The rodenator----

[RadarTech]

Folks,
Got this from a friend and just had to share.

Probrably has been posted before.. as I remember many people talking about putting propane or gas in the ground.

But this is a commercial product. and there is a cool video...

Pest Control - Moles, Gophers, Burrowing Rodents @ Rodenator

Enjoy the video..


When using either model on closed tunnel pests, the first step is to locate and open an active tunnel. Using our exclusive Rodenator gopher shovel, open an active mound (fresh dirt) by removing the pests plug, insert either the muzzle end of the Pro or the 45 degree elbow of the R2, flow the gas mixture for 30 to 90 seconds (determined by species-see operators manual for suggested flow times), and then detonate the mixture as per instructions for each individual device. The resulting rapid expansion of the gas mixture creates a shockwave that travels through the tunnel at an approximate rate of 5,000 feet per second. This concussive force causes an immediate major hemorrhage at the base of the brain through each ear canal and terminates the pest. In closed tunnel applications the force of the detonation will also collapse most, if not all, of the existing unrestricted tunnel system preventing immediate reinfestation. Tunnel collapse can be from a few feet to over 300 feet of broken ground above the infrastructure of the eliminated pests' burrow system.


OR----
When using the Rodenator on open burrow pests, the sequence of events are entirely the same as closed tunnel systems with the exception of having to open the tunnel. Whether using the R1, R2, or R3 in open burrow applications, it is suggested to limit use to calm wind days or use some sort of non-flammable block around the muzzle or flex hose to prevent the dispensed fuel from escaping the burrow. This will allow much better penetration of the gases and higher elimination rates. The efficacy rates will be just as high as with closed tunnel systems, but because of the very nature of the open burrow, there will be little collapse of the tunnels. The expanding concussive force either comes right back out the opening as with badgers, or may travel out the various openings of marmot, ground squirrel or prairie dog burrows. In each different application, the desired result is the pests' demise and the concussive force of the Rodenator will accomplish this.

The operational costs of application per tunnel system are minimal. Depending on your local costs of propane and oxygen, the feedback we get from customers using the Rodenator, tells us that on average, a per tunnel cost is somewhere less than $0.20 cents per .



Later,
J

 

[framer]

Cool video. Since you brought the subject up my vole population is getting worse.Talked to a local farmer said his dog was best removal.My dog
gets a few but to many tunnels. Does any body think disking would get deep
enough to kill. Thanks

 

[955er]

WOW!!!!!

 

[charlz]

The technique works good, made my own and rid my place of the infestation of pocket gophers. I always get one or two that try to move in from a neighbors place so it is an ongoing thing.

I will tell you after a while it makes you a bit gun shy ... you just don't know if that tunnel is 1ft long or 100ft long... if you bleed 100ft tunnels worth of oxy/propane into a 1ft tunnel .... let's just say it's sure to wake the neighbors ... in the next town

For that reason I made the 'stand off' system similar to the Gophernator (their website is currently down) where you are no right there when the mixture goes off.

 

[2manyrocks]

HOw did you make your own? The moles are wrecking my yard.

 

[forgeblast]

Cool video. Since you brought the subject up my vole population is getting worse.Talked to a local farmer said his dog was best removal.My dog
gets a few but to many tunnels. Does any body think disking would get deep
enough to kill. Thanks

same here i am going to try the plant skydd product in granular. I heard great things about it and will post what i find.

 

[charlz]

HOw did you make your own? The moles are wrecking my yard.

I posted about it a few years ago. I use the handle off my oxy/act torch, a small block made from a branch about the size of a pocket gopher tunnel and an electric bbq igniter with a 15' lead. Used a piece of rubber hose that fits over the end of the torch handle (cutting head removed) and it goes through a hole in the wood block. Same for the wire going to the 'sparker' for the igniter which is mounted on the block near where the hose comes through. You want 95% oxy and 5% propane so it takes some testing to figure out how to set the valves on the handle and how long to let it run.

It works best in the spring when the pocket gophers are making long runs. Go out first thing while they are digging, find the most recent mound, back up a few mounds and dig out the tunnel. Insert the block and bury with some loose dirt to keep the gas from coming back out. Blast in the direction they are working. This works 100% of the time if they are actively digging. The first time through my field I got a good 80% kill ratio. The rest took quite a while to clean up.

