I went out to the car yesterday and happened to find a mouse nest in the trunk of the car w/ not one, three, but 6 babies who could not have been more than a day or two old. I caught the mother and removed the kids from the car disposing of them properly, but would like to know what some of the community has done to rid themselves of these pesky little critters.

Currently it would seem that they are not in the vents or the inside of the car, only the trunk area which I have now open to discourage nest building. I have heard that dryer sheets, moth balls kinda work, but thought I'd pose the question as I know some of you live out in the countryside and Im sure have dealt with this before.

I thought about equipping the local cat I see out here once in a while with this, but damn if their not sold out of his size.



Thoughts and thanks

--Allen
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Is this where I insert something witty?

[This message has been edited by mcaanda (edited 07-04-2011).]

Mice generally go where there is food. If you can do it, by some rat bait blocks and put them in a container with holes at the bottom. The mice will feed on that and die, but are unlikely to populate the car while doing so. It seems odd they were in your trunk. I'd go looking for rust holes and plug them.

Arn

quote Originally posted by Arns85GT: Mice generally go where there is food. If you can do it, by some rat bait blocks and put them in a container with holes at the bottom. The mice will feed on that and die, but are unlikely to populate the car while doing so. It seems odd they were in your trunk. I'd go looking for rust holes and plug them. Arn

Both GT's I have are ZERO rust cars. When the mother was running all over the place she was using the strut bar passage on the trunk as a mouse-highway. I think they are / were / could be using this as a way to get into the trunk going around the carpet crawling up though the wheel wells.

There is no food source out in the shop, short of the wires in the cars but as you can see here:



the shop is backed up against what most would call a small forest full of stuff to snack on. I think that deterrence is going to be the only course of action in this instance.

If you have the hole identified, it is easy to stuff some medium steel wool in the hole. Mice will not go through steel wool.

That should solve the problem.

I would still have a bait station

Arn

Out here, our mice are nocturnal (pack rats mostly). So, we turn on a light under the car at night. Not a powerful one, just a 40 watt or similar hand held shop light hung from something under the car. My 66 vette was stored on jack stands with a car cover over it and a light under it for 4 years outside in a rural Tucson area. Mothballs were placed in the engine compartment, over the rear differential, and behind the seats. Once I started to tear into it to rebuild it, there was no sign of animal damage.
Mothballs in washer bags (zipper access mesh bags for washing delicate items in the washing machine) are convenient as you can move/remove the moth balls when needed to.

I hate poison products, as the little furry woodlands creature will die in the most annoying places, like under the seats. When they feel like they are going to die, they try to hide.

I have been dealing with rural rats and mice for years. The lights and mothballs work for me. Dryer sheets will ruin vinyl and similar products, and have to be replaced quite often to be of use.

-Dave

edited for spelin and gramher and stuff.

[This message has been edited by IFLYR22 (edited 07-04-2011).]

The trunk area should be sealed while the deck lid is down. They can enter the cooling tubes for the coil and alternator and work their way around into the blower fan in the right side of the trunk. Check that area to see if they have eaten through the ductwork.

Though I live in a rural subdivision, mice aren't the problem. Chipmunks like to explore all my vehicles and I often find their food crumbs on top of the intake. For the most part, my miniature Dauchsunds keep them away, but occasionally, I see one sitting on top of a tire or come tumbling out of the car as I start down the street. The chipmunks aren't small enough to get into some of the critical areas, so I don't put out poison for them, but in my utility building is a different story. After losing a big cabin tent to mice, I found something called Rhodent Pellets manufactured by MOTOMCO.LTD of Clearwater, Fl. I found it at a farm supply store.

One application removed the rat. I place a 2 inch steel pipe about 12 inches long against the inside of the wall and I put a couple of spoons full of bait inside the pipe. Rats and mice like to travel along the edges of walls and they will quickly find the bait and it prevents cats or other larger animals from getting into it.

No mice in my Fiero...

I would say to light off some fireworks in that building to scare off the meeces but I am afraid I would be liable to you for burning it to the ground with two nice fiero's inside so belay my last...peace

Oh yeah and the pussy cat is not a bad idea but they kinda piss on stuff and it stinks worse than mouse droppings!! haha

Pete

Little tiny "No Trespassing" signs.

quote Originally posted by TopNotch: No mice in my Fiero...

