Mice!

[Ted-Thompson]

My fridge just wasn't keeping up, as soon as it got warm, the temp inside went up to 60!!! So I decided to pull it...

Here's what I found!

What a mess!!!

With the fridge in that condition, I'm junking it. I don't forsee that I'll EVER camp without shore power available so I'm going with a normal terrestrial compact fridge... $100 compared to $800... I'll rig up my own way to keep the door shut.

 

[Sunline Fan]

Wow Ted!!!

Just make sure to keep the door panel and pull handle from the refrigerator door. You never know where you could use a matching panel or handle.

Jon

 

[Honda03842]

Ted,
We have an all electric fridge and it's worked fine for three years. We normally do not power it while traveling, usually four hours is our typical drive. We do make it colder before we leave to provide additional margin.

We do have the ability to power it while driving with a 1000 watt inverter. We only power it while driving on really hot days or longer drives. We can charge our battery while driving from solar cells or the car's generator.

We tried a number of methods to keep it closed while driving. The simplest was the best. I put a small hook into the refrifgerator cabinet just above the top of the fridge and put a large Oring in it. I than put a screw in the top of the refridge door. The O ring keeps it firmly closed.

I did have to expand the fridge opening a little, as well make sure what ever model you buy fits thru the door.

As to mice we keep Decon in our trailer in out of the way places, always renewing when before we close up the trailer.

 

[henryj-SUN]

A friend with a cottage runs a little "trapline" around the outside all summer long. This has virtually eliminated winter mouse problems. We've never had any in the trailer, but have had perennial winter problems in the garage where they just chew through the weatherstrip and get in. I now trap mice all year long and have also pretty much eliminated winter problems. Last winter I caught only one.

Henry

 

[nasa42a1]

Ted.....

As you can tell from our "signature" info, we are currently Sunline Alumni members..... Our HiLo's Dometic fridge cannot be run on gas while "down" (otherwise, we'll melt a wall), and running it on battery for long can pull down our charge to the point our hydraulic pump motor won't work to raise the top.

HOWEVER, we've learned that if the fridge is at it's coldest before we leave with the TT in the AM, we can travel almost 8 hours before the temp in there goes down significantly (especially if not opened in the intervening period 'till you stop for the night). Hence, your approach to fridge replacement in your situation sounds very practical.

Good luck!

Frank

 

[luvrque]

A friend with a cottage runs a little "trapline" around the outside all summer long. This has virtually eliminated winter mouse problems. We've never had any in the trailer, but have had perennial winter problems in the garage where they just chew through the weatherstrip and get in. I now trap mice all year long and have also pretty much eliminated winter problems. Last winter I caught only one.

Henry

I trap mice all yr. long also and have not had a problem of the mice getting in the Trailer.....YET.
Right now (this time of the year) I get one in a trap every few days.

QUESTION......... Does anyone know if Moth balls have ANY effect in keeping mice away?

Thanks,

 

[Honda03842]

One thing I'll say about our Magic Chef 4.1 cubic foot model is that it's freezer compartment is ineffective though it's certainly colder than the rest of the fridge. We use it for storing regular things that are accessed little or doubles, things we carry two of like breakfast sausage.

I ditto what Frank and Sharon said about staying cold if kept closed. On our Labrador trip we had one 13 hour ferry ride and were probably without power for 15 hours with no excessive warming of the food. I'm sure we had it cooler than normal before boarding and of course the 'hole' of the ship was none too warm. Even if we had gas refridge we would not have been allowed to run it on the ship.

I think an electric fridge is a good low cost solution, even if you add a 1000 watt inverter, good to have at other times, it's still a lot cheaper than a normal RV fridge.

 

[Ted-Thompson]

It's heartening to see my idea backed by all you folks with FAR more experience then I have! Thanks.

For the record, this was done before I got the trailer, I knew there was damage in there, but I had NO idea it was like this!!

Ah well, live and learn...

 

[grannytosix]

Moth balls do not work to keep mice away but Bounce dryer sheets have kept them away from my trailer for two years now. I can still smell the moth balls from the first year. It has to be Bounce brand and I just put them in every cupboard, drawer and space i could find. This method is used by a lot of campers at my campground.
grannytosix

 

[MACK C-85]

Second grannytosix's sugestion. Bounce dryer sheets and no mice for 3 years now.

Mack

 

[luvrque]

Borax & Mice

I read somewhere that Borax can be used to keep MICE away...

Has anyone tried Borax.......:?:

Thanks,

 

[luvrque]

I read somewhere that Borax can be used to keep MICE away...

Has anyone tried Borax.......:?:

Thanks,

Ok I just found this, I have no idea if it works.........:neutral:

Mice Deterrent
Sprinkle borax on the floor along the walls (mice like to run along the side of walls). They don’t like getting the borax on their feet, so they are less likely to return to that area of the house.

 

[SteveC7010]

I've kept DCon baits in the trailer for nearly 10 years now and they seem to be pretty effective. I am not finding any droppings anywhere.

One place I make sure to keep a fresh one is the compartment where the shoreline is stored. No matter how much stuff I pack around the cable where it exits the trailer, there is always a little space so I figure the compartment there might be the first place a mouse would enter. What better gift to greet the new arrival than a bowl of DCon?

