RATS .. How to repel them from your engine compartment

HBTexas

HBTexas

Well-known member
Hey Fellas, Few weeks ago my a/c on truck stopped cooling,:eek:.. hmmm upon close inspection found the wires to the low press switch had been chewed by rats ..
Easy fix. shop would have probably replaced the compressor . LOL .
Any ways.. other day notice a long segment of shop towels had some how gotten Tugged down in between the cab and bed on my X1100C ..:unsure: hmm had to be a RAT ?
Well,.,.. Yesterday went to use the winch and no power. Hmmm Upon Close inspection found the red control wire had been chewed in half RATS !!!:mad: easy enough fix.
But I can just imagine whats gonna happen when a BIG SNAKE gets up in there looking for the rat ?? Im gonna have another heart attack .

Any of you guys got suggestions on how to keep them varmints out of our S**T ??
 
Up here in Wisconsin, we (thankfully) don't have many rats in our open sheds, but I regularly do battle with legions of mice. I've tried the minty/wintergreen rodent packages with modest success, but old-fashioned mothballs seem to work best. I lay open packets in the engine compartment, under the seat and on the floor. I hate the smell, but so do they.
Meanwhile, a 5-gal bucket left nearby with three inches of anti-freeze, a gentle plank, and empty veggie can suspended by a rod between sides of the bucket --dosed with a dallop of peanut butter -- seems to reduce the surplus population of mice quick rapidly. And it works through the chilly Badger winter.
 
sdzubay said:
Up here in Wisconsin, we (thankfully) don't have many rats in our open sheds, but I regularly do battle with legions of mice. I've tried the minty/wintergreen rodent packages with modest success, but old-fashioned mothballs seem to work best. I lay open packets in the engine compartment, under the seat and on the floor. I hate the smell, but so do they.
Meanwhile, a 5-gal bucket left nearby with three inches of anti-freeze, a gentle plank, and empty veggie can suspended by a rod between sides of the bucket --dosed with a dallop of peanut butter -- seems to reduce the surplus population of mice quick rapidly. And it works through the chilly Badger winter.
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Could you post a pic of that setup please. I have legions of mice I'm battling
 
My shed isn't nearby, but here's a commercial version being sold by Ace. You can create one in minutes, using scrap. I used a defunct crossbow bolt as a rod to suspend the can between sides of the bucket.276f2bbb-2985-4b1e-b36a-2dab8862197b.jpg
 
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That's about the only mouse/rat trap that I haven't tried although I have seen pictures of that set up before.

Over the years I've tried just about everything. I still have the most success with the old-fashioned snap type trap baited with cheese of peanut butter. Oh, it also helps to have an outside cat. She's hell on rodents. She either eats the darned things or leaves them outside the kitchen door for you to clean up in the morning.
 
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I best keep it parked in the garage from now on. peppermint o mothballs about the only thing I can find online to help repel them.
Little Monsters !
 
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I toss “Tom Cat” blocks into the corners of my shop and garage where pets can’t get to them…but mice can. We find dead mice not long after.

If you cannot prevent desirable animals from getting to them, then also buy the TomCat recommended traps to put the bait into.

HBTexas…any chance your vehicle is a Toyota or other brand which uses soy-based wire-insulation in their vehicles..?? Ordinary PVC and vinyl wire insulation smells sweet to rodents …. but soy-based insulation smells like a complete smorgasbord and is notorious for attracting this sort of damage.
 
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I've had good luck with the Tom Cat pellets in the small bags for mice (don't have rats). My wife saves the small tubs dishwasher pods come in for me. I drill 2- 1" holes, about an inch up, on opposing sides and they make good bait stations. Easy to open, slit the pouches and place inside and replace as needed. Keeps them contained and easy to locate to maintain and somewhat protected.
 
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I don't have rats (that I'm aware of).
Bought these for mouse traps. Just put the Tomcat bait blocks inside.
Main reason for the traps instead of just throwing the Tomcat around is so our visiting cat (who's a great mouser himself) doesn't get into the bait.
 
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Hire the professionals:

SMBMnaY.jpg
 
BiffNH said:
I have used - with good results - capsaicin spray. I had mice chew through the window washer lines of my autos. They love nesting in the hood liners where there is insulation to build nests.

I purchased it from https://www.heartlandvetsupply.com/...Ib6c4hANPXCi_wO6z-8NNpnUmQcEZ8rBoCvv0QAvD_BwE

Spray it on wires and insulation materials and I've had no repeat problems.
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I wish that I'd known that trick many years ago. We had problems with mice chewing the wiring on vehicles stored out in the barn at the farm. They didn't bother the tractors too much but they loved the wiring on the Dodge Custom Van.
 
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The wife won't let me put out poison, and she's not wrong. It seems like I can get some of the population with anything I try, but not all. I keep switching trap types and bait types.

I'm interested in trying the red hot spray, but I can see myself rubbing my eye after working on the rig later, and regretting it.

The best solution I've found to mice has been to let skunks move in to my shed. It's not for the faint of heart, but I seem to have a time share agreement with them, where they exit when I come in, and I back away and let them. I've seen the tail come up a few times, but haven't seem them spray me or my dogs. My neighbor 1/2 mile away shot my skunks when they trespassed on his land, which is up to him, but now I'm between skunks and having to put out traps again.

Another tip I heard, but haven't tried, is to get snake droppings and bedding from a pet store, and spread it around. I've heard rubber snakes work too, but that doesn't seem likely to me.
 
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bczoom said:
Instead of antifreeze, I just use about 3-4" of water. It drowns them but it's not toxic to get rid of.
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That's all I have ever used. A pail of water with a clothes hanger wire holding a can covered in peanut butter. Better than any trap sold in stores.
I don't like poison because I have cats that may sometimes eat the live mice when they find them.

Other thing that works great is Irish Springs soap. Always used to leave bars in the travel trailer and I have them in cab, under hood and in heater fan on top of the cabin air filter. No more mice.
 
Just tossing this out. I use owl decoys around the house to keep birds from pecking on my windows and wood siding.
Wondering if that same decoy sitting under the tractor would scare the varmints away.
 
bczoom said:
Just tossing this out. I use owl decoys around the house to keep birds from pecking on my windows and wood siding.
Wondering if that same decoy sitting under the tractor would scare the varmints away.
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Doubt it. Dumb mice try to play with my cat until they reach certain death, LOL
 
bczoom said:
Just tossing this out. I use owl decoys around the house to keep birds from pecking on my windows and wood siding.
Wondering if that same decoy sitting under the tractor would scare the varmints away.
Click to expand...

My wife and I were sitting in the garden drinking iced tea and admiring our garden…. when the plastic owl, which as been on the fence for two years to keep birds off the peach trees….began to make a “rattling” noise …which made us look….just in time to see a bird fly out of the hole in the bottom of the owl-decoy. The bird had built a nest inside the hollow decoy. :oops:
 
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