rodent protection in storage

[Peelz]

Had our last ride, ready to put the boat in hibernation. This year i'm storing it in a friend's shed. Its a much bigger metal barn. Its mostly sealed, no leaks or anything. But.. its on a farm, middle of nowhere.

The only difference is its not got a paved floor. its that crushed lime/rock.... its really clean, and a regularly used barn.... I know I'm only perceiving an added threat, because Iv'e seen mice in my own garage, and even in my house on occasion. The issue is because it wont be close to me, where I can see it every day. So id like to make triple sure I do everything possible.


I normally store it in my 2 car garage, because I'm definitely on the OCD spectrum... but I have my sons truck to rebuild the front end on, another motorcycle project, and...well, to be truthful, we own too many motorcycles. LOL Plus I expect that to grow soon, and, I am also looking hard at finding a jet ski project.......so I really need both stalls. I keep one open for the Mrs. to park in.


I already cover it... and i might add a tarp. I also leave all the seats off..... But He mentioned moth balls to keep them from hangin out....I hadnt heard that.

What do you guys all do?

 

[Elliott]

You said a shed on a farm .... Where is/are the outside cat(s)? It might be illegal to operate a farm without outside cats.

If he does not have any, pick a couple up for him - you pay for the food and vet visits as your rent.

 

[gallobg]

Make sure the drain plugs are in, and put tape over the drains and pee holes. Take as much gear out of the boat as you can.

If there’s any chance of birds and you have a tower, the I would add a tarp over top. I store mine in a warehouse that birds can get into and it helps to keep a lot of junk off of the mooring cover.

 

[Peelz]

You said a shed on a farm .... Where is/are the outside cat(s)? It might be illegal to operate a farm without outside cats.

If he does not have any, pick a couple up for him - you pay for the food and vet visits as your rent.

When we moved to Iowa my parents had that idea we had two huge barns on 17 acres.... But then It quickly became its own problem.....exponential cat reproduction. I remember my mom left groceries on the seat of our truck once, carried some in, came out to the bags demolished lol

3 barn cats, plus our pet cat became like 36 cats. After i had moved out, My dad had it "taken care of" that's all I know.

 

[Babin Farms]

We have(need) on average 4 barn cats for critter control. Feed them enough to keep them around but not enough that they get lazy. Usually once or twice a year we find one "sleeping" in the road so we have one female that has little ones, keep one or two and give the others away. I also keep D-con or similar products in the shop where the cats are not allowed and the boat is stored, haven't had a rodent problem.

 

[Dough]

Victor Rat-A-Way 5 lbs. Rat and Mouse Repellent Granules M8075 - The Home Depot

Reduce unwanted rodents from your residence with the selection of this excellent Victor Rat-A-Way Rat and Mouse Repellent Granules. Convenient to use.

www.homedepot.com

I spread this and moth balls under the boat and around it. Mice hate it and stay away. Fought for 3 winters with mice, but not anymore.

 

[Elliott]

When we moved to Iowa my parents had that idea we had two huge barns on 17 acres.... But then It quickly became its own problem.....exponential cat reproduction. I remember my mom left groceries on the seat of our truck once, carried some in, came out to the bags demolished lol

3 barn cats, plus our pet cat became like 36 cats. After i had moved out, My dad had it "taken care of" that's all I know.

Pick them up from the shelter; they will have been spay/neutered plus all of their of shots.

 

[ComingInHot]

We store our boat in a barn at the county fair grounds and have put bars of Irish Spring soap in it. Never have had any rodents.

 

[PEARCE]

Dryer sheets work well and keeping rodents and bugs away and it always smells good too. Put golf tees in the pisser holes to keep the mud dobbers out and a cork or tape on the other holes if it makes you feel better. I'd put out some sort of mice bait around the boat and places within the barn. You could get a bottle of fox urine and put it on old rags or cotton balls and scatter them within the barn and in places where the critters might make an entrance. That stuff got some squirrels to move out of my boat garage so I could seal it up and fix the damage to structure and repair the chewed wires.

 

[zipper]

We have not had any experience/issues with rodents boarding our boat(s) over Winter storage. We put a couple of DampRid desicant containers in and cover the boat. The only problems have been from birds perching on the tower or antennas left in the down/towing position crapping on the covers. I just throw a tarp under the tower and over the mooring cover, inside barn storage, to keep the merde off the canvas.

 

[Steve Risley]

Second the bars of soap (Irish Spring) and dryer sheets. Been doing this for years and zero problems...Plus they spell better than moth balls

 

[biglar155]

I've had better luck with moth balls than Irish Spring. I tried that and found half-bars with teeth-marks in them and Irish-Spring scented mouse turds all over the place.

In my case, I have year-round access to my boat as it's in a self-storage unit. I learned early on that the answer is simple. Traps and poison. Lots of both. You don't need to bait the traps. Just put them with the trigger against the wall and they'll trip as the mouse goes over them. In high-density areas I'll use multiple traps close together. I've found two-mice in one trap and one mouse in two traps.

Since they view the poison (and the box it came in) as food, I like to put it in areas that are in the opposite direction of the assets I'm trying to protect. This helps "direct traffic."

I've said before that it's an "active task" as far as I'm concerned. All winter long I have to remember to go up to storage to check the trap-line on a regular basis. (I'm up there frequently in the summer and you know the moment you open the door if there's anything that needs cleaning up.)

Some years it's not too bad. Other years... Well, if I knew how to sew, I'd be selling custom jetboaters.net furry mittens.

 

[MidnightRider]

I'll just add this product that I use for covering up / plugging up different ports and holes. The steel in it is stainless so it doesn't rust. Works well for things like plugging up the exhaust ports etc.

https://www.amazon.com/Xcluder-Rodent-Control-Steel-Fabric/dp/B006GQQVDW/ref=asc_df_B006GQQVDW/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=167116476898&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=14339558267143960741&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9019578&hvtargid=pla-308729748629&psc=1

 

[Peelz]

good stuff in here thanks everyone.

 

[Miitch]

Bars of Irish Soap and Dryer sheets worked for our Family's Trailer we had. Never moved it but only stayed in it during the summer. never had a problem with mice in the 19 years we owned it... Will have to carry that over to the boat this year.. first winterization of many coming up real soon.

 

[Sbrown]

+1 for Dryer sheets or moth balls. Don't know about the Irish Spring, never tried it. No, your boat won't smell funny if you use moth balls, but I always used dryer sheets in our camper and mothballs for the boat when we stored in a big barn up at the local 4h.