Hi,
I want to know if such devices as sonic repellers to deter mice and rats and other rodents are actually effective.
For example the B&Q Rat & Mouse Repeller at
Thanks very much for your opinions.
D
From what I've read, nobody has ever demonstrated in a proper study that these things work.
Some friends have mice and tried them. They think they might have worked for a week, but certainly no longer. They might not have worked at all -- could just be coincidence they didn't see any for a week.
As with the mosquito thread, I would not assume that just because you can't hear a sound, it's not doing your hearing some harm. Many pets will be able to hear them too.
And people below the age of 25. Apparently rodents very quickly learn to tolerate the noise.
We tried them, and they didn't work.
D
You could try installing a Mosquito device to repel the little beggars (mice that is) - or even try the old fashioned method of a mouse (or rat) trap baited with a bit of cheese (very effective, I once caught 6 mice in a four hour period in an old builders canteen and could eat in peace) - BUT I forgot, that would infringe the 'mouses[1]-rights' to life (put in for the do-gooders and the sqeamish) reading this!
On a serious note: if they are getting into the house, I would suggest that you look for the entrance point(s) and signs of nests, eradicate these and then kill the unwanted guests.
If they are in the garden, then no matter what you do, they will still turn up and I would suggest setting pet and kiddie proof traps to kill them - although depending on your location, that may be like spitting against the wind.
[1] Deliberately spelled that way!Tanner-'op
It might drown out their mobile ringtone...
I know some folks who have used electronic rat repellents that use both ultrasonic and rf (radio) transmitters. Much to my surprise and some scepticism they claim they work. I think they said the radio mode was particularly effective.
As with electronic/electrolytic/magnetic scale inhibitors I suspect the operative pharse is YMMV: they may work for you, but are not a bulletproof solution.
Along with most other postings I don't think they do as a long term solution. Mice can certainly hear them and with the model we had so could I. I know the mice could hear it as they jump when you turn it on but they don't go scarpering away from it...
Thanks very much, I think I'll board up suspected entry points and then use humane traps if necessary. - Cheaper than the sonic repeller.
Cheers
Well, a friend had a white rat kept in a wire cage that didn't much like him running a transmitter on 432MHz for some reason... Used to jump about a bit!
Can't comment on mice, but I have found that the ultrasound devices work on rats. I had a severe problem with rats coming in to lofts by climbing up flint walls and climbers. I was very sceptical but tried one about four years ago after despairing over repeated smelly bodies after using poison. Problem solved. I then bought two more for the other lofts and have never had a problem since. I sometimes hear a rat exploring the loft but it then goes and doesn't come back. Perhaps those who have found them ineffective have not put them in the loft but tried them in rooms beneath the loft as some suppliers suggest? It is a nuisance to provide mains power for them but I think they are most effective that way. Mine are in lofts with 20 cm of glass fibre insulation as well. I mount them as high as possible to give best coverage. Make sure you get one that varies the pitch and vibration of the sound and sends a signal into the mains.
I was a bit bothered by a reference to a 'humane trap'. I hope that this is a device that catches them humanely for later quick killing. I have heard people say that they catch rodents in towns then 'take them out to the country' to dispose of them. No thanks!! We grow our own.
Peter Scott
In message , Peter Scott writes
I think that's actually illegal!
The message
from de_ja contains these words:
The little ones are toys. Expect to pay around £150 for a good commercial one. Excellent within large exposed spaces like barns, lofts and yards enclosed by stone walls. Virtually useless elsewhere. Interesting effects on bats and would be completely illegal to use if bats were present. I'm totally certain (! :-) ) t hat no-one here would even think of using them in such circumstances.
Not my experience as I said earlier.
Expect to pay around £150 for a good
Interesting effects on bats and would be completely illegal to use if
Yes I wondered about that. I thought perhaps bats used much higher frequencies than the repellers, about 150 kHz and higher.
Peter Scott
What??? A law that actually makes sense. What is this country coming to?
Peter Scott
Depends on the species, most use bewteen 20kHz and 100kHz:
I wonder if the sound can cause them direction problems if it leaks out through the roof? I suppose they would 'see' the radiation as a solid wall and so avoid it?
Peter Scott
I suspect they'd perceive it the way we perceive a bright light at night. If not "dazzled" they'd go somewhere else...
Andy
In article , de_ja writes
They have worked for me on 3 different sites.
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