Re: [GMCnet] Rodent/critter repellant for RVs stored outdoors [message #327298 is a reply to message #327290] |
Tue, 19 December 2017 12:09 |
emerystora
Messages: 4442 Registered: January 2004
Karma:
|
Senior Member |
|
|
Having lived in Santa Fe for 19 years I am familiar with the rodents found in the Placitas area. Deer Mice and Packrats.
There were a lot of Pinon trees whose cones provide the Pinon seeds (nuts) that we use on salads. The Deer mice and the pack rats (wood rats) gather these and also the berries from the Juniper bushes. They like to store these in the RV for the winter. I once found four separate large piles in a rear cupboard. Piñon nuts, Juniper berries, bird seed and Decon pellets which were all stored for later eating
The Decon pellets were hauled from my garage about 150 yards away. The bird seed was hauled from a bird feeder by the patio behind my house about 200 yards from the motorhome. The parking area for the GMC was surrounded by Junipers and Pinons
We stopped feeing the birds to eliminate the birdseed problem.
We tried all the usual suggestions: dryer sheets, mothballs, cat urine, camphor blocks, etc. None worked.
we found that the ultrasonic mouse preventer plugins worked best. We also found a peanut butter baited mouse trap worked well for the mice but it had to be frequently checked.
Those things worked for the interior of the GMC but didn’t protect the wires on top of the engine or on top of the Onan which were favorite nesting places for pack rats. I once opened the cover to my engine and a 12” pack rat jumped from its large stick nest onto the frame rail. He lay there until I bumped him with a yardstick The nest even had a mouse trap hauled from the front patio and a small Decon pellet box from the garage.
Both the Onan and the engine had many wires and vacuum hoses chewed off.
The best solution we found for the Onan and engine was to run a light extension cord with a 7 watt nightlight. One laid on the onan and the other on the engine. We cleared several nests until we tried the lightbulbs. They will not build a nest in a lighted area so we kept those on for 24 hours a day. That took care of the pack rat problem. So light bulbs work well. I don’t think that you need strings of them. A single bulb will work but the light doesn’t shine under the cupboards or beds.
When we moved to the Denver area we no longer were surrounded by Junipers and Pinons and we are able to keep the GMC in its own garage. No more mice problems. We still keep a baited trap in it but haven’t caught a mouse in over 5 years we’ve lived here.
Emery Stora
77 Kingsley
Frederick, CO
> On Dec 19, 2017, at 9:32 AM, D C _Mac_ Macdonald wrote:
>
> There have been some fairly recent comments about using lights to keep rodents and other critters out of RVs stored outside. I recently gave my 30 foot travel trailer to my son who lives north of Albuquerque in the Placitas area. Harbor Freight's current sale flyer lists rope lights for $9.99 per string and I wonder about the amount and manner in which these should be deployed to keep the critters out. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
>
>
> D C "Mac" Macdonald
> Amateur Radio K2GKK
> Since 30 November '53
> USAF and FAA, Retired
> Member GMCMI & Classics
> Oklahoma City, OK
> "The Money Pit"
> TZE166V101966
> '76 ex-Palm Beach
> k2gkk + hotmail dot com
>
> _______________________________________________
> GMCnet mailing list
> Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
> http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
_______________________________________________
GMCnet mailing list
Unsubscribe or Change List Options:
http://list.gmcnet.org/mailman/listinfo/gmclist_list.gmcnet.org
|
|
|