Dealing with Mice

azure

Final Approach
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azure
During my ongoing annual the shop found, and photographed, clear evidence of recent mouse presence in my Cardinal RG. I'm not going to upload the photo - I think it's pretty obvious what they found.

This is the second time a mouse problem has been discovered while annualing The Branded Bird. The first time was during my first annual after purchase. The result was a $10,000 wing spar carrythrough replacement. The earlier infestation was old, dating most likely from the previous owner's tenure, and simply hadn't been discovered during the last annual (nor during pre-buy). Until last year I had been keeping my plane in a private T-hangar at a suburban MI airport. I never found any evidence of mice in that hangar nor in the plane since then.

Fast forward to this past winter, when I've relocated to VT. Now my only option for hangaring the plane is in a large communal hangar. The hangar is dirty, not kept very dry, and is in many ways just one step up from a tiedown. I've found evidence of mouse droppings around my plane before and brought it to the FBO owner's attention. He acknowledges that there are mice but denies that the crap around my plane was mouse poop, and bottom line he hasn't done anything about the problem (e.g. traps, poison, etc.)

I would rather not put traps inside the plane as it would mean checking them every day to prevent the odor from a dead mouse from making the plane uninhabitable. Is there any other way to keep mice out of an airplane? Should the FBO be taking a more proactive stance on the problem?

Of course the best solution for me would be to move my plane out of that hangar, but at this point that would mean tying it down outside as there are no private hangars available on field, and the next closest airport is over an hour away in good weather.
 
A rat snake or small constrictor loosed during the summer should cut down your problem some.
 
Metal shield around the wheels. Bounce dryer sheets keep them away but have their own stink. You aren't going to outtrap/poison the little bastards in vt. From dealing with cars up there you'd probably have less mice tied down outside, but that brings up other issues...
 
In order to deal with mice you need a really small deck of cards, and the little bastages will cheat.
 
Traps in the plane, and traps under the plane and around the edges of the hangar. Traps are cheap and they work, if the FBO is too lazy to clean up the hangar I doubt they'll say anything about a few traps. And if you do catch one in your plane, its only a mouse, not a rotting skunk.
 
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Get the county ag commissioner to give you a feral cat next time they trap one. Feed it well and keep it watered inside the hangar. No problem. If it is a female you will probably have a kitten problem rather than a mouse problem.

Jim
 
Get the county ag commissioner to give you a feral cat next time they trap one. Feed it well and keep it watered inside the hangar. No problem. If it is a female you will probably have a kitten problem rather than a mouse problem.

Jim

Either way it sounds like a cat poop in the hangar problem.
 
Either way it sounds like a cat poop in the hangar problem.
Any cat I've ever seen prefers to poop outdoors rather than in a building with a concrete floor. Cats like to bury their poop which is why litterboxes work.
 
Any cat I've ever seen prefers to poop outdoors rather than in a building with a concrete floor. Cats like to bury their poop which is why litterboxes work.

Farm cats must be the opposite. They run into the shop and crap in the dusty areas where tractors drag mud in. :mad2:

Odd disgusting creatures.
 
Farm cats must be the opposite. They run into the shop and crap in the dusty areas where tractors drag mud in. :mad2:

Odd disgusting creatures.
If there is deep enough dirt on the floor I could see where that might happen. But in a hangar?
 
During my ongoing annual the shop found, and photographed, clear evidence of recent mouse presence in my Cardinal RG. I'm not going to upload the photo - I think it's pretty obvious what they found.

This is the second time a mouse problem has been discovered while annualing The Branded Bird. The first time was during my first annual after purchase. The result was a $10,000 wing spar carrythrough replacement. The earlier infestation was old, dating most likely from the previous owner's tenure, and simply hadn't been discovered during the last annual (nor during pre-buy). Until last year I had been keeping my plane in a private T-hangar at a suburban MI airport. I never found any evidence of mice in that hangar nor in the plane since then.

Fast forward to this past winter, when I've relocated to VT. Now my only option for hangaring the plane is in a large communal hangar. The hangar is dirty, not kept very dry, and is in many ways just one step up from a tiedown. I've found evidence of mouse droppings around my plane before and brought it to the FBO owner's attention. He acknowledges that there are mice but denies that the crap around my plane was mouse poop, and bottom line he hasn't done anything about the problem (e.g. traps, poison, etc.)

I would rather not put traps inside the plane as it would mean checking them every day to prevent the odor from a dead mouse from making the plane uninhabitable. Is there any other way to keep mice out of an airplane? Should the FBO be taking a more proactive stance on the problem?

Of course the best solution for me would be to move my plane out of that hangar, but at this point that would mean tying it down outside as there are no private hangars available on field, and the next closest airport is over an hour away in good weather.

The best solution is to clean the hangar yourself and remove the food sources for the mice or limit them to the corner furthest from your plane. Also wash and clean out your plane thoroughly.

I have buddy that swears that a circle of cayenne pepper around the plane keeps them and all vermin away, I cannot verify the claim, you may try since it's only a couple of bucks for a bag full at the restaurant supply.
 
