Mice under my bota's hood.....any cures ??
- Thread starter botagreen
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Redneck in training
Elite Member
A friend of mine was an aircraft mechanic at a military base. He told me a story about an airplane taxing for a take off and suddenly the extra fuel tanks under the wing dropped to the runway. Investigation revealed some chewed wires in the airplane. Later on all airplanes were taken apart and examined and pretty much all of them had signs of mice chewing at some parts. Since that episode all airplanes were parked with a sheet metal "dam" around the wheels. They fabricated about 10" tall strips of sheet metal with a latch on the ends that was put around each wheel and latched together. It is a hustle but it worked for them.
rdsaustintx
Veteran Member
I ain't readin another mouse damage thread this year.
GET A CAT.
GET A CAT.
dex3361
Elite Member
- Joined
- Aug 22, 2008
- Messages
- 3,494
- Location
- N. of Charleston WV
- Tractor
- Kubota L4400-1 HST,FEL, 3x3 remotes, TNT. BX1500 54 mmm
I bought some pepper based spray from Lowes and used it under the hood of every thing that I own and it seemed to do the trick. I have since aquired a cat and the mice have been thinned out. But if I see an increase in sign I get out the pepper spray and spray it down.
OP
botagreen
New member
Thanks for all the good ideas. I am trying some of the simplest ones first and will work my way through the list as needed. Getting a cat would be a good idea, but only a temporary cure as I have a couple of dogs who love to eat them .
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ampsucker
Platinum Member
i've lost a few wires to mice. one chewed through my heater control wiring in the house. i've lost phone line jacks to them and one actually gnawed through a pex water line. luckily i was home the moment it started leaking (spraying) and could identify the strange sound under the cabinets and get it shut off!
they have also nested under the car hood when it was parked for several days. a vehicle left near the woods for a year will be pretty much ruined due to eaten wiring. beside their nasty chewing habits and their nests which can be sucked into intakes, they also spread disease.
we do keep cats but if you have a big place with woods all around, you'll need to do more. the cats will only hang out in their usual areas as they get lazy. i actually have it marked on my calendar every year as part of winterizing in the fall to put fresh bait under all crawlspaces. if i have a parked car i'm not using regularly, i put bait in the trunk, in the front or back seat floor and in the engine compartment.
always make sure your bait is in a place your animals and kids can't get to and teach the kids it's poison.
a new thing i am experimenting with in the barn is pvc bait traps. basically you take a 1 1/2" or 2" tee and extend each arm with about a foot of pipe. you then mount it to the floor against the wall in an out of the way place (screws work fine or you can buy a bracket) and just drop the bait down through the top of the T. the mice run along the wall, can freely come and go through the pipe that is parallel to the ground but pets and other larger critters can't get to the bait.
just be careful because a packrat will sometimes stock pile the bait in their nest and the kids or animals can then come across it that way. i wouldn't use bait if it wasn't necessary to thwart the destructive and dangerous habits of the rodents.....
amp
they have also nested under the car hood when it was parked for several days. a vehicle left near the woods for a year will be pretty much ruined due to eaten wiring. beside their nasty chewing habits and their nests which can be sucked into intakes, they also spread disease.
we do keep cats but if you have a big place with woods all around, you'll need to do more. the cats will only hang out in their usual areas as they get lazy. i actually have it marked on my calendar every year as part of winterizing in the fall to put fresh bait under all crawlspaces. if i have a parked car i'm not using regularly, i put bait in the trunk, in the front or back seat floor and in the engine compartment.
always make sure your bait is in a place your animals and kids can't get to and teach the kids it's poison.
a new thing i am experimenting with in the barn is pvc bait traps. basically you take a 1 1/2" or 2" tee and extend each arm with about a foot of pipe. you then mount it to the floor against the wall in an out of the way place (screws work fine or you can buy a bracket) and just drop the bait down through the top of the T. the mice run along the wall, can freely come and go through the pipe that is parallel to the ground but pets and other larger critters can't get to the bait.
just be careful because a packrat will sometimes stock pile the bait in their nest and the kids or animals can then come across it that way. i wouldn't use bait if it wasn't necessary to thwart the destructive and dangerous habits of the rodents.....
amp
Northland
Platinum Member
That's a common problem here when the weather gets cold and the mice look for winter homes in the garage, RV and other areas.
