How to permanently seal an animal burrow near a foundation
Animals like chipmunks and rats dig burrows near foundations that channel water inward and provide entry points under the house. Quick fixes like steel wool and concrete fail because pests simply tunnel underneath them. A permanent seal requires addressing both the void and the exterior access route to stop water infiltration and re-entry.
What the numbers show
Counted from the threads quoted below. How we count
- The most recent one is from October 2026.
- This comes up 18.0× more often in r/HomeMaintenance than across the site as a whole.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Filling the hole with soilDid this help you?
- 2Using gravelDid this help you?
- 3Pouring dry or wet concreteDid this help you?
- 4Using 000 steel wool and wet concrete to patch holesDid this help you?
- 5Setting lethal traps under the house continuouslyDid this help you?
- 6Trying to identify the specific animal and figure out how to kill them or deter them from digging.Did this help you?
- 7using fill dirtDid this help you?
- 8filling with clay fill and tamping downDid this help you?
- 9pouring flowable grout or thin mud mixed from piled soil into the openingDid this help you?
- 10filling the remainder with gravel and sand and tamping it downDid this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“My main question is how do I fix all these holes correctly, do I need to rip them all up or just use fill dirt and fill them and call it good?”source ↗
“More or so looking at how to patch up the holes I don’t believe that there are any more groundhogs occupying the tunnels”source ↗
“Fill them all in with clay fill and tamp down.”source ↗
“Problem is the are getting underneath.”source ↗
“There was a hole in the corner going I to the crawl space. I shoved it full of 000 steel wool and then packed it with wet concrete. They burrowed under it and made a new hole!!!”source ↗
“Rats I think. I’m actively catching them under the house. 8 or 9 so far this week.”source ↗
“Thoughts on how to actually close this down?”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 6How to stop animals from digging trenches around house foundations
- 31Should I use foam or caulk to seal gaps in exterior walls?
- 7Why are there big soil gaps around my foundation?
- 4How to backfill an exterior foundation drain without trapping water
- 4How to seal a gap under a garage door
- 14How to stop dogs from ruining yard paths