P1000 Wiring on bikes and mice eating wires

[Pmed489]

anyone having issues with mice/rats eating electrical wires on bikes stored for extended times. Rumor is that the coating of plastic is using some type of mixture of based product in the coating of the plastic. Any truth to this. Two newer bikes have had issues of this with older bikes not being touched.

 

[Hondasxs]

Rumor is true. New wire coating uses a soybean type of plastic that mice seem to love.
They make a spray and Honda even has there own "rodent" tape.
I would sprinkle moth balls around it if storing it for a long time.

 

[70Bones]

I spray oil based undercoating on my wiring and connectors, mice don't like oil... as far as the soybean based wire insulation, all the car makers use it now...

 

[BigOL3]

I have been having signs of mice under the hood of car/truck. I have been putting poison under those hoods for the past month or so, and under the Pioneer hood also. No wires eaten but the poison has been disappearing. Rats did eat the wires on friends 700 that was left in the woods at hunting camp.

 

[PJon]

At ace hardware you can pick up an led strobe light that flashes randomly. The critters hate the light and it just clips onto battery. Lots of pack rats here and I have to leave a car parked outside. Been using the system about 9 months now and no problem.

 

[Amre2me2]

I own a Nuisance Wildlife Control business for the past 23 years. It is true about the plastic on wiring being vegetable based now. It used to be petroleum based years ago and we never had problems. Now I get calls all the time about wiring damage. Especially the wiring in your house. Squirrels love it! If you think you have squirrels in your attic, get them out ASAP!
As far as the mothballs and lights as a deterrent, that’s all B.S. It might make you feel better that you’re trying something but it doesn’t do a thing. You need to remove them from the area whether you use traps or poison. Keep mice traps set all the time in areas you might have mice. That’s the best way to prevent problems. If you don’t have traps set, by the time you realize you have problems, it’s usually too late. The good ol Victor snap traps will out catch all others 10/1.

 

[ehart814]

On (evil) amazon there are these mouse traps that are black plastic with some yellow on them. They are a bit more expensive than the wood ones but they WORK! I have yet to have a mouse steal the bait! If a mouse eats the peanut butter, they are dead, every time. And they are easy to set. I highly recommend them!

Also, a friend of mine has a really nice 68 440 charger. About 20 years ago it caught on fire in the dash when he got it out in the spring cuz of mice getting in there. He was able to get the car fixed up. Now he uses pure peppermint extract to repel them, and he swears by it. Hasn't had an issue since he started using that.

 

[tdhanses]

I tried the Irish spring soap cut up into tiny chunks, doesn’t work, the mice ate it. Trying the bounce dryer sheets now as I’ve heard they don’t like the smell, trying this in the camper. Best thing I’ve had at controlling them is just letting a black snake live in the shop.

 

[CID]

On (evil) amazon there are these mouse traps that are black plastic with some yellow on them. They are a bit more expensive than the wood ones but they WORK! I have yet to have a mouse steal the bait! If a mouse eats the peanut butter, they are dead, every time. And they are easy to set. I highly recommend them!

Also, a friend of mine has a really nice 68 440 charger. About 20 years ago it caught on fire in the dash when he got it out in the spring cuz of mice getting in there. He was able to get the car fixed up. Now he uses pure peppermint extract to repel them, and he swears by it. Hasn't had an issue since he started using that.

Got a link? 🤔

 

[ehart814]

Got a link? 🤔

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07HQMLHCL/?tag=sxsweb24-20

I was using the old fashioned wood traps and had to bait them 4 or 5 times for every mouse I actually caught. I set these things, caught 3 mice in a few days and haven't caught any now in more than a month. Didn't even have to re-bait them after getting a mouse!

The old bucket trap is good insurance to put near equipment in storage.

 

[aceranch1]

The only reason I feed a cat and have a cat door on my shop is because of this topic. When I see him murdering a mouse or pack rat it reaffirms my decision. Other than that I am not a cat lover.


