Car Storage - Rodent Prevention
Discussion
I've found myself a nice barn to store some cars, it's on a farm that only has a few Alpacas as pets, so not a working farm. I'm just wondering if I should do something to prevent the possibility of rats/mice chewing through the wires in the cars while stored? I didn't notice anything to suggest there's any issues there but I've heard stories of people pulling cars out of storage and finding cables chewed etc.
Thoughts?
Thoughts?
100% definitely!
You might not see them, but I guarantee rodents will be there and they absolutely love cars for making nests in! Bear in mind manufacturers like Mercedes started using ester-based wiring insulation from the 1990s (even soy-based), which rodents love to eat.....
If you can put the car in a Carcoon or similar, that might help, but you need to do all you can to deter / catch / prevent rodents from enjoying their new home.
You might not see them, but I guarantee rodents will be there and they absolutely love cars for making nests in! Bear in mind manufacturers like Mercedes started using ester-based wiring insulation from the 1990s (even soy-based), which rodents love to eat.....
If you can put the car in a Carcoon or similar, that might help, but you need to do all you can to deter / catch / prevent rodents from enjoying their new home.
As above 100%. Buy a big tub of Nutella, a decent air rifle and start a new hobby ! A carcoon is an absolute must, but they will schnaffel through that as well at some point. You d be amazed how intelligent they are. The only way to stop them is physically, via lead in the control room. Remove any other potential draws in terms of food, etc if you can from that barn, and make it as hostile a place as possible for them. As I mentioned they are incredibly intelligent. Once they’ve realised a certain pattern of life gets them killed, they will change where they look for food. Find the rat runs on the farm around that barn, and have at it. The farmer will appreciate it too.
Edited by philrs03 on Friday 4th July 18:10
Excellent! I would love to spend my days taking pot shots at the f
kers I've got to go to work unfortunately. I am a sparky so I could maybe knock up an electric fence around the cars. The farm owners might not be too impressed. I need to give it some thought then and work out a plan.
Pizzaeatingking said:
I've found myself a nice barn to store some cars, it's on a farm that only has a few Alpacas as pets, so not a working farm. I'm just wondering if I should do something to prevent the possibility of rats/mice chewing through the wires in the cars while stored? I didn't notice anything to suggest there's any issues there but I've heard stories of people pulling cars out of storage and finding cables chewed etc.
Thoughts?
In short, yes you will get rodents. However, the scale is what varies and makes something easy to fend off, impossible. Thoughts?
What else is in the barn and what is near the barn? For example, if there is food present than just don't even start, walk away. The presence of food guarantees a battle you can't ever win.
Is the barn cluttered or empty? You want it empty.
An empty and clean barn where you position the cars away from the walls and you leave baited traps along all the walls and some spring ones.
Rodents don't favour crossing open ground. They move along walls from cover to cover. Many that come in looking for food won't even know there are cars there as they won't stray from the walls.
As a last resort, glue traps around the tyres stops any from getting up into the cars but I draw the line at glue traps, I think they're grim.
So, the bean is clean and empty and without any food nearby outside then you can mitigate any risk with common sense actions. If the barn fails any or all of those criteria then I'd not bother.
I think glue traps are illegal now except for licensed pet controllers.
We keep our motorhome in storage and I found rat droppings on the top of the engine. I was recommended to buy peppermint concentrate and mix it in a spray bottle. I sprayed this all over the wheels/tyres and across the engine bay and fingers crossed haven't found anything since. It smells nice too
We keep our motorhome in storage and I found rat droppings on the top of the engine. I was recommended to buy peppermint concentrate and mix it in a spray bottle. I sprayed this all over the wheels/tyres and across the engine bay and fingers crossed haven't found anything since. It smells nice too
DonkeyApple said:
Rodents don't favour crossing open ground. They move along walls from cover to cover. Many that come in looking for food won't even know there are cars there as they won't stray from the walls.
As a last resort, glue traps around the tyres stops any from getting up into the cars but I draw the line at glue traps, I think they're grim.
