Rodent control

[ignatz]

Because I live in a wooded area with Pine trees, I'm always lifting the hood to clear the water drains a couple times a week. Sometimes on the driver's side of the cam cover there is a pile of nuts where critters had a party on a warm engine. You get use to the routine. This time they made a bed using my hood padding.
I'm not going to start setting mouse traps on top of my engine, but is there something I could use as a repellent that works?
This picture shows hood padding from my 02 V70 that I drove 12 hours earlier.
Happy Thanksgiving.

[ignatz]

P1000689.JPG (513.12 KiB) Viewed 414 times

P1000688.JPG (406.2 KiB) Viewed 414 times

[abscate]

They can destroy stuff in one day. Awful creatures. Luckily there is an organic solution …

[volvolugnut]

I have had some success with solid bar mouse and rat bait placed under the hood. You can tell if they are nibbling on the bar. Under the hood also keeps larger pets away from the bait (?).
volvolugnut

[Krons]

Maybe try a farm supply or farm equipment store. They have stuff to keep rodents out of farm equipment when it is stored for long periods of time.

[454cid]

I've wondered about spraying the wheel wells and under carriage with a liquid rodent repellent that would be purchased at a home improvement store, or maybe something like Coyote urine. I think I get chipmunks sitting on top of my V8s, as I find cracked seed shells. I've also seen lots of chipmunks in past years... not as many this year.

Soap is supposed to be a deterrent, but I actually had a mouse in the house gnawing on my bar soap, so I'm thinking that one doesn't work so well.

[abscate]

I have had some luck with peppermint in bags under hood to keep them away on cars that sit. My T4 used to get rodent activity which seems to have stopped