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[ehart814]

The only reason I feed a cat and have a cat door on my shop is because of this topic. When I see him murdering a mouse or pack rat it reaffirms my decision. Other than that I am not a cat lover.


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At my shop (workplace), there used to be cats around. Problem was the other people working here fed the worthless things like 5 times a day. All they ever did was beg for food and crap on the floor. Even worse, they were both female and attracted tomcats so the shop eventually it was like the discovery channel with all the violet cat raping going on. I got rid of the cats. And now a few cheap mouse traps do the job better than they ever did!

 

[Amre2me2]

The reason some folks have problems with victor snap traps is because they are not baiting them correctly. First, always use peanut butter only. Always use the Pro model trap that has the large yellow plastic trip pan with the holes in it. Don’t use the old style with the metal trip bar. The small holes in the yellow trip pan are to put the PB in. Smash it into the small holes. NEVER pile a huge pile on top of the trip pan. You only need a tiny bit smashed into the holes. This makes the mice have to work at getting to the PB and will trip the trap every time.
As far as using any type of repellent. Ammonia, soap, peppermint oil, etc. These are all internet wise tales mostly perpetuated by hard core animal rights fanatics that don’t want the poor mice killed. Don’t fall for this nonsense. You are wasting your time. Repellents will only repel about a foot in any direction. This is not fixing your problem.

 

[Lindyrig]

Little a$$ holes chewed threw a wire harness on my excavator. It was the size of my wrist and had steel mesh covering it. Unbelievable. Good shop cat solved the problem.

 

[Diyguy]

Trapping is the way to do it IMO. Poison is the lazy way. When a poisoned mouse or rat dies in a house wall you will know it. Besides a carcass can be eaten by pets and wildlife with resulting death.
I have always used the Victor mouse traps of days of old. The one with the metal trip bar that Amre2 says not to. I make sure the peanut butter is forced/smashed into the metal trip bar where it forms a tube. Same principal, the have to work to get it and trip the trap.
Rabbits can be a problem also. Been there.

 

[Smitty335]

The reason some folks have problems with victor snap traps is because they are not baiting them correctly. First, always use peanut butter only. Always use the Pro model trap that has the large yellow plastic trip pan with the holes in it. Don’t use the old style with the metal trip bar. The small holes in the yellow trip pan are to put the PB in. Smash it into the small holes. NEVER pile a huge pile on top of the trip pan. You only need a tiny bit smashed into the holes. This makes the mice have to work at getting to the PB and will trip the trap every time.
As far as using any type of repellent. Ammonia, soap, peppermint oil, etc. These are all internet wise tales mostly perpetuated by hard core animal rights fanatics that don’t want the poor mice killed. Don’t fall for this nonsense. You are wasting your time. Repellents will only repel about a foot in any direction. This is not fixing your problem.

I have a couple Black Snakes I let into my shop, no rodents.

 

[CID]

I have a couple Black Snakes I let into my shop, no rodents.

I've had at least 4 garter snakes living in the yard for nearly 20 years. At one time I had mice in the garage (suburbia) and kept 4 boxes of D-Con pellets in the corners - they'd empty regularly. Thanks to the EPA, those pellets haven't be available for years but all 4 of those OLD boxes still have pellets in them - YAY snakes. 👍

The little bastards were stealing poison pellets and storing them for later. ROFL This is the airbox on my daily driver.

 

[Mopower58]

We have a cat as well as both neighbors. Tractor, Pioneer, Zero Turn, chipper shredder no rodent problems.

 

[OnTheJob]

A hungry barn cat is your best friend. I tell my kids (and wife) do not friend them or feed them, don't even go near them. They will do their job without asking.

 

[Jacks]

I go through this every winter as the little s***s move into my shop once cold starts setting in. I use the newer plastic snap traps as they are much easier to set and easily catch twice as many mice with those as the older wooden traps. I use peanut butter only and they can’t resist.. I never use poison as they just move it up into the vehicles and when they do die, it’s usually somewhere inconvenient.