Don't know how your FBO feels about it but our shop has always had a couple of cats. Feed 'em but keep them a bit hungry and they will take care of the mice.
 
I'd recommend a sonic rodent repeller. This is a box which emits a noise on a certain frequency that is offensive to the mice. I've used one for roaches that I know works because we were roach free when living 1/4 mile from the waterfront in Norfolk, but everyone around us had them.

On the mice setting, the box is audible to humans. That shouldn't be a problem in a hangar.
 
We had mice in our RV once - trapped the little buggers and then put in a couple sonic rodent repellers. Have not had any further invasions, but can't definitely say it was the sonic boxes or I just trapped them all.
 
We had mice in our RV once - trapped the little buggers and then put in a couple sonic rodent repellers. Have not had any further invasions, but can't definitely say it was the sonic boxes or I just trapped them all.
After the cats moved on I had mice for awhile. I tried those sonic things, also peppermint oil on cotton balls and mousetraps. I noticed the droppings under the sink so I plugged the holes for plumbing with steel wool. Haven't had mice in the house in a long time but I see them in the garage. The other day I was cleaning the grass off my mower deck and found one inside. Wonder if he was deaf after riding around for a couple hours. I was amazed he wasn't mouseburger.
 
Poison blocks. They are likely to leave your plane in search of water, but if they die they tend to dry up and not smell much. Or you could make a trap with a bucket and a bottle or can with a dowel through it. Fill bucket with antifreeze (hides the smell) bait with peanut butter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jezQKOl5q-w
 
Poison blocks. They are likely to leave your plane in search of water, but if they die they tend to dry up and not smell much.

That's what I've used for 10 or 12 years and have no mouse trouble, but I don't put the poison in the airplane. When I had a hangar I left the poison around the building in places where they would find it. Now that it's tied down outside I have a locked box I store stuff in next to the airplane, and I made a small compartment inside the box with a removable lid and a hole in the bottom of the box (it sits off the ground a couple of inches) into which the mice go to find the bar bait. They eat that and go off in search of water and die and leave the airplane alone. This thing tends to keep a large radius clear of mice. They must smell the bait from a distance and head for it first thing.

You want to make a box or something so that kids or someone's pets don't get at it. It will kill them, too.

This stuff, or something like it:

farnam_just_one_bite.jpg


A commercially available bait box:

portacebos4.jpg


Mousetraps are a pain. They leave dead, smelly mice, and when there's a dead mouse in a trap it can't catch any more until it's emptied. Mice sometimes figure out how to get the bait without getting caught, too; a couple of us found sprung, empty traps every morning in the shop and finally watched a mouse climb onto the trap over the backside, and when it triggered he was just thrown off. He came back and ate the bait.

The poison looks after itself and the mice go away after eating it. A cat might get sick or dead eating poisoned mice, though.

Dan
 
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I know this is off topic and I'm sorry.

I'm having trouble finding where to start a new thread. Can anyon advise?
 
The poison looks after itself and the mice go away after eating it. A cat might get sick or dead eating poisoned mice, though.

Dan


But what is one cat more or less in the world, eh? Unless it is YOUR cat.

PLEASE don't use poison. PLEASE.

Jim
 
I've been without internet all afternoon due to an outage at my provider, just catching up now...

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. Some might work, others can't, unfortunately. :(
I've seen people stand up tin coil around the wheels to make a barrier.
http://golfhotelwhisk.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Mice.jpg
The problem is I'd have to stop plugging in my battery minder, and I'm not willing to do that. I'm pretty sure all the buggers have to do is hop onto the cord and if they're as small as the poop would indicate, they'll get in through the baggage door. I appreciate the suggestion, though.
or
moth balls?
Oooh! I'll bet this might work. The question is, could I stand the smell?
Irish spring soap.
That's one I hadn't heard of. I like it, but does it work? Any data (even anecdotal)?
The best solution is to clean the hangar yourself and remove the food sources for the mice or limit them to the corner furthest from your plane. Also wash and clean out your plane thoroughly.
Considering how much junk is in the hangar that isn't mine, cleaning the whole hangar myself would be pretty difficult. It's also a pretty large communal hangar, fits 7-8 planes easily. And if they are finding food somewhere, it's not like I have any control over what other owners or the FBO do. I know there isn't any food in MY plane, but it's still a cozy base for them to nest in if there's food nearby.

