No, the thread title is not a joke on my part. I was referring to Mice/Rats (even Squirrels apparently) getting into your garage/shed over wintertime and taking up residence under the bonnet of your car or in the airbox of your bike and possibly eating wiring and causing other damage to the vehicle/s? Touch wood I haven't had any damage recently but there are tell tale signs in our garage that mice have moved in. I few years back I had a Ducati ST4s and I didn't even know there was insulation material in the fairing side panels until I noticed a pile of debris under the bike one day when I went into the garage. On closer inspection after I'd stripped off the fairing, there was considerable damage caused by Mice eating away at the insulation. In the years since then I've tried various methods to deter rodents from ultra sonic devices that plug into your electricity sockets to setting mouse traps and even encouraging our Cat to go in the garage overnight, although she much prefers the hearthrug in our lounge and I can't say I blame her! I heard that spraying a peppermint scent in the problem areas can be one solution and as its relatively cheap to get hold of and the rodents are put off by the smell (so I'm told). I've just spent an hour or so spraying all my bikes and the car too (under the bonnet). Has anyone tried this themselves and does it work? Have you got any other remedies to solve the rodent issue relating to bikes/cars? I don't really want to use poison as we have the aforementioned cat.
"Sticky Pads" I jest not, lived by a farm once and we had mice so the rentokill bloke suggested trying them and they worked a treat, mice usually scuttle along the edge first so you lay the pads down and "hey presto" next morning they are stuck to the pads, you can then tap them on the head and dispose of, a 12 bore is more fun though
Poison! Plenty and in boxes with small holes or wherever your pets cannot access it. We have an annual invasion as the temperature drops and field mice move in.
A guy I know suggested non-polluting rodent poison. 50/50 mix of chocolate powder and plaster of paris. The rats/mice eat it and go stiff. No environmental damage.
No more rodents since we have a bloodthirsty cat. That avoid the poison, but before the cat, had to use some.
I tried "no kill" traps, and they worked fine. Apart the trapped mices even released hundred meters away came back next day. Much smarter than we imagine.
Mouse traps baited with peanut butter have always worked for me -bonus: when they're dead, they don't come back! Though since we've had the Dobie we haven't had an issue.
We've had problems with mice, rats, squirrels and cats. We're keen bird watchers and have numerous feeders round the garden so that's obviously an attractant. Mice could get into the old shed easily and raid the bird food store. Mouse traps dealt with those but I built a new shed earlier this year which is mouse proof.....so far! We get rats occasionally on and around the bird table. A .22 pellet behind the ear takes care of those. The grey squirrels are destructive little b******s and have trashed numerous feeders despite suspending them on poles and wires etc. I've just installed an electric fence along their access route and I've not seen any for a while so it's looking effective. The same fence is also keeping cats away. One cat in particular that looks ferel tried a few times to get through but has given up it seems. .
For mice and moles I find these little babies work a treat. If we’re talking rats then a Fenn trap placed in a tunnel gets results or if you’ve got an infestation of rats borrow a ferret and stand back.
Removing access is another approach. Add seals to doors and windows. Use wire mesh in places if you need airflow.
I remember a conversation I once had with Vermin Control Officer, rat catcher to you and me. He said if you can poke a biro with its lid into a hole then the hole is big enough for a mouse to get through.
Mr. Sandi and I have both had extensive damage to our vehicles (truck and car but not bikes) by pack rats which are a problem here in the desert. We tried numerous "home remedies" but none worked until a mechanic told us about "Rid-A-Rat". We both bought one at our local Ace Hardware and haven't had any problems since (over three years ago). There are probably other similar brands out there but this one is made just up the road from us in a Phoenix suburb. The device either runs off your vehicle battery or you can buy one that's battery operated. It has a magnet so you just attach it to something under your hood and it emits a flashing light approximately every three seconds. Evidently the pack rats are scared off by or hate the flashing lights and stay away. We also bought a small unit that we set on the garage floor among the motorcycles that flashes in the same fashion. We still see evidence of pack rats nearby (yeah, pack rat poop) but since we started with the Rid-A-Rat solution we've had no damage whatsoever to any of our vehicles. We use a version of the sticky traps that others have discussed on this thread to actually trap the pack rats as they damage other things in addition to vehicles. We've had decent but not perfect success. Good luck figuring this out, @johne. Those rodents can create a real--and expensive--mess. https://www.rid-a-rat.com/index.html
Thanks for all the suggestions guys/gals. I particularly like Sandi's Rid A Rat, I might get one of those. As per my OP though has anyone here tried the Peppermint spray?
I use it in my garage and the garden shed I’ve never had any problems with rodents in the garage but mice made a right mess of the cushions on our garden furniture Sprayed with peppermint spray and have had no problems since
Unfortunately, cats don't last very long in Tucson, Joe, unless they are strictly indoor pets. Coyotes and bobcats and all that.....
