If you're having ongoing problems with a possum in your roof, then you have to be careful how you try to get rid of it. Possums are a protected species, and you can't treat them like other pests. If you haven't tried deterrents yet, then this may be worth a go. Deterrents make your roof space less attractive to possums. For example, quassia chips are often used to deter possums.

How do quassia chips get rid of possums and how do you use them?

How Quassia Chips Affect Possums

Quassia chips are chips of bark from the South American Quassia tree. This tree is sometimes also called a bitter ash or bitter wood.

Possums don't like the smell of quassia bark, and they certainly don't like the taste. This bark tastes so bitter and nasty that possums may well stay out of places where they can smell the bark or know that it is there.

How to Use Quassia Chips as a Possum Deterrent

If you have a possum living in your roof space or have noticed one trying to get in, then quassia chips may be an effective deterrent. There are a couple of ways to use these chips. You can scatter chips around your roof space, paying particular attention to the possum's entry point. You can also sprinkle some chips on your roof close to where your possum is getting in.

The chips themselves may not have an immediate effect on a possum that views your roof as its home, but they may deter an investigating possum. However, walking over the chips may give a resident possum a reason to move out over a short space of time. When the possum walks on the chips, it will eventually wash or lick its paws. It may even lick some chips to see if they are edible. The nasty taste of the chips is so bad that it may convince the possum to move out or stay away.

If you don't want to put down chips, you can boil the chips in water to make a quassia solution. You then spray this solution around your roof space and the possum's entry hole. You may need to do this regularly for a few days to keep the solution fresh. Again, if your possum smells or tastes the quassia, it may move out.

While quassia chips work on some possums, it isn't guaranteed to work. If your possum doesn't stay away after you use quassia chips, then call out a local pest control professional. They can help you get the possum out of your roof and release it without harming it.

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