Getting rid of Moles/Voles

[bobodu]

Is that a gopher in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?

 

[Redneck in training]

I got enough requests for my mole shooter plans that I've decided to just go ahead and post them here. The plans aren't that good, but are easy enough to follow.

Note that these are not my plans, and this is not my story...

http://sbigelow.freeshell.org/MoleTrap/Mole.htm

Enjoy at your own risk. If you have kids or pets around, I highly recommend a wire cage staked down around the trap, or better yet, just not using this.

The story sounds like overwatered and overfertilized lawn to me producing a lot of good food for the moles.

We have moles, gophers, voles or what ever you name it on our property. Our lawn isn't watered and only modestly fertilized. Since it is apparently tough life under our grass we have only few molehills. I also install few owl perches where we planted new oak trees to keep the rabbit population down. I guess they also catch moles at night. Needless to say that our lawn isn't always picture perfect but that is fine with us.

 

[Hill Farmer]

RIT, my yard is still basicly a mown hayfield and I still have the rascals. Moles, not voles, or gophers. I don't think an owl could get to them without digging them out.

 

[Redneck in training]

RIT, my yard is still basicly a mown hayfield and I still have the rascals. Moles, not voles, or gophers. I don't think an owl could get to them without digging them out.

Lack of moles is a sign of poor soil I suppose. Your dirt is better than my. In a sense you are lucky to have them if it makes you feel better. Few are sign of healthy environment. Too many of them is a symptom of other problem.

 

[RadarTech]

This happened years ago in the Czech Republic. Friend of mine complained all summer about disappearing tulips and other flowers from his garden. He couldn't figure out why they were disappearing from the middle of the flowerbed while there weren't any footprint or other sign of disturbance on the surface. Winter came and he once a while visited his garden where he had a small shed. While there he would make tea or coffee on propane burner. One very cold day the burner wouldn't stay lit but he felt that there was some liquid inside the tank. He disconnected the regulator turned the tank upside down and released the water in snow cursing the cheating propane supplier. Shortly after his neighbor showed up, lit a cigarette and threw the still burning match on the snow. The whole garden exploded and there were all his tulips flying everywhere. The moles or whatever animals were pulling the flower down and stored them in a cavity underground. Needless to say nobody got hurt just both guys were freaked out. The propane mixture in Czech republic is different in the summer and in the winter. Since the summer mix is mostly butane it wouldn't, after all the propane is used up, evaporate and create sufficient pressure in the winter so his burner wouldn't work. It put end to disappearing flowers for quite some time.
Just wait for very cold day and fill the holes with cigarette ligher fluid and throw a match on it.

This might give a whole new definition to pushing up daisies..

J

 

[Redneck in training]

This might give a whole new definition to pushing up daisies..

J

Here is one of topic war story related to propane. Another friend had propane heating in his house supplied by one 25 gal or so tank. Because the tank had to be changed quite frequently he had three tanks. One on the heating, one full ready to be installed and one empty ready to be filled. One very cold day the heating unexpectedly quit despite new tank installed. So he goes check the cylinder and sees that it is almost full. So he drags the cylinder to the front of the house turns it up side down and opens the valve to let the water out to snow while obviously cursing the propane cheaters adding water to the tanks. When it was empty he threw the tank in his car parked on the driveway and started the engine to drive to the town and recharge the cylinder. He just put it in gear when the car was instantly engulfed in flames. Fortunately he was quick thinking and drove out of the flames before they used all the oxygen and killed his engine. It cost him new car paint, four new tires and 25 gallons of wasted butane.

 

[2manyrocks]

Well, the guy in the youtube video seems to get a kick out of blowing up tunnels. I'm not so sure I want to see my yard blasted 4 feet in the air.

 

[alltoys]

I think you have to use a certain amount of discretion with the amount of gas in the tunnels. My question is will the gas get down to the little devils as they can be very deep. Also does it make a difference at what time of day to use the Rodenator or equivalent apparatus????

I was at an Ag show this weekend seen two different types of units for eradicating the little varmints. One was called a Gophenator and the other of course was the Rodenator.

Gophenator used Anhydrous Ammonia pumped into the tunnels. Gas being heavy than air can get down to the low points of the runs and stay there for a long time suffocating them. Plus it is good for fertilizer with all the Nitrogen but no explosions though,.....darn.

Rodenator of course uses propane, oxygen mixture exploded to eradicate the little vermin. I would gather there are times of day to use this system to get maximum benefit.

 

[Redneck in training]

I think you have to use a certain amount of discretion with the amount of gas in the tunnels. My question is will the gas get down to the little devils as they can be very deep. Also does it make a difference at what time of day to use the Rodenator or equivalent apparatus????

I was at an Ag show this weekend seen two different types of units for eradicating the little varmints. One was called a Gophenator and the other of course was the Rodenator.

Gophenator used Anhydrous Ammonia pumped into the tunnels. Gas being heavy than air can get down to the low points of the runs and stay there for a long time suffocating them. Plus it is good for fertilizer with all the Nitrogen but no explosions though,.....darn.

Rodenator of course uses propane, oxygen mixture exploded to eradicate the little vermin. I would gather there are times of day to use this system to get maximum benefit.

The gas doesn't need to go deep. It is the shock wave that gets them. If you want know how it feels go to you cellar fill it with some gas and flip a switch.

 

[RonMar]

Yep, the overpressure in the tunnel from the fuel-air explosion kills them instantly... Some of the most powerfull non nuclear explosive devices ever created have been the fuel-air type.