Those dirty RATS

ctwo

ctwo

Merely Rhetorical
Literally, rats!

They took residence under the hood and found a buffet of plastic wiring harnesses with sweet copper or tin centers. They must have loved it because the harnesses are chewed to stubble.

Now I get to test out some of Shawn Woods DIY traps. I think I'm favoring the ones that run off of house mains. I might get creative with a step-up transformer or the propane weed burner.
 

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mrzuzzo

mrzuzzo

Well-known member
It's because the wiring in cars uses soy for insulation so it's extra tasty for rats. I recommend putting a noisemaker under the hood.
 
R3DS!X

R3DS!X

Whatever that means
ctwo said:
Literally, rats!

They took residence under the hood and found a buffet of plastic wiring harnesses with sweet copper or tin centers. They must have loved it because the harnesses are chewed to stubble.

Now I get to test out some of Shawn Woods DIY traps. I think I'm favoring the ones that run off of house mains. I might get creative with a step-up transformer or the propane weed burner.
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I love mouse trap Monday! that dude seems so chill.
 
ctwo

ctwo

Merely Rhetorical
Maybe if I pee on the engine they'll go away... :laughing

And for Christs sakes, I'm gonna have to tell my neighbor if their cats are gonna shit in my back yard, the LEAST they could do is get rid of the RATS!
 

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TheRobSJ

TheRobSJ

Großer Mechaniker
Jalopyshoppe said:
Honda sells wire wrap laced with capsaicin. The soy wrap in many of thier cars resulted in a TSB.
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Had a roll of that in my toolbox. It was grey with a picture of a mouse on it. Most common thing the rodents went for was the knock sensor sub wire harness. The replacements had the new grey tape on it already. I’ve had cars come back that the rodent apparently didn’t care and still ate through the new stuff too.
 
TheRobSJ

TheRobSJ

Großer Mechaniker
ctwo said:
Maybe if I pee on the engine they'll go away... :laughing
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You’re not far off actually. Not your pee though. Cat pee would be more like it, but since that’s a bit ridiculous to try and get a cat to pee under your hood, try this instead.

Get some cotton balls. Soak them with ammonia (which smells like cat pee). When they dry, they should still have a faint ammonia smell to them. Stratified ally place the cotton balls under the hood. Nowhere near moving parts or hot exhaust, but you should still be able to find enough places

Also if you park in a garage or covered parking of some kind, pour a trail of ammonia all around where the car is parked. The latent smell will create a fit of a rodent force field.
 
DannoXYZ

DannoXYZ

Well-known member
I find electrocuting them gives a funny taste. Better to whack them with something.
 
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ctwo

ctwo

Merely Rhetorical
I don't know if I'm going to be able to fix this. They chewed it off at the connector so I'd have to do some surgery to expose some wire bits. Toyo lists two engine harnesses, $1800 and $3500. I can't tell which one but either way... Good thing I'm a master solderer.
 
berth

berth

Well-known member
Mice got in to my friends Porsche.

$40,000 for the wiring harness and work.

Insurance covered it, might want to check with yours.
 
ctwo

ctwo

Merely Rhetorical
They might and may be worth it to have the work done. I think I went with a $1k deductible. But then I have a claim and rates will go up, and for any new policies I try to sign in the future, even with other companies, even if homeowner's... I'm happy to take my lumps for my own doings, and I guess I'm the dumbass for leaving my car sitting outside for months without checking on it.
 
Ducky_Fresh

Ducky_Fresh

Treasure Hunter
A rat or squirrel chewed in to the fluid reservoir in my chevy tahoe. Big hole that made the windshield wiper fluid all drain out. I went to pour the new stuff in when it was low, noticed a big puddle on the ground and thought "WTF".

Reminds me, still need to swap that out! :p
 
Climber

Climber

Well-known member
Ducky_Fresh said:
A rat or squirrel chewed in to the fluid reservoir in my chevy tahoe. Big hole that made the windshield wiper fluid all drain out. I went to pour the new stuff in when it was low, noticed a big puddle on the ground and thought "WTF".

Reminds me, still need to swap that out! :p
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JB weld would fix that hole if it's not too huge.
 
westie

westie

Its Dethklok!
RE: urine. I had a deer problem and was recommended to use urine. I used my own. I still had a deer problem and my yard smelled like piss. Try something else.
 
DannoXYZ

DannoXYZ

Well-known member
Needs to be their predator's urine. You can get bobcat or mt.lion urine in little squirt bottles. Or as mentioned, squeeze local cat.
 
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