Need to wage war on mice / rats

[plowhog]

I'm familiar with, and often use typical household mouse traps in my enclosed garages (Victor brand.)

But I need to do some hard core serious mouse reduction. In about a month, I'll be storing a motorhome in my barn. I don't want it to be quickly destroyed by mice. I've never done any mouse reduction in the barn.

It's about 50x90, with lots of openings to nearby adjacent pastures and fields. There are mice in it now, of course. I want to knock the population back before the motor home shows up.

Various critters also wander in from time to time. I have a skunk in the barn at night usually about half the time, but I've never seen it there during the day. So I don't want a mouse trap snapped onto a skunk's paw.

Do the "walk the plank" traps work well? I've heard of them but never used one? And when the motorhome arrives, is there anything that can go around the tires to dissuade mice from invading?

 

[ericm979]

Closing up the building openings will help, if that's possible. Yea a skunk with a trap on it's paw would be a problem. They make traps that are not open like the usual snap traps.

We have had good results with dryer sheets near openings to keep mice out of cars.

 

[the old grind]

Tools and methods discussed recently here:

Newer style Victor mouse traps.

Has any one tried the newer style victor mouse traps? I had a mouse that kept going where he should not go. I tried a regular mouse trap but it would just not set off the trap. Finally I got a idea, cut a small hole about 1 1/2" put cat food inside and set the trap. It would still get inside...

www.tractorbynet.com

 

[jmc]

Bear with me here-

Tried to raise seedlings in an old farmhouse basement using grow lights. Mice kept eating the sprouts. So...

Put all the tiny plant containers on a big flat plastic container. (BFPC)
Put BFPC on a bigger piece of steel barn roofing, centered.
Put adhesive backed tinfoil around rim of BFPC.
Put pet-sized fence charger wires between steel roofing and foiled rim.

Never had another problem with mice. They got zapped when standing on the steel roofing base and touching the foiled rim as they tried to climb up.

if your motor home is only moved occasionally, you might be able to rig up the same principle at each tire contact point.

Thought about rigging something for my equipment but they're moved too often. Then forgot about it until I watched the wingnuts scaling the Capitol walls.

 

[plowhog]

In my garage recently, my wife left a half full plastic bucket of water on the concrete floor. The bucket was about 10" tall, maybe 8" diameter. She uses it to wash our dog's paws.

Next time I noticed-- it had 3 dead mice in it. The inside of the bucket is totally smooth; the outside of it has the wire handle draped to the side. I guess they climbed using the handle, then fell in? Something like this could help since if a skunk got in it could easily get out.

 

[dlctcg]

Sealing the barn would definitely be the biggest benefit.... but probably the most difficult...

We use the 5gal pal traps all the time... they work great & can catch multiple mice... down side you need to be around to empty is often enough they don't decompose in the bucket....

I make them out of old 5gal plastic pails, an empty water bottle, a dowel & a scrap piece of wood for a ramp.

Drill hole on bottle top & bottom so the dowel easily goes through & the bottle will spin on it..
Drill a hole on both sides of the top of pail so the dowel just slips through
Make a ramp out of scrap wood that will lead from the floor to the dowel with the bottle on it (I either cut a slot in the board so it sits in the lip of the bucket or sometimes just a rubber band)
Put water in the bucket... then either float seed on the water or just smear a little (very little) peanut butter on the bottle...

Down side of this trap is you may be attracting some mice for awhile... but we have used it method with really good results for years... (where we are I'll never be mouse free but can definitely control the population...

 

[big bubba]

agree with those that say enclose the barn. know it may seem impossible. but as long as there are portals for the rodents, you will only be moderating the population with no end in sight, rather than solving the problem. i have been rodent proofing my house foundation that in some areas rats have breached. for 1-3" openings, i use the spray foam insulation then pack gravel in the foam before it sets.

may not look pretty, but works wonders. steel wool packed in smaller holes works good too. i feel your frustration & wise to get on it early like you're doing
btw personally i do not use poison. my experience is that they will hole up & die in hard to get places. (even your vehicle)
then comes the stench. plus, not to speak of the food chain consequences, etc

as far as dryer sheets & mothballs, yes good idea if you can stand the scent in the vehicles you're protecting. i have found dryer sheets a few months old used as nesting in storage areas. my observation over the past 5 yrs is that rodents have become far more aggressive in their habits. could be climate change, etc, who's to say
& lastly, of course get a few cats to reside in the barn once you seal off...
best regards

 

[plowhog]

agree with those that say enclose the barn. know it may seem impossible.

I can try to reduce the number of entry areas, but an effective seal is futile. Six slider doors on 3 walls, none of which seal tight, present gaping holes to mice.

