What works against rodents

   / What works against rodents #21  
My wife's F250 has been in the dealer's parking lot for three months awaiting a wiring harness. One month was extended to two then three. Earlier this week they said it is in route to them. A few months back I noticed the O2 sensor on the left bank of the 'ol F250 work truck was chewed in two. When I was ready to fix it and crawled under it to view the wire length and connector, the right bank had been chewed in two as well. Before installing the new sensors I wrapped a 1/2" spiral made from an aluminum can and wrapped some SS wire over it to hold in place. Right now my JD 410J is down awaiting a new coolant hose to the oil coolers which has been chewed into (I hope the critters drank their fill).

In the past an F150 had the engine and tranny pulled to replace the cab/firewall insulation. Same on a Charger SRT that was outside for only a week due to wildfires and the fire fighters said NO to garaged vehicles. In past years I've had backup generators, field eqmt. and more stuff out of service due to rodents.

I've tried the peppermint oil spray, square poison blocks, etc. I consider these things a slight deterrent. Mice are one thing but its the wood rats that are the worst. It would take a pretty big cat to keep three Catahoulas at bay. The bears and cougars know there are easier pickins elsewhere in the forest.

The one thing that is 100% effective are the Timer rattlers and the Western rattlers (with the obvious downside). Bull snakes too but rarely see them. We NEVER kill snakes - maybe relocated them....
 
   / What works against rodents #22  
They make rodent repellent for cars. I've not tried it.

Lots of good suggestions above but the best way I have found to keep rodents out is to drive the vehicles more often, and not for a short trip. At least once a week seems to work for me. When I was driving to work a few times a week pre-covid I'd alternate so every vehicle got it's weekly trip and being parked somewhere else for the day.

The problem with poison is that often the poisoned rodents get eaten, and that poisons the predators too. Then you get even more rodents.
 
   / What works against rodents #23  
I have mice and chipmunks. So far - KNOCK ON WOOD - they have never damaged anything. Nests in odd and unique spots - YES. I found that just about every deterrent works for a while. My urine - deer urine - Peppermint oil - dryer sheets - moth balls - etc.

The very best - at my location - a very aggressive barn cat or two or three. Eventually these cats will stray out beyond the influence of my yard light at night. They end up as a meal for the coyotes, barn owls or Great Horned owls.

Right now I have no barn cats and am continuously on the search for new ones.

I've found that leaving the hood open on all my vehicles is quite a deterrent. So ......HOOD UP on the Taco Wagon, ATV, riding mower & tractor.

BTW - I've found that trapping only satisfies my inner self. For every mouse/chipmunk I trap - there are MANY more out there in the pucker grass. Just waiting to "come on down". There is, very simply, a never ending, unlimited supply of these little buggers.
 
   / What works against rodents #24  
Hood up, motion detecting lights on engine bay.
That's all I've found to stop them on my tractor.
 
   / What works against rodents #25  
I've tried just about everything: no cats (I have fowl [poison isn't allowable], and while I have been able to train dogs to not harm them, I'm doubtful I could do the same with cats; and, my dog would likely chase off any cat [I prefer this as I have neighbors' cats that I don't want coming around]). Fortunately I haven't had wiring damage: shredded insulation material and generally fouling things, though. ONLY damage control that I have found to be effective is constant trapping*.

* Tip: on snap traps use peanut butter and then smoosh down a dog kibble on that; the bait is effectively secured such that it can be repeatedly used- without the kibble I've had peanut butter completely removed and the trap un-sprung!
 
   / What works against rodents #26  
Dryer sheets, peppermint oil, barn cat.
 
   / What works against rodents #27  
Cats are also fox bait.

Poison poison and more poison. Use only the blocks in the pet safe container. The pellets just get taken away and you will have a engine intake full of them.
In my part of the century that is called coyote bait...
We have fox and coyote and all the cats seems to survive. I have a camera in the barn and it captures cats, foxes, and raccoons prowling through all the time. We only own one outside cat and it was originally one of the neighbors barn cats but it adopted us. There are several ferels that pass through from time to time.

Haven't had much rodent damage and none so far in the barn. I did have my trailer wires chewed up so I moved them from where I use to keep them to the side of the barn where the cats frequent. I also had my well wires chewed up so after repairing those I wrapped them all with metal tape. Pretty sure that was squirrels.
 
   / What works against rodents #28  
First, please don't use poison. Mice wander out and die, get eaten by owls or hawks...bad results.
Mice, the peppermint does work well.
My problems have always been on parked vehicles, indoors or at least out of the weather. There I go to kill traps, then just leave a few of them in the engine compartment with the mouse in the trap. If you need to drive the vehicle, just toss them out till you get back. The smell seems to deter until the dead one dries up and becomes odorless. Then, just trap kill a couple new ones. Sounds pretty primitive, but mice don't like going places that smell like dead mice.
Finally, I had a pack rat in an engine compartment once. A Victor Rat Trap ended that problem overnight.
Good luck!
 
   / What works against rodents #29  
dryer sheets
 
 
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