Australian possums may look cute and cuddly; however, possums in your home's roof and ceiling could spell big trouble for your property, creating structural and electrical damage and risking pungent odours and potential disease hazards.
This article will discuss the importance of having overhead cable possum guards installed in your home and why you should call our cable possum guard experts at Kenner Electrics.
Possums and the Australian home: A love/hate relationship
There are 30 different possum species in Australia, with 13 species residing in Victoria alone! However, you will find two main types of possums in Melbourne's urban areas.
The two main types of possums living in urban and suburban Victoria include:
- The common Brushtail Possum
- The common Ringtail Possum
The common brushtail possum grows to roughly the size of a small cat, has pointed ears, a fluffy 'brushtail’, and an almost black section on their back.
However, the common ringtail possum is about half the size and features rounded ears and a white tip on its curly tail; hence the name "ring-tailed possum".
Both are nocturnal and are primarily herbivorous, eating eucalyptus leaves, green plums, red bush apples, acacia, and other fruits, plants and vegetables. Possums will only eat insects, reptiles and other small animals if plant food is extremely scarce.
While Australians and international visitors love seeing these amazing creatures in their natural habitat, possums and Australian homeowners have developed a love/hate relationship.
Possums are master tightrope walkers and use mains-to-home electrical and data cables to access property roofs. Possums love our ceilings, especially when there are inadequate tree hollows for them to hide away from harsh weather and predators.
Dangers of possums as pests
While a possum may seem like a relatively shy and harmless creature, they can wreak havoc on your home's roof structure and ceiling, from damaging tiles to chewing through electrical cables.
Some of the most common forms of property damage caused by Australian possums include:
- Broken roof tiles
- Damaged gutters
- Ceiling stains
- Potential harm to solar panels
- Urine on air conditioning systems
- Potential TV antenna damage and more
If you have a corrugated steel roof, there is one other major problem: noise! Possums landing and running across your top every night can disturb your sleep, leaving you tired and lethargic.
If left to make your roof their home, urine and excrement can build up in cavities, creating bacterial growths and dreadful smells while damaging insulation, ceiling lining, and roof structures.
The most dangerous hazard to address is that possums love to chew through your home's electrical wires in the ceiling and upper wall cavities.
Possums do this to either get a cable out of the way like they would a branch or vine or simply because they can! Unfortunately, this terrible possum habit can decimate your home's electrical wiring system, disrupting your power supply and creating a significant electrical shock and fire hazard.
Possums might also come into contact with overhead lines and power lines, which can lead to power outages.
If you do end up with possums squatting on your roof, you must either lay traps yourself, risking falls and slips or hire expensive pest controllers to remove the possums. Then, there is always the likely chance that another posse of possums will move in; it's a vicious cycle that can be avoided.
Luckily, a qualified electrician can install an affordable, simple, and effective device that stops the possums from accessing your home via overhead cables. Using cable ties to secure loose wires can also help prevent damage. Read on to learn more.
Cable possum guard installation electrician Melbourne
One of the possum's favourite ways to access your home's roof is via the mains electrical lines and data cables coming off the road into your house. Possums access your roof via these overhead cables, either from the electrical poles on the street or via trees in the cable's path.
The overhead cable possum guard is a simple plastic device that fits strategically along the cable, acting as a shield that the possum cannot get over.
There are two main types of possum cable guards:
- Basic possum guard (CABAC PPG)- A slimline sleeve that deters possums from crossing the cable with a 60-80% success rate.
- A 'line guard possum guard'- Three-phase protection via two raised plastic guards on either end of a series of intersectional moving deterrents.
A line guard-style possum guard, like the Critter Guard brand, offers superior performance to a basic cable possum guard by offering three lines of defence. Some homes may only have one cable run to the house, while others may have several. In this case, a possum guard would need to be placed on all wires leading into the property.
While these guards work well for preventing cable access, overhanging and low-hanging trees and foliage require a different approach. A local arborist or pest controller is your best source of information regarding trees in close proximity to your roof.
However, these arborists and pest controllers should not fit overhead possum guards to electric cables without an electrical licence.
For more information on the different types of possum guards available, click here.
Cable Possum Guard Electrician Melbourne
For professional installation of an overhead cable possum guard by an electrician in Melbourne, contact our possum guard experts here at Kenner Electrics. We supply the tried and tested Critter Guard ‘Line Guard” system, one of the most effective possum guard solutions in the world.