Another thing I didn't say but should have: my plane doesn't have its own spot in the hangar. It sits wherever the FBO has room for me, and I'm not allowed to move it inside the hangar (liability issues, I assume). So anything I put there myself (traps, poison, etc.) would have to be either inside the plane or spread across the hangar floor - which would quickly become expensive. So I'm leaning toward something I could use inside the plane that wouldn't make a bad stink.
I have buddy that swears that a circle of cayenne pepper around the plane keeps them and all vermin away, I cannot verify the claim, you may try since it's only a couple of bucks for a bag full at the restaurant supply.
Yup, it's something I might try, thanks.
I'd recommend a sonic rodent repeller. This is a box which emits a noise on a certain frequency that is offensive to the mice. I've used one for roaches that I know works because we were roach free when living 1/4 mile from the waterfront in Norfolk, but everyone around us had them.
Are these powered by battery or AC? If battery, how long do the batteries last? I'll try searching for one, thanks for the idea.
Get the county ag commissioner to give you a feral cat next time they trap one. Feed it well and keep it watered inside the hangar. No problem. If it is a female you will probably have a kitten problem rather than a mouse problem.
I like this idea best, but it would have to be the FBO's cat, and I'm not sure how Blue gets along with cats. (Blue is the FBO owner's super-friendly lab.)
But what is one cat more or less in the world, eh? Unless it is YOUR cat.

PLEASE don't use poison. PLEASE.
Yeah, I don't like the idea of using poison either. It's a last resort as far as I'm concerned. I REALLY don't want another expen$ive repair bill due to a rodent infestation though, so I'm not ruling it out altogether. Again though, something like that would really have to be the FBO's call.
 
Can't have nice things in vt. Bring in nice things and the state will fix their state.
 
I'm with Henning. If you are in a community hangar the owners you are paying rent to should rid the hangar of mice.

Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk
 
I'm with Henning. If you are in a community hangar the owners you are paying rent to should rid the hangar of mice.

Sent from my HTC6525LVW using Tapatalk

Things are different in vt. :mad2::sad:
 
Things are different in vt. :mad2::sad:
Oh, come on. Super-laid-back (euphemism for lazy) FBO people can be found anywhere. If they really don't do anything about it, it might have more to do with knowing there is nowhere else nearby their tenants can move to. (which is also why they can get away with charging over $1 more for avgas than other sources in the area)

I haven't given up on getting the FBO to do something, just looking for some alternative strategies I can implement myself if I need to.
 
Farm cats must be the opposite. They run into the shop and crap in the dusty areas where tractors drag mud in. :mad2:

Odd disgusting creatures.

Clean your floor, cats won't crap where they can't dig.
 
Oh, come on. Super-laid-back (euphemism for lazy) FBO people can be found anywhere. If they really don't do anything about it, it might have more to do with knowing there is nowhere else nearby their tenants can move to. (which is also why they can get away with charging over $1 more for avgas than other sources in the area)

I haven't given up on getting the FBO to do something, just looking for some alternative strategies I can implement myself if I need to.
Put some peanut butter in the FBO manager's work area where he won't find it easily. Maybe under his desk in the corner. I betcha he will be on the problem in a few days.
 
Put some peanut butter in the FBO manager's work area where he won't find it easily. Maybe under his desk in the corner. I betcha he will be on the problem in a few days.
The problem INSIDE the FBO, sure. The community hangar is 100 yards away.
None of his planes is inside that hangar.

If he's going to do anything about it, it will be out of a sense of responsibility. I haven't given up on him yet. It's just, if he doesn't, there isn't a tenants' club or anything like that to put pressure on him.

Though, it's not a bad idea to form one... :idea:
 
If they are older mice with the roller ball you might just rough them up with some light sandpaper. For the optical mice you need to make sure they are getting enough light reflection. Glass tables and tabletops don't usually work out well.

try putting the mouse on a sheet of untreated paper and see if it easier to deal with.
 
I had a hangar on the west coast, one of the other hangars has a fridge, garbage cans, etc, they get rats.

My hangar, airplane, table, that's it. Zero rats.

Remove anything they would want to eat or nest in.
 
I had a hangar on the west coast, one of the other hangars has a fridge, garbage cans, etc, they get rats.

My hangar, airplane, table, that's it. Zero rats.

Remove anything they would want to eat or nest in.
As I said in the OP, it's a community hangar. I can't control what other pilots/the FBO keep in the hangar or their planes. I'd get a private hangar if I could.
 
Personally I think introducing a bunch of snake will both alleviate your mouse problem and motivate the FBO staff to alleviate it themselves. Venomous serpents will likely have an even greater effect on FBO staff. Either that, or they'll promote the placement of new staff who might be more efficiently motivated.
 
Personally I think introducing a bunch of snake will both alleviate your mouse problem and motivate the FBO staff to alleviate it themselves. Venomous serpents will likely have an even greater effect on FBO staff. Either that, or they'll promote the placement of new staff who might be more efficiently motivated.

Michael
Now that be funny:yes:

On the mouse problem
We use all the above ,they all work to some degree.
Also found in my boat if you open up closed spaces they tend not to use those areas ,they like dark quiet places.
Poison bait blocks work best,traps next then down the line. My wife says her plastic fake snakes from the dime store help deter mice, couldn't prove that though. We have the electronic repelling units.

I like the idea of a protective box that only mice can enter,I would put poison blocks in there, a bowl of water and maybe a bowl of the old poly glycol antifreeze(winter) in there (not the new safe Sierra stuff)
We also use the sticky mouse trays ,stick some sunflower seeds in the middle , they cannot runaway and die in hidden places then. If left for a long time mice are only a pile of fuzz and bones stuck to the tray.
 
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