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Mice did a number on my new tractor

So against what I had heard or was warned about, I covered my tractor with a tarp over the winter. $1600 of damage later, I would like to prevent. It is sitting in the grass at our vacant land. The tractor guy said to spread moth balls around it. He killed a big rat when he was hooking it back up after being delivered from the shop. I will put it in storage this winter but any ideas to keep it mouse free for the summer?

I had a similar issue with a riding mower. I was told to get the stinkiest fragrant dryer sheets and put them under the hood where the mice damaged it before. I put them in and old pair of hose and stored it for the winter. I did not have any damage when I went to use it this year. I am curious to see what others may suggest. Might try all of them!

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I would assume thats the idea behind the moth balls.

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Peppermint oil, too. Something dug a huge hole near the foundation of our house. Unable to source mothballs in a hurry, I unleashed the full might of the Doterra my mom is always gifting me into said hole. Peppermint & some tea tree oil for extra olfactory ompph. It was so strong you could smell Peppermint in the cellar. Which was unnerving. Whatever dug the hole was big enough to tunnel under the foundation clear into the cellar. :scream: Whatever it was, it vacated!

Try it all. Throw everything at it!

Eta: Some people park cars they don"t use regularly in a puddle as a last resort. Not very practical. Wouldn’t work when it’s cold, either.

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The peppermint needs to be an “essential” oil, to be effective. I shared this tip with friends on a farm group, telling how I had purchased peppermint oil FLAVORING to use. They told me (kindly) my repellent would not work with this wrong type of oil. It did work to flavor a lot of taffy though, so it was not a wasted purchase. Good luck what your new tractot.

Just want to chime in and say that even peppermint essential oil is not always effective. I had the misfortune of getting mice in my car (storing alfalfa pellets in the trunk may have had something to do with it :rofl:), and peppermint essential oil did not deter them from repeat visits one bit.

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Oh, definitely. I’ve not had great luck when I’ve soaked cotton balls with it to use indoors, for example. Dumping 3/4 of the bottle into the hole was apparently offensive to whatever was digging, though! :rofl:

Eta: *I * hate the smell of peppermint oil, too! Lol. Used it in the cabinets to deter sugar ants recently. Hated life until the stench subsided. The ants were totally unaffected. Nothing makes a dent in their populations save Toro baits.

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It’s actually a violation of federal law to use moth balls in that manner. They’re really very toxic–do you want to be spreading that sort of toxicity over your property??

If the tractor isn’t being used over the winter, put it in storage. It’s just not that expensive. Less than paying to repair it. For summer, keep it off the grass. Put down stall mats under it, even. Keep the grass mowed short near by. Just USING it will go a long way to making it an unattractive home.

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Stinky dryer sheets in the boats, in the convertible, in the camper when they all get put up for a Michigan winter. The stinkier, the better, the cheapest ones you can find at a dollar store.

They go under mattresses and cushions, in glove compartments, engine compartments, on top of tires…everywhere mice may run up and get into somewhere they shouldn’t.

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Are storage places rodent free?

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Even cranking it and letting it run regularly seems like it should be helpful.

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If only the thing that chewed the wires on my car, that lives in my garage and is driven pretty much daily (might sit one weekend day once a month).

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We’ve only had problems with vehicles that sat too long. Particularly when we lived out at the beach. Nothing is pest proof though. We had squirrels chew and damage electrical lines to the point of shorting out half the lights in the house.

After paying $11,545, before insurance covered $5,600 as their part, to have the wiring harnesses replaced on my truck from squirrel damage, I bought several T3-R Repellers. One for every vehicle parked outdoors, including my horse trailer. One year later things are fine so far….

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I think I may have learned this on COTH ages ago. Spray the wires you’re worried about with light motor/ lubricating oil. It won’t hurt the wiring and the rotten chewers don’t like the taste. We have our tractors in an old garage with several bays (mostly dirt floors, and lots of access holes for critters). We keep hoods open and spray wiring harnesses with light oil. They would go to town on our boat when it was stored all winter. I can try to find an old can of what we used tomorrow. It might work with any lightweight motor oil for all I know.

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I’ve had good luck with Fresh Cab repellent (and it smells wonderful) Amazon.com : Fresh Cab Botanical Rodent Repellent - Environmentally Friendly, Keeps Mice Out, 4 Scent Pouches : Garden & Outdoor