Someone gave me a tip that works very well and is not expensive. Place a tablespoon or two of cayenne pepper into spray bottle, fill with hot water and then agitate well.
I spray this mixture in the engine wells of both our vehicles, the tractor and on any openings of my RV. This mixture adheres well to most surfaces. I have not had any problems since I began using this method a few years ago.
Someone gave me a tip that works very well and is not expensive. Place a tablespoon or two of cayenne pepper into spray bottle, fill with hot water and then agitate well.
I spray this mixture in the engine wells of both our vehicles, the tractor and on any openings of my RV. This mixture adheres well to most surfaces. I have not had any problems since I began using this method a few years ago.
blueriver
Elite Member
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2007
- Messages
- 4,821
- Location
- S.E.Oklahoma
- Tractor
- JD 5520 Montana 4340 Farmall Super A Montana 5720C
Mice are not my problem, its the pack rats! They got into my wife's Dodge Ram built a nest in the fan blower, they got the wires on the round baler. I have placed rat bait in every corner of the barn, in the air cleaner of her truck in hidden portions of the baler and I keep WASP SPRAY on hand.
Last spring they got in the boat !! We take our annual spring fishing trip over spring break. Got the camp all set up, and hit the open water ... got to our favorite spot, handed the wife her rod and I started setting up, she says "hey what happen to my line?" I said I'll fix you up here take mine ... and yep it too was ate up. I told her must be a rat on board she gets up on her seat and says "If you don't get this boat to shore I will be running on water!!"
On shore I empty the boat and find the nest ... no rat ... out we go again and in awhile she hears noise and is determined there is a rat on board, back to shore. A neighbor friend who was also camping and fishing came in, asked what was wrong with the boat, cause we have been going out and coming back in, I explained it and he says I'll get him out.
He comes out of his camper with Wasp Spray ... confused I tell him its not wasp its a rat, he says watch this ... opens one of the doors in the floor and sprays all the can in the boat, closes the door and waits and sure enough in a few minutes out comes the rat!! He tells me the spray uses up the oxygen and forces the rat out.
So anyway around here its bar bait and wasp spray and if I got one in an area that I need to flush him out I spray em!!!!
Last spring they got in the boat !! We take our annual spring fishing trip over spring break. Got the camp all set up, and hit the open water ... got to our favorite spot, handed the wife her rod and I started setting up, she says "hey what happen to my line?" I said I'll fix you up here take mine ... and yep it too was ate up. I told her must be a rat on board she gets up on her seat and says "If you don't get this boat to shore I will be running on water!!"
On shore I empty the boat and find the nest ... no rat ... out we go again and in awhile she hears noise and is determined there is a rat on board, back to shore. A neighbor friend who was also camping and fishing came in, asked what was wrong with the boat, cause we have been going out and coming back in, I explained it and he says I'll get him out.
He comes out of his camper with Wasp Spray ... confused I tell him its not wasp its a rat, he says watch this ... opens one of the doors in the floor and sprays all the can in the boat, closes the door and waits and sure enough in a few minutes out comes the rat!! He tells me the spray uses up the oxygen and forces the rat out.
So anyway around here its bar bait and wasp spray and if I got one in an area that I need to flush him out I spray em!!!!
ByronBob
Veteran Member
They chewed the electrical wiring in my snowmobile handle bars after I realized they were up there.
Whatever you try don't stop until they're gone.
Whatever you try don't stop until they're gone.
OP
botagreen
New member
Ok, the plot thickens. I just went home for lunch and as I was standing in the kitchen, out from a small crack between my dishwasher and adjacent cabinet comes a mouse. I am now reading back through all of these ideas and heading to the store tonight to collect supplies to prepare for battle to protect not just my tractor, but now my home and while I am at it, a little cayenne pepper spray under the hood of all vehicles might be a good idea.