Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question

   / Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question #11  
FMC or Greenfield is what flexible metal conduit is called. I used to install it many years ago in all of the machinery at the newspaper. It isn't cheap, but if you have a friend in the electrical trades, they might be able to find you a 4-5' scrap of 1" that your dishwasher drain hose might fit through. Check for fit before ordering.
 
   / Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question #13  
On my clothes washing machine. I got rubber - hot/cold - hose sheathed in stainless steel mesh. I don't have mouse problems - it's simply a superior quality hose. Purchased at the local ACE hardware store.
 
   / Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question
  • Thread Starter
#14  
i dont think ive ever seen drain hose wrapped in metal...supply lines yes but ive never seen drain which is what i need
 
   / Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question #15  
i dont think ive ever seen drain hose wrapped in metal...supply lines yes but ive never seen drain which is what i need
You could take your drain hose, or a spare drain hose, to an electrical supply house and see what size flexible metal conduit you'd need to slide it through. Then purchase enough length to do the job.

Of course, the mouse will chew something else, but that's par for the course. 🙃
 
   / Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question #16  
Let's call it a year ago.... wife freaked out as we had a puddle coming out from under the dishwasher. Pulled it out, looked at it, could not ascertain from where the water was coming.... decided to fire it up....and found it.

The discharge hose on the unit is pleated/corregated and a mouse had bitten a hole on the 'inside' of the pleat (or between two peaks)

Replaced hose and life was good....until this morning. Wife calls in panic, "come straight home, water is everywhere"

Long story short, a mouse had chewed on the hose again however this time, it's had a week or so to munch and it's not a mouse 'bite' that is leaking. It's more like a shark had taken a bite out of it. Drop everyti8ng, get it taken apart, and prepared to fix. I already know I'll have to order the hose as they don't stock what I need.

So now, I'm looking to fight back. Since it's a drain hose and not really pressurized, I felt little chance of finding a stainless WRAPPED hose....and indeed, found nothing.

Think of a 'sock' that covers a hydraulic hose. Meant to protact it from chaffing. Well....what are mouse teeth but little chaffers?!!!

I want to encase the hose (amazingly cheap plastic if you ask me).... anyway, I want to try to mouse proof it and am looking for ideas.

I was hoping on finding a hose, much like a flexible metal wrapped kitchen or shower hose but nothing has the ends I need. Maybe I can go to a automotive store and buy some radiator hose that is braided steel.... (for those show cars). Nobody had anything like that AND said they'd have to order it.

Went to local Home Depot.... maybe I can just use some 3/4" copper pipe.... well.... it has to be flexible so that's not going to work (unless I take it from the sink drain over to the cabinet "Wall" that is evidently the ingress/egress point for said mouse/mice and exactly where BOTH hoses got nibbled upon.

I could then maybe make a flex hose to said 'wall'....

(still debating the merit/mechanics of that)

DING.... what if I just buy some 1-2 inch rubber hose... slide drain hose inside it like an outer casing.... meh.... I'm thinking the mice would eat it too.

While at Home Depot, I bought a roll of aluminum screen door replacement screen. I might cut it to length, ROLL the drain hose in it and use zip ties to hold it in place. I'm wondering if the mice would chew on the aluminum screen? (anyone have any idea)

The wife was in such a tizzy she couldn't figure out how to turn the two water supplies off (I was in car not knowing where the water came from so said shut it all down) She was flailing a bit turning left, or, oh wait...maybe I turned it to the right? she really got unglued on that one (laughing).


Anyway.... thoughts on how to mouse proof the plastic hose? Think the aluminum screening would work? Heck, I'll mummify the stupid thing. The hose is only 6-7 feet (two hoses actually) and I have like 30 feet of screen so I can roll it until my heart is content.

Damn mice. My cat (whom we had to put down last week) was useless.... he used to be a terror..... but that was 18 years ago when he'd catch mice, rabbits, anything he could catch but, age, diabetes, losing all four of his canine teeth..... really slowed him down. My little buddy.
I think it’s time to exterminate the mice.
 
   / Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question #17  
Or buy another cat. Seems to be an awful lot of expense & thought going into "how to live with a pest" when eliminating the pest with poison/traps/predators is the simplest solution.
 
   / Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question #18  
You can use 7/8" dishwasher hose instead of the corrugated stuff. The hose is thicker, so will last better.
The best thing to do is keep the mouse out though. You can try putting like hot sauce or something on the hose to discourage chewing, but I would try doing what the locals around here do to keep the mice out.
Put toilet paper in a zip lock baggie and sprinkle it with some peppermint oil. Then poke a few holes in the baggie and leave it under the dishwasher. The trick is to just use enough peppermint oil so it isn't overpowering to you. This also works for keeping mice out of your engine compartment and eating your wires and hoses there.
Rick
Just get the heavy duty hose as suggested. Even a car hose from an auto parts shop so long as it is the right diameter. Peppermint is also a good suggestion.
 
   / Mouse/Dishwasher Discharge Hose Question #20  
Did I miss something? I think the first and most important thing to do is identify their entrance and seal it off. My wife would shoot me if I allowed mice in our house. I do trap a few that get into the garage in the fall.
 
 
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