 

[big bubba]

i understand. best of luck

 

[plowhog]

for 1-3" openings, i use the spray foam insulation then pack gravel in the foam before it sets.

Curious- do the mice try to breach the foam by biting it, or does the gravel dissuade even trying?

 

[big bubba]

my problem was with rats, but sure mice would be the same. so far the spray foam fill with gravel aggregate has been highly effective. no sign of breach whatsoever but needs to be at least a few inches thick. the rats gnawed through the conventional sill vents (plastic & screen), but so far the foam gravel package is highly effective in the entry voids, etc.
in addition, i have used a tight grid hardware cloth over the sill vents. rats can't gnaw through rock & heavy gauge wire cloth

 

[jaxs]

The only thing you will keep out is the skunk if you try mouse proofing building. Skunks seldom climb so snap traps can be placed up high. Tractor Supply Company sell's good bait by the bucket that isn't offered in small packs. How good is good? I was placing it in outbuildings and stored bucket in barn. When I went to get bucket and replenish bait,they had chewed holes where lid snap's to bucket. I wish i could report they were wiped out but they were only partly eliminated. Why didn't it kill them all if they were that attracted to it? Because, (heads up this is important) everywhere rats and mice go they dribble urine. Lots of stuff posted on TBN is hog wash so I'll tell you how to easily prove what I'm telling you. Rats and mice love corn,right? Set a gallon or two of shelled corn in the most rat infested building you know of and they will never eat all of it. Once it's peed on they will starve before eating it. Don't let them pee on your animal feed and don't rely on bait that has been out long enough to be peed on. Now back to the bait bucket. I did get rid of them after buying fresh bait and storeing it where they couldn't help themselves.
As a side note about rats and mice. This is reason enough to refrain form killing every snake found in and around buildings. Learn to id the ones that are poison and let the others live.

 

[ericm979]

Poison bait can kill the predators that eat rodents. The mice or rats wander around sick and vulnerable before they die, and they often get eaten. Then the poison goes to work on the predator.

 

[Xfaxman]

Do the "walk the plank" traps work well? I've heard of them but never used one? And when the motorhome arrives, is there anything that can go around the tires to dissuade mice from invading?

Yes, I have the ones that go in a hole cut in the side of the bucket: New & Improved Walk The Plank Mouse Trap - Auto Reset - USA MADE | eBay

 

[rangerfredbob]

I use these, need to make some more... I have a couple that have 7 rat traps on them too... I've been meaning to do some of the bucket traps either with the spinning bottle or the diving board type...

This setup is simple, it's just a bunch of alternating mouse traps baited with peanut butter (not always necessary) screwed to a board with a piece of allthread in the middle bent into a handle shape (the 10' pieces are cheap at home depot so I use that for everything...)

 

[MidwestMike]

There are many alternatives to snap traps, but when I use them I put them in a shoebox-sized box with a hole cut in it to keep the pets or other critters from heading for the bait.

 

[LibraryMark]

I keep a small armada of Victor traps near all the openings in my barn, baited with salami. I make a habit of checking them every morning. At first there are a lot but soon it's a rare occurrence to catch a mouse.

 

[MHarryE]

I have had big problems with mice and squirrels. Squirrels seem worst because they chew wires. My mini-excavator has nylon socks with moth balls - has been effective but its open platform so the vapors won't harm me. Empty buckets in my machine shed, especially if they have been used for seed at some point, attract mice and result in a slow death - water in which they will drown would be an improvement. Hole through bucket near top dowel stuck through hole with pop can coated with peanut butter on the can and water in the bucket is very effective - until it freezes. Saturday I vacuumed the engine compartment of my diesel pickup - it sits all winter. Among the other things the squirrels had collected for their nest was a packet of Grandpa Gus rodent repellant. An RV stored really can use Fresh Cab - works better for me than Grandpa Gus. But in my continuing fight, I can never keep ahead of them.

 

[CoyPatton]

If you use dryer sheets, be sure to change them regularly and discard in a manner mice and rats can not get to, or you will be providing nesting material and probably increasing your population. Moth balls seem to be effective, but may allow their odor to filter into the motorhome. Depending upon the age of the motorhome, wire insulation may be produced with recycled cooking oil which will always contain the odor of cooked foot attracting lots of critters chew on the wires and cause lots of issues.
While an overwhelming task, preventing entry is the most effective prevention. Mice and rats and most rodents have super sensitive smell at least for certain things—their urine and pop which they follow to food sources as well as many types of food sources.

 

[Garson]

A couple of cats can fix your problem.