I dunno, man, he has that lazy look to him.. I think he might fit into the "spoiled cat" category..

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Currently in the middle of my 88 + 3800NA swap

Since you don't want to use bait kill therefore it might be best to find the mice's entry point into the garage. Other-than-that, sounds like you need a good cat, but that's a catch-22 since the cat will scratch the paint on the car while trying to eat the mice. I once had a field mice eat his way into my work car's glove box trying to get at a bag of sealed peanuts. The mice must've eat at some of the wiring since my a/c doesn't work on the high settings.

Apparently, the field mice smelled the closed package, but got caught on the air conditioner's fan wheel and couldn't get off and died. I discovered the dead mice during the hot summer when I turned on my a/c. When I turned the a/c on the centrifugal force splattered out it guts into the air duct system. I used bleach and just about everything trying to kill the smell. It took about a about a month or so to get the smell out of my car. I thought for a moment I was reliving a Seinfeld episode. Since then, my cars are secured inside the garage.


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"Friends don't let their friends drive stock."

[This message has been edited by madcurl (edited 07-05-2011).]

Just leave a few mothballs in the trunk and they'll stay away.

I had mice in my car a couple of years ago. I put a few mothballs in the car and about a dozen under the car and have not had a problem since.
Harry

You will never remove the smell of mice pee. I would be looking for a new car and a lion.

Got power in the garage? Get some electronic pest repellers.
Forced them out of my garage before they moved into the cars.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0...KC2%26linkCode%3Dasn

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My World of Wheels Winners (Click on links below)

3.4L Supercharged 87 GT and Super Duty 4 Indy #163

[This message has been edited by fierosound (edited 07-07-2011).]

quote Originally posted by fierosound: Got power in the garage? Get some electronic pest repellers. Forced them out of my garage before they moved into the cars. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0...KC2%26linkCode%3Dasn

Got two of those installed in the garage...mice must have ear muff as they don't seem to care. Altho, I did get one in the shed next to the garage tonight with some PB and a snap trap. One done, eleventy-billion more to go.

quote Originally posted by mcaanda: Got two of those installed in the garage...mice must have ear muff as they don't seem to care.

These things do have a limit on range and area (varies by manufacturer). Mine's good for 800 sq ft (a 20'x40' garage).

I had mice - got rid of them with poison treats and the electronic pest repeller and haven't seen any since. Maybe yours are deaf.

quote Originally posted by TopNotch: No mice in my Fiero...

Just paw prints to wash off, lol. Hope he doesn't scratch the paint jumping/climbing up.

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Jim Martin
White '86 GT
California

Mothballs. As for the smell, I go with bleach. That smell eventually leaves and an old auto trick for odors is dryer sheets under the seats.

I have a bad mouse problem and have no mercy any more. When I started my Fiero project, digging the car out after sitting for a year, I found a nest and a PUDDLE of mice pee where the spare sits. That plastic piece was trashed. I've had nests in all my cars in the strangest places. not to mention the house. I'm currently ripping out sheetrock in the closet because of a mouse!!

Cruel or not. Decon is staple around this household.

I had a mouse problem in a few of my parts cars until a community of snakes moved in. Mouse problem solved. The snakes were actually non destructive to the cars except that they leave snake skins everywhere & it would creep me out every time I went to fetch a part.


Had an owl in the garage once. He could have solved the problem too but aparently had better tings to do.

Old timers, believe it or not, would introduce RATS into a mouse infested building. They are natural enemies, the rats would kill all the mice, and rats are easily poisoned out, mice are tough. My dad did this to an old building we had, it took only three days to find dead rats laying around, and no more mice either!

Is this a serious suggestion? PLEASE DO NOT PUT RATS IN YOUR SHED!! I don't care what the reasoning is these things carry some really nasty diseases and would be much worse than any sort of field mouse. They are all disgusting and can ruin your house and cars but IMHO killing them is the only real option. I keep a little tray of D-con in my shop all the time and have never seen any meeses!! I am sure they are dead somewhere and possibly inside my house but that is fine I have never seen heard or smelled them... JMHO>>>peace

Pete

I never suggested anything. Learn to read.

plastic pan under the car trunk area with moth balls in it. i put one under the front end and one under the rearend. three fieros been stored with no ploblems for over ten years so far. even an old metal cake pan works well.