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Mouse turds in my dryer sheets

kaydano

kaydano

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Went to pick up the boat from storage today.  Been there nearly 8 months.  I found small mouse turds on the back deck.  Uh oh...


Pulled it home and took off the back of the cover and crawled in.  More mouse turds here and there on the carpet next to the couches.  I had put dryer sheets and moth balls everywhere, but had a few dozen dryer sheets left over last fall from a 200 count box.  So, I left the remaining sheets in the box and put it in an open Walmart bag in the middle of the boat.  Guess where I found mouse turds?  Inside the Walmart bag AND in the dryer sheet box!  Maybe a dozen in the bag, and half dozen in the dryer sheet box.  The Walmart bag was definitely chewed on.  I couldn't see any cushion damage anywhere thankfully.  I took a deep breath as I opened the helm door, knowing how much wiring is in there.  No damage.  Whew.


I will go over the boat in more detail tomorrow (I was just crawling around with most of the cover still on today) but it looks like no damage.  Survived a near miss.  I also looked under a few seats.  Nothing.  Checked the wiring in the battery area, and didn't see anything there but the big bag of mothballs I threw in there last fall.


So, here's the question.  Did the moth balls and dryer sheets attract the mice?  Or did they annoy the mice enough that they left before they chewed on anything but the Walmart bag?


I'm also wondering if I should scatter a bunch of Walmart bags around the boat next year as "sacrificial anodes"...

I think the dryer sheets and mothballs were lavender flavored, in case anyone was wondering.
 
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I had a mouse issue the first year we had our boat, put poison at all the corners and all the way around the pole barn( concrete floor). I think it attracted the mice, let them eat the poison and die in my boat!  Cost me a new Bimini top! I tried the dryer sheets with a few other things never any luck, been using some smelly stuff in a little bag... like the ones for the corn hole game. Have had no trouble with the snowmobiles or the boat whatsoever since using them. Bought them at the local Ace Hardware. Hope you don't find any damage!! 
 
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I just put my lift up higher from the dock. Little bastards will have to learn to jump higher or find their way into one of our homes for the winter.
 
kaydano said:
 think the dryer sheets and mothballs were lavender flavored, in case anyone was wondering.
Click to expand...

Sounds like they thought it was scented toilet paper and the wiped their little mouse butts with it .....


Seriously though, sounds like you dodged a bullet. Make sure to look "inside" the battery box if you have one. Any nook and cranny, if they can build a nest, they will. 
 
adkboater said:
I had a mouse issue the first year we had our boat, put poison at all the corners and all the way around the pole barn( concrete floor). I think it attracted the mice, let them eat the poison and die in my boat!  Cost me a new Bimini top! I tried the dryer sheets with a few other things never any luck, been using some smelly stuff in a little bag... like the ones for the corn hole game. Have had no trouble with the snowmobiles or the boat whatsoever since using them. Bought them at the local Ace Hardware. Hope you don't find any damage!! 
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip, but I'm not sure what you're talking about...  Smelly stuff in a bag?
 
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As long as the water doesn't freeze .This does work .( thats peanut butter on the can ) 


72882_1_o.jpg
 
kaydano said:
Thanks for the tip, but I'm not sure what you're talking about...  Smelly stuff in a bag?
Click to expand...

I got the boat today to clean it up. The tag says Fresh Cab, botanical rodent repellent. The website on the tag is


www.earthkind.com


hopefully that'll get you an idea of what it is.
 
guardrail22 said:
Shortly after I found mice two years ago after we put the boat in the water I found the mice gone, replaced by a 7 foot black snake.


It worked
Click to expand...

It would of had to clean my poo off the boat rather than the mice droppings if I found that. Probably just bought a new boat! We live where there's snakes but that would freak me out!
 
kaydano said:
Went to pick up the boat from storage today.  Been there nearly 8 months.  I found small mouse turds on the back deck.  Uh oh...


Pulled it home and took off the back of the cover and crawled in.  More mouse turds here and there on the carpet next to the couches.  I had put dryer sheets and moth balls everywhere, but had a few dozen dryer sheets left over last fall from a 200 count box.  So, I left the remaining sheets in the box and put it in an open Walmart bag in the middle of the boat.  Guess where I found mouse turds?  Inside the Walmart bag AND in the dryer sheet box!  Maybe a dozen in the bag, and half dozen in the dryer sheet box.  The Walmart bag was definitely chewed on.  I couldn't see any cushion damage anywhere thankfully.  I took a deep breath as I opened the helm door, knowing how much wiring is in there.  No damage.  Whew.


I will go over the boat in more detail tomorrow (I was just crawling around with most of the cover still on today) but it looks like no damage.  Survived a near miss.  I also looked under a few seats.  Nothing.  Checked the wiring in the battery area, and didn't see anything there but the big bag of mothballs I threw in there last fall.


So, here's the question.  Did the moth balls and dryer sheets attract the mice?  Or did they annoy the mice enough that they left before they chewed on anything but the Walmart bag?


I'm also wondering if I should scatter a bunch of Walmart bags around the boat next year as "sacrificial anodes"...

I think the dryer sheets and mothballs were lavender flavored, in case anyone was wondering.
Click to expand...

Where were your dock lines/ropes etc??? First boat we had the mice got in and made nests with all of the dock lines/ropes. Tore em all up! That's when we started using the moth balls. Never had a problem since! 


You got some tough mice up there! The moth balls should prevent them from coming around....
 
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In 2007 we bought new snowmobiles. We came back from a ride, put the sleds in the garage and didn't ride them for about 2 weeks. On the next ride we stopped at one of the local watering holes and I shut my sled off, removed my helmet and got a scent of freshly popped corn coming from inside. It was coming from inside alright...............inside the exhaust system of my new sled! Mice had opened up a hold in a bag of corn I had for deer and started storing it in the warm snowmobile. No damage, but for a while there I had a hankering for popcorn at every stop!
 
Jack M said:
As long as the water doesn't freeze .This does work .( thats peanut butter on the can ) 


Click to expand...

I used to have a different setup for chipmunks. Before I buried the down spouts at my house I kept large rocks the size of the down spout discharge openings at each one. When they saw me they would run and hide in there. I'd block their way out with the rock and that was the end of them. After a hot day I would come and shake them out the next day and wait for the next one.


These darn things are always on the porch startling my wife.
 
We took the boat out of the barn and launched 2 weekends ago.  On the water and checking under the seats for the first time this year.  Everything is good until i get under the helm.  Move the big bag that holds the extra orange life vests and there are hundreds of stink bugs.  We threw bugs overboard for awhile.  Good news is they don't swim well.  I had drilled a 1" hole for the transducer cable through the floor inside the helm.  I think they went between the underskirting and into the helm through the hole and then told all their friends about the winter cabin. 
 
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