's hard to evict a tenant, even if they don't pay rent. You're going to have to get the courts involved. It's time to lawyer up.
Bait and trap. Either that, or play a loop of Kenny G music...no one will stick around to listen to that if they dont have to...
I think you need to send an r/c car in there with a go pro attached to see exactly what you're dealing with. Could be you just have a hole.
Alternatively you could send Quaker White in there to deal with things for you.
bluej
Dork
12/9/13 8:54 a.m.
In reply to EastCoastMojo:
Oh heck ya! GoPro + small flashlight. Glue some toothpicks to the front to poke said creature and encourage them to vacate.
Hold an election. That seems to make all kinds of nasty creatures crawl out of their holes...
Britney Spears will chase most things out.
Hey those armadillos and snakes spent millions of years evolving those burrowing skills!
I sideline doing nuisance trapping and wildlife control. Generally speaking, an animal regards it den as a safe haven to retreat to, not to escape from.
So, generally, the most effective method is to allow the animals out, just not back in. A hardware cloth funnel works quite well, it's easier than a trap door, and harder to defeat. You can effectively anchor the funnel with cinder blocks or like.
Beware, the animal will dig to get back in, especially if there are young (not an issue this time of year). You've also got to identify all entrances. Generally speaking, after a week you can fill the holes. Just stay on top of it to be sure the funnels aren't wrecked and defeated.
Snake eviction can be done similarly, but because snakes are much smaller, the funnels need to be smaller.
Set up a TV in the yard playing armadillo pr0n?
A jerry can full of gasoline ought to do the trick. No flame, just gas.
Don't let anyone see you do it, though. They'll start caterwauling about the water table and pollutants and God knows what else.
the title of this thread makes me giggle...
Most animals don't like light where they sleep. If you could get some lighting in there it might help with the eviction.
Here's a thought: How about some of those cheap LED flashers from the dollar store? Set them to flash, throw them deep into the hole, see what happens.
Worst case, you have created a creepy-crawly disco for cheap.
