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Old 06-03-2017, 08:56 PM   #1
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Keep mice out

I am storing my bus for the summer, what are some of the ways to keep mice away from the electrical wiring ,that you have used successfully ?

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Old 06-03-2017, 09:24 PM   #2
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Irish Spring bars of soap cut up into approx half inch slices and placed around the interior seems to have done the trick for my bus

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Old 06-03-2017, 09:27 PM   #3
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The mice would much rather eat poisoned food than wiring. I've used the poison bait blocks successfully. The mice will carry the blocks away to their nests so be sure and break up the blocks as much as possible.

I'd suggest not storing food or other organic materials that could be used for nesting in the bus. You could also take your battery out and keep it somewhere on a charger so it doesn't freeze in the bus.
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Old 06-03-2017, 09:41 PM   #4
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I think I will try both these suggestions, I have been thinking about unhooking all (4) batteries it will be for the warmest 6 months of the year, but if a hot wire gets chewed in two I don't want it bouncing around.
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Old 06-03-2017, 10:06 PM   #5
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I prefer glue traps over posion so I don't have to hunt down dead mice. Thankfully I've only ever had mice issues in my garage when I was living in the north but don't see why glue traps wouldn't work in a bus too.

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Old 06-03-2017, 10:27 PM   #6
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Glue traps do work. Poison bait gets carried back to the nest. This poison makes their organs unable to retain water so they usually dry out pretty fast.

There's any number of ways to deal with mice and some have lower maintenance issues than others.
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Old 06-04-2017, 07:12 AM   #7
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farmers in this area put dryer sheets in their tractors when storing over the winter, apparently they hate the smell. not sure if there's a certain brand though as this is all word of mouth ive heard from several people.
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Old 06-04-2017, 08:17 AM   #8
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Do not use poison. It is not species specific.
I once used the blue chew stick style.
Our dog managed to eat one of them.
We only knew because the next day we took her for a walk and saw her drop a blue turf.
So off to the emergency off hours vet.
She survived but would have bled to death if we had not gone for a walk that day.
Most rodent poison is blood thinners that destroy your vitamin K so your blood won't clot.
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Old 06-04-2017, 07:43 PM   #9
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Cinnamon.
Believe it or not cinnamon is used in a lot of animal & insect repellent. Its safe for Fido or Fluffy & smells good to boot.
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Old 06-04-2017, 08:08 PM   #10
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I never thought of trying cinnamon. From what I understand mice can somehow taste with their feet, which is apparently why they don't like walking on hotsauce. It makes sense they wouldn't like walking on cinnamon either.
This is all taking place in my dashboard so I'm a little leary of getting a face full of powdered anything through the defrosters. I took the dash apart until I started seeing welds and couldn't find any nest.
I've heard peppermint also works well, both in oil and water based sprays.

I think when I'm out going through the national parks the mice will voluntarily get off the bus so they can live in a beautiful area.
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Old 06-05-2017, 04:24 AM   #11
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You could get a spray bottle with water & then dust the water with the cinnamon. Worth a shot.
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Old 06-05-2017, 11:32 AM   #12
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These lazy cats are going to get a surprise one of these days when this bus drives away and doesn't come back. Then they'll be looking for mice.
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Old 06-06-2017, 04:10 AM   #13
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I think I will try a little bit of everything I have seen the results of mice nesting in an engine compartment and want to prevent any chance of that.
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Old 06-06-2017, 05:03 AM   #14
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here's how my grampa caught em.
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Old 06-06-2017, 08:03 AM   #15
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I use dryer sheets. Classic cars and the bus.
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Old 06-07-2017, 07:16 AM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by EastCoastCB View Post
here's how my grampa caught em.
What a great idea. Is that soapy water in the bowl?

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Old 06-07-2017, 09:45 AM   #17
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When I'm brewing beer, after I've transfered the wort to kegs, the mice will find a way to get inside the 5 gallon glass carboys with the brewing residue (mother) inside. It's pretty disgusting to have mice drowning in a brewing jug, but amazingly effective.

Slugs also crawl into a container of beer and drown.
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Old 06-07-2017, 10:44 AM   #18
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The only certain way to keep mice out is to close up any and all entry points (aka; holes). Remember, a mouse (or rat) can get through any opening they can squeeze their tiny little skulls through.

My '46 had a fairly large family of adorable field mice in residence when I went to Utah to pick it up. Downright Disney cute...but they had to go. After which I have been sealing up every opening into the interior. And not with Great Stuff. They eat that like cheese. Metal everywhere.

PS...One more thought.

I have used Great Stuff to keep rats out of my art studio/warehouse, but with a twist. Chop up some coarse steel wool into about quarter inch stands and mix it into the foam before it sets. When they try to chew through the foam they get a mouthful of metal shards that they do NOT like the taste of and go away. It has worked now for the past ten years.
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Old 06-07-2017, 11:02 AM   #19
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what a cool idea of the steel wool!! you have 'rebar' in your great-stuf!
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Old 06-07-2017, 11:15 AM   #20
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It was another "Farmers" trick so I guess I should not have been surprised it would work so well. They come up with cheap, quick, real world fixes the engineers and scientists would never dream of.
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