wetline dave
Steelhead
Moth balls have worked for me. Put a bunch in a sock and then hang the sock off the maser brake cylinder. DO NOT put moth balls on the intake manifold.
Dave
Dave
Fighting rodents on camping trips
- Thread starter iveofione
- Start date
Bounce dryer sheets work well also. I put them in with our foodstuffs when we go camping!
I use those to keep bugs out of contained outdoor areas. At my old place in vermont, the back of my mailbox kept getting infested by earwigs. A couple dryer sheets stuffed in the back of the mailbox fixed it.
The rodent lights are installed! I know there are about a dozen different 'sure fire' deterrents to rodent invasion on here but most involve consumables of one form or another and have to be re-applied. Living here in the forest rodent invasion is a year around problem and the least involved and simplest solution is the one I want. Plus I want it to work when I am camping near a lake or stream where rodents often make a good living. My neighbor and I have both discovered that light is the biggest deterrent to nocturnal visitors. After years of using different methods, powders and sprays it turns out that we are having the best luck by just hanging an led light at the front of the car. Mine has been plugged in for over 3 years now and cost so little to run that I keep it on 24/7.
Now I have lights under the hood wired to the starting battery through a 3-prong illuminated switch. At only 1.2 watts they draw very little current and should last for days although I will only use them 5-8 hours at a time. I like a one button push instead of sprinkling some kind of powder or spraying some foul smelling compound-both of which I have tried in the past.
Admittedly it took some time to install the new lights but this time of year I have little to do anyway and just had fun doing it. If hard wiring some lights isn't your thing I would suggest using a Luci Light or it's equivalent. The new ones are about 150 lumens, last for almost 50 hours and are USB rechargeable. Plus they have multiple light levels and a flasher mode. They will recharge on your dash during the day or by USB if you are driving and will last all night. I think the flashing lights might be most effective as they seem to denote motion to the critters.
Now I have lights under the hood wired to the starting battery through a 3-prong illuminated switch. At only 1.2 watts they draw very little current and should last for days although I will only use them 5-8 hours at a time. I like a one button push instead of sprinkling some kind of powder or spraying some foul smelling compound-both of which I have tried in the past.
Admittedly it took some time to install the new lights but this time of year I have little to do anyway and just had fun doing it. If hard wiring some lights isn't your thing I would suggest using a Luci Light or it's equivalent. The new ones are about 150 lumens, last for almost 50 hours and are USB rechargeable. Plus they have multiple light levels and a flasher mode. They will recharge on your dash during the day or by USB if you are driving and will last all night. I think the flashing lights might be most effective as they seem to denote motion to the critters.
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An update: The model I have is a LuminAid Pack-Lite.These are available on Amazon for <$30, are square instead of round, have 3 levels of light plus flasher and can be charged by USB or the solar panel that is built into the top. I have been running a test to see how long it will operate on flash. I charged it over night with the USB port then turned it on at 8:00 am on Friday morning, now after 8:00 am Sunday morning it is still flashing with no apparent decay of signal. And it is bright! Since it is inflatable it can be compressed down to a pancake and placed on a dashboard or backpack to charge all day then used for hours at night if necessary. Total weight is about 5 ounces.
Since they are self contained, self charging and with no batteries required a LuminAid or Luci Lite is valuable whether used for rodent control or to light a picnic table after dark. Knowing you have over 2 days of illumination in a pinch is a real game changer. Where the hell were these when I was backpacking 50 years ago?
I'll give another update when the battery finally runs down.
Since they are self contained, self charging and with no batteries required a LuminAid or Luci Lite is valuable whether used for rodent control or to light a picnic table after dark. Knowing you have over 2 days of illumination in a pinch is a real game changer. Where the hell were these when I was backpacking 50 years ago?
I'll give another update when the battery finally runs down.
@iveofione,
The LuminAidPack-Lite interests me. I am looking forward to your use and review.
For the last 10 years Ive been using Luci-Lites, in my car camps and my backpack trips. They are or I should say were, most excellent. However, the last few years, prior to COVID even, the Luci Lite product mustve run into some Quality Control issues, as they arent as good as the originals. Ive got two Luci Lites still going strong after 10 years. Newer ones have failed though.
Be safe all.
Bob
The LuminAidPack-Lite interests me. I am looking forward to your use and review.
For the last 10 years Ive been using Luci-Lites, in my car camps and my backpack trips. They are or I should say were, most excellent. However, the last few years, prior to COVID even, the Luci Lite product mustve run into some Quality Control issues, as they arent as good as the originals. Ive got two Luci Lites still going strong after 10 years. Newer ones have failed though.
Be safe all.
Bob
I have one of those Luminaid lights, the model that also serves as a power bank for charging a phone. It is a nice light to have for
and illuminates an area without being obnoxious to others. I like it!
