Mice keep building a nest in my riding mower, under the sheet metal housing that goes over the flywheel on the engine. This happens whether the mower is in the shed, outside under a tarp, or in the basement. I tried the mint sachets but the mice weren't scared away by those. What else can I try?
mice nesting in mower
Oct 02, 2011
11 Replies
In the basement? Try mothballs. Use the old stinky ones not the modern perfume scented versions.
Hi, Tried Japanese mint oil drops? This oil is very strong.
Also, Google "Fresh Cab" for another natural solution. Haven't tried it yet, but I will when be put the motorhome in drydock for the winter. Last winter the mice had a field day in the unit. They even chewed through the cable for the rear backup camera. They also built a huge nest on top of the generator.
AT least for my pool heater and the automatic cover, moth balls have worked for the last 20 years or so.
Start the mower every four hours or so.
Get them out of there because they will eat wiring and hoses. We had mice get into my wife's Camry a couple of years ago and one ended up inside of the heater blower. He didn't do well when we turned it on but it took a lot of work to get body parts and stench out. I ended up buying some of the rodent bars that are hollow. You can break them in pieces, run a piece of wire or zip-tie through them and hang them in strategic places. On ours, it was in front of the inlet ports for the injector system and vent system. Worked.
RonB
I had one nesting in the generator housing of my SA200 welder.
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It's the perforated area.
Started it up, and there were tufts of fur and little feet everywhere. Poor little guy.
I heard moth balls or dryer sheets work, too.
But, as you said, and I proved, starting it has a way of just cleaning it naturally.
Steve
I have this same problem. In my rototiller motor the mouse chewed all the insulation off the sparkplug wire. Mothballs sounds like a good idea but I don't know how long they would last. It gets very hot in there.
I have this same problem. In my rototiller motor the mouse chewed all the insulation off the sparkplug wire. Mothballs sounds like a good idea but I don't know how long they would last. It gets very hot in there.
reply:
My wife thinks that if a little does a little bit of good, a lot will do a whole lot of good. Sooooo, she put a LOT of mothballs in the hole the squirrels ate in the outside wood siding of our cabin. It takes about three years for the smell to go away. They are cheap. I'd put a whole box around, but put it in small containers that could "breathe", and protect them from getting wet. Good luck.
I've also heard those dryer strips work, and you can thumbtack those around.
Steve
I had one chew up a roll of towels i kept in the car. Dropped two packets of warfarin (one in trunk, one in cabin). Seems to have solved the problem. Yes, I did have a 'dead mouse' smell for a few days but it was faint. For some reason, mice that die from that stuff don't sstink the way a normal death does.
Haven't had another problem since and it has been several years.
Harry K
Bounce dryer sheets - a guy in my dad's antique car club suggested them, and I tried them in my 280z stored in an outbuilding. Come spring, no more mice, and it smells good too.....
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