MOUSE!

Hi,

Been a while since I posted but I knew where to come for some ideas! We've had our 32qbbs since 2008 and 2 times since there a little sucker of a mouse has been roaming around inside the camper. I am not a little afraid of mice but alot, probably should seek therapy, so when this happens I'm searching the net for a good place to trade the camper in. Needless to say my dh doesn't want to do that over a mouse.

He has sealed the outside garbage can disposal on the inside of the camper with duct tape and this heavy duty plastic thing that came with a window air conditioner and has sealed the outdoor laundry shoot with a peice of plywood screwed down, when we bought the camper I thought i'd love those two things but with small kids i never used either one, with diapers and a pile of laundry that fell out of the basket anyway. He has spray foamed around any pipes coming up into the camper from the 5th wheel portion. I've stuck dryer sheets and irish spring soap everywhere and it smells like a soap factory in our camper but not like mouse, so i know the little sucker is still alive or has moved on.

Just in case you haven't realized your wife isn't all that bad yet, I had 3 of those sonic mouse chasers and 8 traps - so i'm over the top about this.

We have no idea how the mouse is getting in, all the outside compartment doors shut tight and we usually have them locked. But somehow they are getting in the area under the fifth wheel and in and usually from the droppings are in the kids bathroom up top.
The only thing is our power cord is extended and plugged in at all times so not sure if the power cord could be the entry way.

My question to you do you think it could be the power cord? The slide being out in the main cabin? Any other ideas where he could be inviting himself in. I keep all our things in those big ziploc bags, food in the cupboard and usually in a plastic tote so there is no real reason for them to want to be in there. I keep a roll of toilet paper on the floor in that bathroom so i know whether or not i've had a visitor..

My cheese has definatly slide off the cracker on this one.

C

How do you feel about cats or even a pet snake?

Is your power cord one that goes back into the camper when not in use or is it one that you unplug both ends? If the first, then I would say that yes, that is how the mouse is getting in there. My other thought would be coming up the tire, going up the spring / shackle, up around a pipe in the kids bathroom. Was your husband able to get to all of the pipes? He may be living in the under belly area and is not exiting the camper at all. Could you put a bug bomb on the ground under the camper? I suspect that would run him out or kill him.

C,

You would not believe the very, very small spaces that a mouse can get in through. I would check every penetration through the underbelly of the camper. Anything in the wheel wells, around the landing gear, the black/grey water valves, etc. Make sure that they are all sealed good with either urethane foam or rubberized tape.

We had a family move into our last 5th wheel and it wasn't pleasant. Where you have one mouse, you probably have more. They breed faster than rabbits.

During the winter months moth balls work well (personal experience) and set sticky traps along the baseboards. They love insulation and will build a nest out of it. Found one in the oven after the winter with a momma and 6 little ones in it. They will get the insulation from around the refrigerator and from the ceiling space.

You may have to have the trailer fumigated, but that's a last straw. Also, selling the trailer is too.

Best of luck

I have/had a mouse. I noticed some small droppings on the counter when the kids raided the trailer a couple weeks back. They left a open bag of cookies out on the counter. I cleaned it up and set some Decon traps. Hopefully they take the bait, it's never failed in the house or garage. I didn't see any droppings, so hopefully the mouse left.

I have a hard time putting poison down, cuz I don't want them to die where I didn't want them in the first place. Good snapping traps are cheap and humane.

As for the power chord, I was told that it's a great entry point for mice. They recommended coarse steel wool packed in around your power chord while extended. That will deter them from coming in that way. But if they're determined to get in, they'll get in from around the tires and the landing gear too. Anything they can get a foothold on is where you want to put traps and/or moth balls down.

Someone said they've used dryer sheets as a preventative. IMO, all they did was provide good smelling bedding material for the furry critters! Besides, the little varmints are already IN before they encounter the dryer sheets. I'd think that would encourage them to roam to another part of the RV.

TC

I found the remnants of a little visitor this spring as well. Thank God it didn't stick around and setup shop. The only place I found evidence was in the flip down door next to the master bed under the closet. My though is that that door closes so tightly that is must have left. I have not fully investigated it's point of entry but it must be from the basement. They could easily get in the landing gear and move in from there.

Well we camped all weekend here and never heard or saw any mouse or droppings. So i don't think we have one in there this moment....

I've bought some steel wool for the power cord since we leave our camper plugged in cord extended majority of the time. He has spray foamed most of the garage storage area and is finishing around the pipes in the kids bathroom.

I'm going to put some moth balls in the garage area since we think the little suckers are coming up that way.

Thx for the ideas......and i'm surprised how many of you have had mice in your campers I don't know why i am but YUCKY! I hate hate hate mice.

PCPP,

Just an FYI...that spray foam is nothing more than an annoyance to mice and other vermin, not a deterrent. However, it does help to regulate the temps in your CAT better. I use spray foam everywhere I see day light, just not to keep out rodents.

I'm amazed just how many places there are on a CAT that has a dime sized opening or larger; too many to count.

TC

Cats work really good. Well, sometimes, ours have been known to bring a mouse in from outside so that they can play with their new "squeaky" toy inside where there are all kinds of obstructions to play around.