Darn little Rascals, made a new hole!

[HJGyswyt]

I keep a pretty close eye on my RV, and earlier this summer we had a visitor in the floor boards of our trailer. This one didn't make it to the interior, but I could hear it at night when all was quiet.

So I crawled underneath and found the spot it has gained access. Little buggers follow plumbing or wires and make their own holes. Just sharing how I fixed it. Forest River uses floor joist that run front to back under the plastic, so it's easy to just screw a piece of plywood down to cover the hole.

[HJGyswyt]

I have been following another topic here about Rabbits chewing the wiring on a motor home. Seems Rabbits have figured out that many vehicles now have soy based plastic coating on wires, and even though it is highly processed with petroleum it still tastes good to them. Many people mistake the damage and attribute it to mice, but if you leave your coach in an area where there are wild rabbits, you may want to spray this stuff around the underside or in the engine compartment where most of the wiring is.

[westend]

suprz wrote:
We have 2 cats and on my old trailer, when I winterized it, I had both cats go into trailer with me. I open every closet, cabinet, etc.. And I let them rub up against everything and explore everything...etc. then once I closed it up for the winter, I would take some used kitty litter and toss it under the trailer. NEVER had one mouse even come close. Plus both cats outside all the time. I will do the same with the motorhome

I do the same with the cat walk through. I don't bother with kitty litter since there is hardly a day where they aren't catching something. Yesterday, Mom cat brought back a chipmunk to show her litter of six kittens. This morning, I saw a pair of munk feet next to their bed.

[suprz]

We have 2 cats and on my old trailer, when I winterized it, I had both cats go into trailer with me. I open every closet, cabinet, etc.. And I let them rub up against everything and explore everything...etc. then once I closed it up for the winter, I would take some used kitty litter and toss it under the trailer. NEVER had one mouse even come close. Plus both cats outside all the time. I will do the same with the motorhome

[westend]

Since we've been living with cats, the only rodent I see is being transported between teeth or being played with. The two older cats are stone predators.

FWIW, my old Starcraft has an aluminum lined under belly. There were two through holes for gas piping and I added two for an electrical conduit. There have been no signs of any mice at any time. I think the idea of having a perfectly sealed belly is the ultimate answer.

Nice job on the patch, Hans. I've enjoyed reading your journals, too. Keep up the good work!

[Sparkie616]

I had a furry little visitor in my MH the other day. I decided to live-trap him since I had nothing personal against the little bugger. After all, all he wanted was a free ride to AZ for the winter! I used a metal trap with spring-loaded entry ramps and just just baited it with some cheese. When I checked it a couple of days later, the little bugger had gone in, got the cheese and left! Smart little mouse! I'd given him his chance; so the next time I added the glue board that came with the trap. This time he was neither smart nor lucky. One dead mouse! I've also installed a couple of ultrasonic devices to dissuade any other similar visitors. First, and hopefully, the last time this will happen.

[trailerbikecamp]

mikensallyt wrote:
wow, with the bird seed. Now I can see why many cg's say not to feed squirrels, birds, etc. Guess that also brings in those rats & mice.

This is why i don't have a bird feeder in the yard.

On another note. Had mice in the garage last fall. They came in after the grass seed. Got rid of the seed, trapped the mice( 5 in 2days). No more mice.

BTW- to trap them I i wrapped cotton twine around the trip lever, then warmed up the peanut butter so it would soak in to the twine. Guaranteed to be successful since the mice start to chew on the thread.

[mikensallyt]

wow, with the bird seed. Now I can see why many cg's say not to feed squirrels, birds, etc. Guess that also brings in those rats & mice.

[TNRIVERSIDE]

GMandJM wrote:
Dang!

We've had ALOT more mice around our garage and shed lately. Alot more than last year.

Anyone else experiencing this?

I had mice eating my F150 and the wife's Mustang. I finally got rid of all the birdseed in the basement and no more mice. Worked for me.

[blofgren]

GMandJM wrote:
Dang!

We've had ALOT more mice around our garage and shed lately. Alot more than last year.

Anyone else experiencing this?

Yes, we're seeing this on the West coast of BC too, but more with rats. I think it is because our past few winters have been very mild and hasn't been killing them off.

[HJGyswyt]

Yes Dennis, but I had to bridge the floor joist when I screwed it up to the bottom. They are on 12" centers.

And I really enjoy reading your travel stories. Thanks for sharing those.

I kept journals of all our trips when we first started traveling with our kids, first as a written diary, then computers and digital images really brought the journals to life. I printed them all, and it's an incredible library now and I still try to write travel journals even though my kids are grown now.

Be sure and try to print yours for future generations in your family if you have offspring. I back up files but still like having hard copies in a file cabinet.

Did you see the journal where some family was retracing their grandmothers epic motor car journey like in the 20's, even posing their modern rig in the same places the grandma had posed her car almost 100 years ago. It was a good reward.

All the best, I still have some of my journals on my web site, just click the link under my signature.

[Executive45]

WOW the size of that board compared to the size of the hole looks a bit of an overkill, but.....nice job....:)....Dennis

[GMandJM]

Dang!

We've had ALOT more mice around our garage and shed lately. Alot more than last year.

Anyone else experiencing this?