Mouse Attack

[rick]

Does anyone else have great face plant stories where people have stepped on a glue trap? In the offices where I worked we had secretaries who hated the traps because they'd arrive for work and find a mouse stuck on the trap and the Facilities Dept. slow in getting around to remove it. But there were also other occasions where the someone would step on one and trip. The glue traps disappeared after about three months.

Using them in the garage makes sense though.

[frasern]

I used some cheap, dollar store glue traps and didn't like them. One got overturned in an Explorer and melted on a hot day, no way to clean that, but it was just a parts truck. I put cardboard over the mess, to keep anything else from sticking there. I have also found other creatures that got stuck, and the trapped mouse attracts crows, the remains are found a mile away. They would work better inside a warehouse, but they are still a one use item.

I did have one success, A barn swallow pair was building a nest above my shed door, every time I removed it, they started to rebuild in the same spot. I put one of those glue traps there, and very shortly I heard a whole lot of chirping, one was stuck, rolling on the ground, the other was nearby, panicking. I unstuck the one, and they both flew away, chirping as fiercely as they could, but they never tried to rebuild that nest!
I like swallows, they eat a lot of mosquitos, but they are messy, and right above my shed door was a really bad spot.

[Mike]

I don't like glue traps. Mice get on them and don't die and make a mess of things trying to get off. Or something else falls on them and gets stuck. I did get some animal on one once that got off then left a trail of glue behind.
It's happened a couple times now that ill find a mouse with 2 traps on it, usually one on a leg or part of its body and it moved enough to get into a second trap while it was freaking out.

[mge825y]

I use big glue traps. I usually catch a small snake or two every season. Don’t want those in my garage (or in my Lincoln!).

[LithiumCobalt]

Never thought that mouse trapping would be such an active topic here

[TonyC]

Indeed!

But, it is a valid issue where our cars are concerned, so it is a bit surprising we had not started this discussion in earnest earlier. Mice and rats are a concern, especially for those who shutter up their cars for months on end.

Even my mother's Mustang was not preserved from the threat. When I first popped the hood to examine the car's condition, when I was looking to revive it a couple months ago, there was a vacant nest made of chewed-up leaves, pecan shells, and bits of hood insulator lining, the last from a pretty large hole the rodents ate into the lining. Thankfully, they did not do in any wires or hoses on the engine. Of course, I cleared off all that I could from there; then after examining for further damage and finding none, proceeded with the reawakening.

That isn't to say, though, that they won't come back. The Mustang is still reposing in that old garage, as my mother no longer drives it. It does have a fresh tank of gas and a new battery, the latter of which I disconnected fully to keep it from discharging. But, rodents got in there before, and they can again.

---Tony

[Mike]

It seems like every once in a while some random post around here gets more attention then you'd expect. It's probably people thinking oh good there's something to talk about

[Dan Szwarc]

Trophy.jpeg (11 KiB) Viewed 304 times

Thread of the Month Award

[mge825y]

I'd have to say that it's been a nice diversion from the normal discussions. If you want to liven things up, we can always re-start the passionate debates over the correct motor oil to use in our cars or, or whether one should put octave additives in gas!

[LithiumCobalt]

I'd have to say that it's been a nice diversion from the normal discussions. If you want to liven things up, we can always re-start the passionate debates over the correct motor oil to use in our cars or, or whether one should put octave additives in gas!

I think the transmission fluid thread really takes the cake.

[rick]

Operation Mouse House was a success and the Continental has returned home. Heater plenums on both sides were both plugged solid with mouse nest material. The passenger side plenum heater core needed to be removed, unpacked and then reinstalled which in turn necessitated dropping the antifreeze. Grease job and oil change, weld a tailpipe support and repair the hand crank on drivers side ventilation window.

[Mike]

Nice!
Too bad it happened to begin with

[frasern]

I hope you've got a cat now, a very hungry one!

[jtheye]

Rick, did you check out the car mouse bag I put a link too? So far has worked for me. Now they don't "guarantee" that a mouse or rat can't get in but is a very good deterrent. I have been impressed so far and it keeps the car clean. I knew I was taking a $300+ gamble, but seems to be paying off so far. No winter nesting and no spring nesting. Continental is back in the shop for paint corrections from shop rash now, but still glad I bought the bag.

[rick]

Lee, I'm checking it out for sure. Thanks