Yep, traps around the perimiter, and perpendicular to the wall so that rodents follow the wall, and are presented with some tempting bait right in front of them whichever way they approach. Snap traps work perfectly well side-on, and it doubles the odds of a catch compared to placing parallel to the wall.As a last resort, glue traps around the tyres stops any from getting up into the cars but I draw the line at glue traps, I think they're grim.
Glue traps are awful cruel things, please don't use them.
Humane catch-and-release traps are ineffective really, odds are they'll be back in the barn before you are.
and if you have a battery maintainer attached, put a U-bend in the cable, otherwise they'll run up that. ask me...
I used a Carcoon to great effect for over 10 years in wooden garage in countryside. field mice everywhere. one summers eve in August (ie cool at night when they're starting to nest) I left the Carcoon open, the critters were up along the Optimate cable that night.
if there's no power, there's also a sealed bag option. like a Carcoon but no airflow, so you'll need to store it dry and use desic bags.
Bait is no guarantee!
I used a Carcoon to great effect for over 10 years in wooden garage in countryside. field mice everywhere. one summers eve in August (ie cool at night when they're starting to nest) I left the Carcoon open, the critters were up along the Optimate cable that night.
if there's no power, there's also a sealed bag option. like a Carcoon but no airflow, so you'll need to store it dry and use desic bags.
Bait is no guarantee!
Living in the countryside, i have several traps around the vehicle. probably get about one a day until they stop. They a few months and it starts again. Started leaving the boot open so there's no confined space.
no damage caused as I can see apart from the pile of poo and the urine in the carpet. In the land rover, they eat the rubber pipe on the brake cylinder a few years ago so you get in, set off and find you have no brakes.
no damage caused as I can see apart from the pile of poo and the urine in the carpet. In the land rover, they eat the rubber pipe on the brake cylinder a few years ago so you get in, set off and find you have no brakes.
Edited by softtop on Saturday 5th July 10:33
Rodents can definitely be a problem when storing a car, especially over the winter or in less frequently used areas. A few solid tips: plug exhaust pipes with steel wool, keep dryer sheets or peppermint oil inside the cabin, and avoid storing food or anything scented nearby. Also, placing traps around (not inside) the vehicle can help reduce the risk.
If you're storing the car at a property you don’t visit often, it’s worth considering a proper property management company to help keep an eye on things. They can help manage the space and prevent issues before they become costly
If you're storing the car at a property you don’t visit often, it’s worth considering a proper property management company to help keep an eye on things. They can help manage the space and prevent issues before they become costly
The best option is a cat. Although, this will come with a certain duty of care to the animal, so probably not as simple as just saying "buy a cat".
We have had issues in Coventry (since the bin men went on strike) and people just throw bags of rotten food over walls etc and this has caused the rat population to take over.
One chewed through the alternator belt of my mothers car, but was decapitated when she started it up, getting tangled in the pulley. The rats body lay in the engine bay for a few weeks until the garage had time to look at what the issue was and when the underside trays were removed, the rat dropped out exploding and covering the ground with maggots.
Anyway...rat/ mouse traps don't work, poison works once in a while but getting a cat, solved the issue.
We have had issues in Coventry (since the bin men went on strike) and people just throw bags of rotten food over walls etc and this has caused the rat population to take over.
One chewed through the alternator belt of my mothers car, but was decapitated when she started it up, getting tangled in the pulley. The rats body lay in the engine bay for a few weeks until the garage had time to look at what the issue was and when the underside trays were removed, the rat dropped out exploding and covering the ground with maggots.
Anyway...rat/ mouse traps don't work, poison works once in a while but getting a cat, solved the issue.
I am dealing with mice at the moment, in a large shed where I store cars.
I didn't realise there was really a problem until i noticed how much of my vehicles they had eaten.
So, from that point on there was no mercy, I have a load of traps, poison blocks, ultrasonic gadgets and I've put down peppermint repellent.
for a start I was catching a few every few days, however now it's down to one or two a week.
