GG Posted January 31, 2020 Share Posted January 31, 2020 The little critters love my garage, but they love the engine compartments much more. For a second time, they chewed through plug wires and caused serious damage. Dealers suggest putting in dryer sheets under the hood and I see Amazon sells rodent repellents that I may try. Anyone else have good home remedies, other than getting a cat to live under the hood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrDawkinstein Posted January 31, 2020 Share Posted January 31, 2020 I have an issue with squirrels getting into our vehicle vents to store their nuts and leaves. I went the Amazon route and ordered this stuff, and it has done the trick. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072C87MD8/ Even though it says "Squirrel Mace" I'd bet it would work for almost anything. It's a potent mix of concentrated peppermint oil and concentrated garlic oil. It made me gag when spraying it. Only thing is, we have an outdoor parking pad. Not sure I'd spray that in an enclosed garage. Not real harmful, but it does stink something fierce. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Royale with Cheese Posted January 31, 2020 Share Posted January 31, 2020 Looks like the rats don't respect you. You gotta let them know you're in charge. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted January 31, 2020 Share Posted January 31, 2020 Borrow a cat. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wacka Posted January 31, 2020 Share Posted January 31, 2020 Shiv the mofo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeGOATski Posted January 31, 2020 Share Posted January 31, 2020 I once found little critter bones in my engine compartment. I assumed a cat caught a mouse and hopped up in there to eat it in peace. Or maybe someone was trying to put a satanic hex on me and/or my vehicle... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevbeau Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 (edited) I’ve read moth balls. I’m interested as well as we have an issue with rays nesting in the truck we park down by the barn. Edited February 1, 2020 by Kevbeau Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Hammersticks Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 This thread is going to be epic ? 1 minute ago, Kevbeau said: I’ve read moth balls. Mice don’t like moth testicles? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevbeau Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 Just now, Johnny Hammersticks said: This thread is going to be epic ? Mice don’t like moth testicles? Too chewy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldTimeAFLGuy Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 19 hours ago, Royale with Cheese said: Looks like the rats don't respect you. You gotta let them know you're in charge. ...uh oh....could be Libs......just sayin'........... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hapless Bills Fan Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 21 hours ago, GG said: The little critters love my garage, but they love the engine compartments much more. For a second time, they chewed through plug wires and caused serious damage. Dealers suggest putting in dryer sheets under the hood and I see Amazon sells rodent repellents that I may try. Anyone else have good home remedies, other than getting a cat to live under the hood. I wonder if cat hair would work as a repellent? Maybe the critters would use it as a nest My only useful $0.02 is that when we had a mouse problem with a car parked outside in our driveway, it tracked to a problem with squirrel spillage of birdseed in our driveway. The mice likely aren't trekking miles and miles and miles to nest...they are nesting near a food source. So if you can figure out what their food source is and eliminate that, the problem may diminish. It may, of course, be easier said than done if ithe food source is something like a neighbor tossing grain and veggies into her yard every day to "feed the critters" (and the rats) and who is not reachable by information or persuasion....not that we have one of those ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted February 1, 2020 Author Share Posted February 1, 2020 16 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said: I wonder if cat hair would work as a repellent? Maybe the critters would use it as a nest My only useful $0.02 is that when we had a mouse problem with a car parked outside in our driveway, it tracked to a problem with squirrel spillage of birdseed in our driveway. The mice likely aren't trekking miles and miles and miles to nest...they are nesting near a food source. So if you can figure out what their food source is and eliminate that, the problem may diminish. It may, of course, be easier said than done if ithe food source is something like a neighbor tossing grain and veggies into her yard every day to "feed the critters" (and the rats) and who is not reachable by information or persuasion....not that we have one of those ? Unfortunately, the food source is the plastic around the plug wires. For whatever reason mice love the stuff. Add the cover and warmth in winter time, under the hood is an awesome place to nest. I've been reading more into this, and now car companies are introducing more organic matter into car parts, and that turns the engine compartment into a verifiable buffet. I've seen pictures of entire components eaten away! Insane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 How about drive your car once in a while? 21 hours ago, DrDawkinstein said: I have an issue with squirrels getting into our vehicle vents to store their nuts and leaves. I went the Amazon route and ordered this stuff, and it has done the trick. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072C87MD8/ Even though it says "Squirrel Mace" I'd bet it would work for almost anything. It's a potent mix of concentrated peppermint oil and concentrated garlic oil. It made me gag when spraying it. Only thing is, we have an outdoor parking pad. Not sure I'd spray that in an enclosed garage. Not real harmful, but it does stink something fierce. This bad: https://www.autoblog.com/2019/10/08/squirrels-nuts-car-engine-compartment/ Yeah... Like they really drove the car... /smh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hapless Bills Fan Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 36 minutes ago, GG said: Unfortunately, the food source is the plastic around the plug wires. For whatever reason mice love the stuff. Add the cover and warmth in winter time, under the hood is an awesome place to nest. I've been reading more into this, and now car companies are introducing more organic matter into car parts, and that turns the engine compartment into a verifiable buffet. I've seen pictures of entire components eaten away! Insane. I would love to learn more about this! I would have said, plastic is not a food source for any mammal. I know in the old days, casein (milk) plastic was one of the earliest plastics made, but poly of styrene, propylene etc not so much. Good luck - but I wonder if a general mouse eradication program is still your best bet 28 minutes ago, ExiledInIllinois said: How about drive your car once in a while? This bad: https://www.autoblog.com/2019/10/08/squirrels-nuts-car-engine-compartment/ Yeah... Like they really drove the car... /smh Story says it was parked for 3 days. I totally believe squirrels could achieve that in 3 days given a nearby source of walnuts and of grass. Heck, overnight. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punching Bag Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 You could try some sonic mice repellents. Depending on mice they move on or like TSW you learn to deal with things which bother you like trolls. I find them workable to keep them away from small targeted areas so for car it may work. https://www.wil-kil.com/blog/does-ultrasonic-rodent-repellent-work/ The short answer is no, ultrasonic rodent repellents don’t work. Some homeowners have noted an immediate effect at first, but over time the rodent problem will continue to persist. Mice are fairly resilient and adaptable, so while the sound may bother them at first, eventually they will grow accustomed to it or find an alternative route. The frequency of most also don’t travel very far from the device, usually about 10-20 feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 7 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said: I would love to learn more about this! I would have said, plastic is not a food source for any mammal. I know in the old days, casein (milk) plastic was one of the earliest plastics made, but poly of styrene, propylene etc not so much. Good luck - but I wonder if a general mouse eradication program is still your best bet Story says it was parked for 3 days. I totally believe squirrels could achieve that in 3 days given a nearby source of walnuts and of grass. Heck, overnight. Thanx... Busy little ***** -ers! Hope a hawk comes down, swoops its ass away! True story: Saw that taking my daughter to school one day. I told my wife, she was devastated... Until I said: "Maybe it's the douchebag squirrel that's raiding your bird feeders." She changed her tune quickly! Heartless when there is skin in the game! LoL... Then there is this: https://www.thedodo.com/do-squirrels-remember-nuts-1428837174.html 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gray Beard Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 I got some squirrels to stop coming into my garage by putting rags soaked in vinegar near where I thought they were hiding. I don’t know if correlation implies causation or not, but they stopped coming in. My MIL had mice chew through some wire near the fuel injectors on her car engine. The car ran rough until it was fixed. $300 to fix it because the wire was buried under the fuel injectors and other stuff on the top of the engine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 4 minutes ago, Gray Beard said: I got some squirrels to stop coming into my garage by putting rags soaked in vinegar near where I thought they were hiding. I don’t know if correlation implies causation or not, but they stopped coming in. My MIL had mice chew through some wire near the fuel injectors on her car engine. The car ran rough until it was fixed. $300 to fix it because the wire was buried under the fuel injectors and other stuff on the top of the engine. And the worst part of that is troubleshooting that clustermess of a problem... Hopefully, the OBDII will throw a fault code! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GG Posted February 1, 2020 Author Share Posted February 1, 2020 28 minutes ago, Hapless Bills Fan said: I would love to learn more about this! I would have said, plastic is not a food source for any mammal. I know in the old days, casein (milk) plastic was one of the earliest plastics made, but poly of styrene, propylene etc not so much. Good luck - but I wonder if a general mouse eradication program is still your best bet Here's one story - soybean byproduct is the main culprit. Yup, going the old fashioned route of placing traps near the wheels, and spraying under hood with vinegar/peppermint oil solution. Also, appears Irish Spring soap also works well. We'll see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxx Posted February 1, 2020 Share Posted February 1, 2020 2 hours ago, Johnny Hammersticks said: This thread is going to be epic ? Mice don’t like moth testicles? you might need to add a little sauce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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