Martens are excellent climbers. Did you know that they can easily climb a gutter? Find out below how you can tell that a marten has climbed up the drainpipe and how you can prevent the animals from doing so.
How do you stop martens from climbing up the gutter?
Martens can easily climb downpipes and gutters with their sharp claws. Attach special marten brushes (€19.00 on Amazon) or a homemade wire belt around the gutter to prevent them from climbing. In addition, a wire net should be attached to the bottom or top end.
How does the marten get on the roof?
Martens have sharp claws on their paws, with which they can easily cling to trees, but also to smoother surfaces such as gutters. They are also very agile when climbing: they can turn their feet up to 180°. Their leg muscles are impressively strong, as the little creatures can jump up to 2 meters.
Traces on the gutter
Not sure if a marten crawled up the gutters? Here are a few clues:
- Martens are not quiet animals. Strong scratching noises can be heard when climbing the gutter and loud rumbling can be heard when reaching the roof.
- Martens leave scratch marks with their sharp claws - especially on plastic pipes.
- Clumps of hair can also be an indication of a marten infestation.
Tip
Martens climb up the gutter from both the outside and the inside!
How do I stop the marten from climbing the gutter?
Since martens, as I said, use the gutter to climb both inside and outside, it must be blocked twice. You can also buy special marten brushes (€19.00 on Amazon) or marten belts from specialist retailers. This is wire that is wrapped with many long bristles and can be stuffed into the gutter or wrapped around it.
Make your own marten protection
Of course you can also make the marten protection yourself. One option is to build the protection from sharp wires:
- Choose a main wire to wrap around the gutters and trim accordingly.
- Now cut at least ten pieces of wire about twenty centimeters long.
- Wrap the middle around the main wire a few times and let the ends, which are now about ten centimeters long, stick out pointedly.
- Attach all the pieces of wire around the main wire to create a kind of crown of thorns.
- Tie this belt around your gutter at least two meters from the ground.
Tip
Attach a wire net to the bottom or top of the gutter to prevent martens from crawling in.
