If the PETA concoction doesn't repel the rodents, and one wants to avoid using poison that the rodents will ingest, then maybe the other two repellents I previously suggested -- Rataway.com fragrance and old-fashioned moth balls -- are the best solutions. Also, if you don't want to hang a sachet of moth balls in the engine compartment, you could lay the sachet or a small tray of moth balls on the floor under the engine compartment of the riding mower when it's parked in the shed/garage.
Another use to consider for the lawn mower: New world speed record set for riding lawnmowers - Drive On: A conversation about the cars and trucks we drive - USATODAY.com
Update on the mower. So far so good BUT when I was at the land last time looking at our tarp contraption wrapped up around the mower it occurred to me "what happens when it rains and the rain enters the creases on the top of the tarp/mower and has no outlet". How come you engineer types didn't think of my drowning mower? hmf.
Don't know what that top thing is but we considered the wiring but it's not malleable enough to get around the entire mower without having creases and gaps. You can't just lay it on the ground as they will just crawl up on the mower and into the engine.
I read this post entry as : Mice on our riding mower That would be awesome ! :second: Mice Grand Prix How the hell do mice like the smell of oil & gasoline ??? CAT URINE works wonders...even for rats. Fresh extraction, however, is difficult. However used kitty litter might accomplish the same effect.
That top thing is a charger, like electric fence. You don't wrap the wire around the mower, you park the mower on the wire... the wire is electrified, and the mice won't be able to walk across it to the mower. Unless you have flying mice, you won't have mice in your mower.
Plywood lined with hardware cloth is a solid defense against chewing rodents (mice, marmots and dusky-footed wood rats).
Oooooooh! I get it now. Crafty. I have no electricity there. I could siphon my neighbor's but then I think I'd have another set of problems to figure out.
This is what I think it's going to boil down to. Initially, I was going to construct a box but this idea helps me amend the box to be more user friendly. I don't have to have a floor of the box. I can construct the front, the back and the sides and fasten the hardware cloth over (or under?) this box. I'll leave the hardware cloth edges longer than the box edges and we can just put this contraption over the mower and then use landscape staples to fasten the hardware cloth to the ground so they can't crawl under the hardware cloth. Somehow I have a feeling this will be more difficult than it sounds but it's the most practical option and it sounds mouse proof. I'm sure you will all be on the edge of your seats waiting for my updates. Thanks, guys!
You can do that? I thought you couldn't have any structures. But if a wire box doesn't count as a structure, then heck yeah, get going. You'll need a roll of the 1/4" stuff, a coil of rebar wire, a pair of gloves, some wire snips, and some skookum pliers. It doesn't have to hold any weight, and it doesn't have to be pretty. Who needs plywood? A few 1 by 1 sticks of wood in the corners will help keep it relatively square and supported, and you could always toss a tarp over it to keep the rain out.
I cannot have any permanent out buildings, i.e. sheds, garages, etc., without a residence on the property. They never said I cannot have a plywood box on my property. We looked into purchasing a trailer on wheels but those were more expensive than a shed. If they ask me to remove my box, no harm, no foul. I will cost me maybe $50 to construct instead of $1,600 for the shed. I have used the hardware cloth on our land to fence in trees and shrubs we planted and the snow caves them in even when supported by steel stakes so I'll go with they plywood for that purpose. Good idea on the tarp as it'll keep the elements from warping the plywood. Gloves - check skookum pliers - if by this you mean needle nose, check. If not ?. wire snips - check coil of rebar wire - ? What is this for? I'll use nails to put the box together. Any ideas of how to secure the wiring to the plywood? Staple guns don't need a power source, do they?
I was thinking of a 'box' of wire, with a simple perimeter wood frame and no plywood. Think 'rabbit hutch' big enough to park your mower in. If snow's a problem, you could always slant the roof. A plastic tarp would be good for helping the snow slide off, as well as the rain. The rebar wire was to knit the sections of hardware cloth together, and you'd need something more robust than needle-noses for that. But a staple gun would work, too. They're easier to operate with big, strong hands, but no, they don't need a power source. Send us pictures.
I will! I hope to have this done within the next couple of weeks. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.......