Ive- could you share the model or P/N of the lights you used and the switch for your hard wired set up? I might like to put something similar in my truck. Thanks, Andy
The lights I used are cheapo LED's from Amazon advertised as: CZC Auto 12v Led lamps for license plates, dome lights, under hood lights, etc. The cost was $6.99 for two of them. Any low draw LED will work, these are only 1.2w but in the dark they appear quite bright. I mounted them on a sheet metal extension so they would shine down.
The switch is a simple 3 pole illuminated switch that I had in the shop. I bought about a dozen for a solar generator I built and had a few left over. Switches cost $2-$3 apiece or about $9 for a package of 5. You don't need a 3 prong switch but since I had it I used it although it takes a bit longer to wire in.
If wiring seems like too much of a hassle take a look at the LuminAid light that I mentioned. It has a lot of usefulness for anyone that camps. I am going to use both in campsites where there are no other people, the underhood light will always be used and if no one is around I'll put the LuminAid under the differential. It is so bright that it would be a nuisance if other people were around. The damned rats love to run back and forth on the driveshaft making loud scratching noises with their claws, they aren't going to like that light!
So far the LuminAid has been blinking for 62 1/2 hours and I think it might just be starting to get a little dimmer. Once this test is over I am going to recharge and see how long it last on the lowest setting.
brownheron
corvus ossifragus
A few cars back I had a very sporty Audi RS7+ (600HP, 190 mph) that I bought one-year old. When I opened the hood to look at the engine, there were these white cloths wrapped over a bunch of hoses. I started freaking out with the sales guy wondering WTF was going on and one of the techs came over and pulled them off, then he smelled them?
You guessed it... Bounce dryer sheets. Last thing I expected under the hood of that rig...
JayB
Steelhead
Great thread.
I opted for convenience over ingenuity so just ordered something off of Amazon for $30. Combines flashing lights, ultrasonic sounds (no idea if that actually has any effect on rodents), hard-wiring to the battery, auto switch off when battery voltage drops to ~10.5, and manual on-off switch.
Was a bit leery of the hard-wiring option, but seems unlikely that it'd be an issue if just parked for a few days, and I always carry a fully-charged lithium jumper-battery in my truck.
Amazon product ASIN B07LCKBGY8
I opted for convenience over ingenuity so just ordered something off of Amazon for $30. Combines flashing lights, ultrasonic sounds (no idea if that actually has any effect on rodents), hard-wiring to the battery, auto switch off when battery voltage drops to ~10.5, and manual on-off switch.
Was a bit leery of the hard-wiring option, but seems unlikely that it'd be an issue if just parked for a few days, and I always carry a fully-charged lithium jumper-battery in my truck.
Amazon product ASIN B07LCKBGY8
Rodents and camping are a bad combination. The first time I went to Yosemite, people died from hantavirus. Be safe, out there!
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Like JayB, I put these rodent repelling devices in both my truck and Jeep after a few incidents - Amazon product ASIN B07LCKBGY8
Both vehicles are parked outside most of the time, but the Jeep gets to come in once in a while when I clean up that side of the garage. The final straw was finding a chipmunk in my garage that clearly hitched a ride. There was a big nest under the engine cover, a chewed wiring harness, and an airbox being used as a toilet. The chewed wiring was right next to the harness, which made it impossible to spice a new piece in without undoing a significant amount of loom and de-pinning the harness. Only a few strands of copper were damaged, so I twisted it up with a little extra wire wrapped around it and soldered it, then painted the repair with liquid electrical tape. So far, so good a year and a bit later. The smell was the worst part. Even after thoroughly cleaning the airbox with everything imaginable, the smell when the engine compartment got warm lingered for months.
Honda makes a tape that's infused with capsaicin that I started trying to wrap things with, but it was a hassle to wrap and get to stick in tight quarters. I gave up on that, but it's probably a good idea and I may re-attempt it at some point.
Both vehicles are parked outside most of the time, but the Jeep gets to come in once in a while when I clean up that side of the garage. The final straw was finding a chipmunk in my garage that clearly hitched a ride. There was a big nest under the engine cover, a chewed wiring harness, and an airbox being used as a toilet. The chewed wiring was right next to the harness, which made it impossible to spice a new piece in without undoing a significant amount of loom and de-pinning the harness. Only a few strands of copper were damaged, so I twisted it up with a little extra wire wrapped around it and soldered it, then painted the repair with liquid electrical tape. So far, so good a year and a bit later. The smell was the worst part. Even after thoroughly cleaning the airbox with everything imaginable, the smell when the engine compartment got warm lingered for months.
Honda makes a tape that's infused with capsaicin that I started trying to wrap things with, but it was a hassle to wrap and get to stick in tight quarters. I gave up on that, but it's probably a good idea and I may re-attempt it at some point.