There is no food at all for them around, nothing so it seems odd they were so keen on living in my shed.
The ultrasonic things I think are a waste of time, the reason I think this is that I was still catching mice in traps quite close to where they were, so they can't be that much of a deterrent.
I just try to keep the traps well baited with nutella, it dries out, so I try and keep a blob on the trap at all times.
The poison had been eaten, so this must be taking affect.
I'm unable to really comment on the peppermint repellant if it works or not, I sprayed it around the door threshold and any other areas where I thought they might come in.
Good Luck, they are a nightmare.
I didn't realise there was really a problem until i noticed how much of my vehicles they had eaten.
So, from that point on there was no mercy, I have a load of traps, poison blocks, ultrasonic gadgets and I've put down peppermint repellent.
for a start I was catching a few every few days, however now it's down to one or two a week.
There is no food at all for them around, nothing so it seems odd they were so keen on living in my shed.
The ultrasonic things I think are a waste of time, the reason I think this is that I was still catching mice in traps quite close to where they were, so they can't be that much of a deterrent.
I just try to keep the traps well baited with nutella, it dries out, so I try and keep a blob on the trap at all times.
The poison had been eaten, so this must be taking affect.
I'm unable to really comment on the peppermint repellant if it works or not, I sprayed it around the door threshold and any other areas where I thought they might come in.
Good Luck, they are a nightmare.
Ritchie335is said:
I am dealing with mice at the moment, in a large shed where I store cars.
I didn't realise there was really a problem until i noticed how much of my vehicles they had eaten.
So, from that point on there was no mercy, I have a load of traps, poison blocks, ultrasonic gadgets and I've put down peppermint repellent.
for a start I was catching a few every few days, however now it's down to one or two a week.
There is no food at all for them around, nothing so it seems odd they were so keen on living in my shed.
The ultrasonic things I think are a waste of time, the reason I think this is that I was still catching mice in traps quite close to where they were, so they can't be that much of a deterrent.
I just try to keep the traps well baited with nutella, it dries out, so I try and keep a blob on the trap at all times.
The poison had been eaten, so this must be taking affect.
I'm unable to really comment on the peppermint repellant if it works or not, I sprayed it around the door threshold and any other areas where I thought they might come in.
Good Luck, they are a nightmare.
Similar approach here - plenty of poison and traps and especially where they might like to nest and chew such as under the bonnet. Ultrasonic is a waste of money.I didn't realise there was really a problem until i noticed how much of my vehicles they had eaten.
So, from that point on there was no mercy, I have a load of traps, poison blocks, ultrasonic gadgets and I've put down peppermint repellent.
for a start I was catching a few every few days, however now it's down to one or two a week.
There is no food at all for them around, nothing so it seems odd they were so keen on living in my shed.
The ultrasonic things I think are a waste of time, the reason I think this is that I was still catching mice in traps quite close to where they were, so they can't be that much of a deterrent.
I just try to keep the traps well baited with nutella, it dries out, so I try and keep a blob on the trap at all times.
The poison had been eaten, so this must be taking affect.
I'm unable to really comment on the peppermint repellant if it works or not, I sprayed it around the door threshold and any other areas where I thought they might come in.
Good Luck, they are a nightmare.
However, it's also important to seal off any entry points. It takes time but it can be done. A mixture of battens, silicone and metal plasterboard beading has done the job for me. Then just do a perimeter check regularly but I've never seen any chew their way in.
Chilli and garlic oil sprayed liberally works well.
Steep several of the hottest dried chillies you can find and a full bulb of fresh peeled garlic in a 2 litre coke bottle topped up with cheap cooking oil.
Sieve into a presssurized spray bottle after a few weeks and liberally coat anything and everything that could be chewed.
Steep several of the hottest dried chillies you can find and a full bulb of fresh peeled garlic in a 2 litre coke bottle topped up with cheap cooking oil.
Sieve into a presssurized spray bottle after a few weeks and liberally coat anything and everything that could be chewed.
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