With my torch (Victor Jr.) I have to let it run about 5 mins to get enough gas far enough down the tunnels for good destruction.

The commercial systems use triple flashback arrestors etc. My safety is I turn off the gas, remove the hose from the torch handle and then move to the igniter and touch it off.

Moist ground helps keep the blast in the tunnels, it can rip up the ground for a ways when you get it right. Also will blow dirt 30' feet in the air so kinda have to adjust your run time to where you are blasting.

 

[2manyrocks]

So there's not enough volume in a propane torch for it to work just by letting the propane go in the tunnel and then touching it off with a BBQ sparker on a long lead? I was thinking with propane being heavier than air, it would make a good fuel for this. But when you started talking about needing to adjust run time.....do you mean, you personally running from the blast?

 

[RonMar]

like an internal combustion engine, air/fuel ratio is critical. Too rich or too lean and it will not burn. Propane displaces air in the tunnel, so there is only one small area where the gas front meets the tunnel air that it will burn. Without a fresh source of O2, it will smother itself quickly as any heat will expand and push the gas and O2 apart. Thst is of course if you are so fortunate as to get a source of ignition at the exact right spot to get it to light.

Now if you inject propane and O2 at the same time and at the correct ratio, the fuel and oxidizer are carried along together and a ignition source will set the thing off like a piece of det cord. Someof the most powerfull non nuculear explosions detonated on earth Have been the fuel/air type. But mix control has always been their most difficult obstacle.

I cooked up some plans last fall for a .410 killer using an IR detector module to zip the little buggers when they pass beneath it. I havn't checked the sensor yet to see if it will trigger upon the passing of a rodent(they arn't really actively digging up my yard yet). IT should give one shot one kill performance, and I think this might be better than blowing up my yard, but it probably won't be as cool...

 

[charlz]

The O2 is the key component, gotta have plenty of it for an explosive mixture versus a burning mixture. By 'run time' I mean you have to figure out, for your particular set up, how long to run the mixture into the tunnels. Too short and it doesn't go very far, too long and it will either tend to dissipate (or something) after a distance or you will load WAY too much in there and really send the dirt flying

 

[2manyrocks]

I think I'm reaching the point where I'm willing to blow it up in order to save it.

 

[Tom H C]

charlz, any chance seeing some pictures of the one you made? What do you have your Oxygen & Propane regulators set at? Is that how you control how much each one puts out?

 

[kf4uda]

We did have lots and lots of moles. Then came the Jack Russell. It took a little while but now there is no such thing as a mole around here. She has dragged up just about any kind of creature around here. She is a very keen hunter.

 

[Tom H C]

We have a major issues with gophers. I mean a MAJOR ISSUE. I have trapped about 100 in the last year and still can't keep them under control. They are so bad they are killing a lot of the plants in the yard. Looked at the Gophernator but it is way over priced if you ask me. I think I can build one for less then $200. I can buy a torch kit for about $110 that comes with regulators. I have a Oxygen & Propane tank already. I don't know if the acetylene regulator is the same as a propane regulator. Does anyone know? Then I need 50 hose and need some kind of igniter. Sound simple to me.

 

[Pete Judd]

I just picked up a used propane regulator, and will use the regular O2, and torch set from the cutting torch. With the addition to a propane cutting tip. I am planning on using a BBQ ignitor and a spark plug on the end of a dowel to set it off.

I will update after the first couple of tests in the next couple of weeks if it dry's up around here.

 

[Willl]

Need somebody to hold the movie camera ?

 

[MasseyWV]

Did anyone notice the price of the "Rodenator "? :shocked:

 

[flusher]

Pocket gophers are a problem around this part of CA. I get rid of them with the stuff you get at Home Depot--pellets that you place in the tunnels with a $20 insertion tool. Just for good measure I drop a stick of Juicy Fruit gum in the tunnel--supposedly the little ***** gag on the stuff.

 

[Tom H C]

I'm set to go with a homemade one. I will try it out tomorrow. It cost me about $150 to make.

 

[edlegault]

Any news on the homemade one?