I also place baits in the cabinets below the drawers by removing the lowest drawer and placing the bait way in the back. We always travel with our yellow Lab so I don't want any chance that she'll find one of those baits.

Everywhere I place a mouse bait, I also toss in one or two ant traps.

In the spring as part of my dewinterizing routine, I remove all the drawers, bedding, etc. and then fog the entire trailer with Raid Room Foggers.

Norm, how do you keep food cold when you dry camp? You were with us for several days at the ADK M&G two years ago, but I don't recall discussing that with you at the time.

 

[GoodoleBob]

Hi Steve,

We also have our dog with us when camping and I have been concerned about his possible contact with Decon so I don't use it as yet. But I have thought about it as a precaution against the obvious need to stay as mice free as is practical. In particular I want to ask if the mice redistribute the Decon as part of eating it and walking around and subsequently contaminate other places which might allow our dog to access it. What has been your experience with this?

Thanks

Bob

 

[JohnGB]

Bob

This past winter in my shed was the 1st year I had any mice. So I used the Decon treatment. Also used them in the house garage. It may have been all the snow we had on the ground for so long driving them anywhere they could get inside

I had no issues of eating good stuff, thank goodness, but had the droppings and wanted to make sure I had no issues. What tipped me off was my lawn mower. They where after the dead grass on the bottom of the deck. Once I say the pile of grass 1/2 chewed up I said, oh boy there here and out came the boxes of Decon and Tom Cat.

What I found is my variety of varmints.... they would horde it and not eat so much or as I could only find 1 dead field mouse and then a day later he too was gone..... After several boxes where "gone..." they finally stopped. This spring I have found where at last 1/2 of it went. Any type of tarp had about 1 to 2 boxes horded in it or plastic bag.

Eventually they must have left due to dehydration as the droppings where green as the Decon pellets and the fresh bait trays stopped draining.... They must of ate/horded at least $35 worth....

In the house garage I found a stash this past weekend. I have an old pair of work shoes I use for weed whacking so I do not mess up my good boots. Well.... that pair went in the trash after I found about a box and a 1/2 in the boot. ERRRRR

Seems Ohio field mice prefer Decon over Tom Cat about 6 to 1. It was like I could not even give away the Tom Cat... The active ingredient is the same as Decon but only the Decon seems to be mouse approved.... again for mid Ohio varments…LOL

John

 

[MACK C-85]

Seems Ohio field mice prefer Decon over Tom Cat about 6 to 1. It was like I could not even give away the Tom Cat... The active ingredient is the same as Decon but only the Decon seems to be mouse approved.... again for mid Ohio varments…LOL

MD field mice don't like our "Tom Cat" either.....but then again they come on four feet and are Orange-Tabby and Grey/White instead of green. Of course, the Orange-Tabby's two Tuxedo (Black/White) sisters are pretty good mousers, too!!!!

LOL, Never heard of Tom Cat before.

 

[JohnGB]

MD field mice don't like our "Tom Cat" either.....but then again they come on four feet and are Orange-Tabby and Grey/White instead of green. Of course, the Orange-Tabby's two Tuxedo (Black/White) sisters are pretty good mousers, too!!!!

LOL, Never heard of Tom Cat before.

LOL....Ha Ha See here Tomcat :-D

 

[SteveC7010]

Hi Steve,

We also have our dog with us when camping and I have been concerned about his possible contact with Decon so I don't use it as yet. But I have thought about it as a precaution against the obvious need to stay as mice free as is practical. In particular I want to ask if the mice redistribute the Decon as part of eating it and walking around and subsequently contaminate other places which might allow our dog to access it. What has been your experience with this?

Thanks

Bob

Bob, I have never seen any evidence that the mice carry the DCon away from the bait itself. The trailer is dropping free year round so I suspect that the only place they get in is the shore line opening. If they eat the DCon there, they will immediately exit looking for water.

We lived in the country until earlier this spring so mice were all over the place there. They would get into both the house and the trailer. We lost our cat a few years ago, and that probably let the mouse population grow a lot. We're in a village now, but mice seem to be all over the place, too. I have large DCon baits all over the basements and crawl spaces in this old place, and so far, no droppings to be seen in any of the living areas.

Because I place the baits and ant traps only in places that Abby can never reach, I am satisfied that there is no chance she'll eat any of it.

Just so you know, DCon is supposed to be specific to mice and other small rodents. Given the relatively huge body mass of Abby (55 lbs.) compared to a mouse, even if she did ingest a small amount, it would likely only make her slightly sick. Folks with very small dogs may want to do some extra research before using DCon or similar products.

 

[GoodoleBob]

Thanks Steve...that's exactly the info I was hoping for. I do set traps, but the effectiveness of Decon type products seems to surpass simple trapping methods especially with the need to dispose and reset for each catch. Our dog is more important to us that the whole mouse issue, but I still want to stay proactive in limiting their invasion of home and trailer. My wife is always in a panic about the chance of Lucky (our Sheltie) getting some leftover Decon to eat...this info should help satisfy the concern.

Thank you again and also thanks John for the Mid-Ohio perspective on the matter. New England mice are just as annoying.

Bob

 

[MACK C-85]

Given the relatively huge body mass of Abby (55 lbs.) compared to a mouse

LOL...Steve, seeing you refer to your 55lb yellow lab as "Huge"....my late Yellow Lab was in the mid 140's most of his adult life. Pitty the mouse!

Mack