Gastonia, NC Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)
Key Facts
- Screening requirement
- Basement/cellar rodent-entry points must be screened
- Structural standard
- Foundation, walls, roof kept 'rodent-proof'
- Single-unit duty
- Occupant exterminates after 1 owner attempt
- Multi-unit shared infestation
- Owner responsible, not tenant
- Owner-caused infestation
- Owner pays, regardless of unit count
- Noncompliance penalty
- $250.00 civil penalty per day
Summary
Gastonia's minimum housing code requires every basement or cellar opening that could let rodents inside to be screened or otherwise sealed under Sec. 16-129(i)(2), and it assigns extermination duty to whichever owner or occupant let the infestation happen. A landlord whose building isn't kept rodent-proof, not the tenant, must pay for pest control.
(2) Rodent control. Every basement or cellar window used or intended to be used for ventilation, and every other opening to a basement which might provide an entry for rodents, shall be supplied with screens installed or such other approved device as will effectively prevent their entrance. (3) Infestation. Every occupant of a dwelling containing a single dwelling unit shall be responsible for the extermination of any insects, rodents, or other pests therein or on the premises only after one attempt by the owner to exterminate; and every occupant of a dwelling unit in a dwelling containing more than one dwelling unit shall be responsible for such extermination whenever his dwelling unit is the only one infested. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this subdivision, whenever infestation is caused by failure of the actual owner to maintain a dwelling in a rodentproof or reasonably insectproof condition, extermination shall be the responsibility of the actual owner, as opposed to the tenant/occupant.
Full Breakdown
Sec. 16-129(i)(2) requires every basement or cellar window used for ventilation, and every other opening that might let rodents into a basement, to be fitted with screens or another approved device that effectively prevents their entrance. Sec. 16-129(i)(3) assigns responsibility for extermination: an occupant of a single dwelling unit is responsible only after one attempt by the owner to exterminate, and an occupant in a multi-unit dwelling is responsible only when their unit alone is infested. If infestation is caused by the owner's failure to keep a dwelling rodentproof or reasonably insectproof, or if infestation exists in two or more units or shared areas of a dwelling, the owner, not the tenant, bears responsibility.
This screening duty sits alongside broader structural standards: Sec. 16-129(h)(1) requires foundation walls, exterior walls, and roofs to be "substantially weathertight, watertight, and rodent proof," Sec. 16-129(j)(3) requires foundations to be kept in condition to "prevent the entry of rodents," and Sec. "
Violations & Fines
Failing to keep a building rodent-proof under Sec. 16-129(h)(1) and (j)(7), or shifting extermination costs onto a tenant when Sec. 16-129(i)(3) puts that duty on the owner, is enforced the same way as any other Minimum Housing Code violation: a Sec. 16-132 compliance order followed by the $250.00-per-day civil penalty in Sec. 16-135(b) if the owner misses the deadline.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is responsible for rodent extermination in a Gastonia rental?
Does Gastonia require basements to be sealed against rodents?
What happens if a Gastonia landlord ignores a rodent-proofing order?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Gastonia
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