Mice in 2016 Thor 24.1 Axis E350 chassis

[Dick Rohde]

Has anyone discovered where mice get into the 2016 Thor AXIS 24.1 RV models? I use a 5-gallon Antifreeze bucket trap and got 5 of the vermine this past winter. Last year I found 3 dead mice at the bottom of the table tubes behind the couch! Thanks in advance.

[Bob Denman]

Where,can't rhey get in?
They have nothing better to do all day than search for openings. If it's the size of a nickel: they'll get in.

[Dick Rohde]

This I know....on my old fifth wheel I pulled 26 out of the pail one winter.
I'm searching for those nickel size holes.

[Bob Denman]

. 26!?!
Dude: you are running one very effective trap-line! X

[paulwadley]

A good house cat will take care of those little devils.


Paul

[Lt Keefer]

Predators and their urine will eliminate vermin in the camper.

[Bob Denman]

We use cotton balls soaked in peppermint oil: it smells better!

[Dick Rohde]

The cat idea doesn't work up here in Minnesota when it's-20° but thanks for the idea.

[Dick Rohde]

I'll try the peppermint oil . Thanks

[Dick Rohde]

No money in mouse pelts And they are hard to process

[Bob Denman]

But if you get enough of them: they'd make a nice, soft pair of gloves...

[Scubawise]

How do you make a Antifreeze bucket trap?

Pictures

[kwplot34]

Turn on the lights inside the RV while it is dark outside then crawl underneath and start looking for light, helps to have someone with a very bright flashlight shinning under and behind cabinets. Also check all of your storage bays, if they can get in there they can get inside the unit.

[Dick Rohde]

I'll try the bright light solution. Thanks

[Dick Rohde]

Take a plastic 5 g pail, cross drill holes under the rim to shove a wood dowel through, drill holes in the top and bottom of a water bottle and thread the bottle with the dowel across the top of the bucket. The bottle needs to turn freely around. Spread some peanut butter around the water bottle. Put antifreeze in the bucket and afix a little ramp up to the edge of the bucket. The mice crawl up the ramp, jump onto the bottle...it turns and they fall down into the bucket and drown. About 6" deep is plenty deep. Use RV Antifreeze if there's a danger of children or pets getting into it. Regular Antifreeze pickles them and they don't smell. Works really well. I use water in my heated garage and glycol out in the RV.

[kwplot34]

The bucket trap works good. I keep 2 mouse traps in the RV called Tin Cat, mice get in but can't get out, and chocolate chip cookie seems to work very well for bait. Caught one in the last RV and 2 in the new RV over the winter, but I believe I found the hole they got in through, but just like the past RV's I keep the traps in there just in case they find a new way in.

[Pete'sMH]

Originally Posted by Bob Denman

But if you get enough of them: they'd make a nice, soft pair of gloves...

What’s the going price for mouse plews?

[Bob Denman]

Originally Posted by Pete'sMH

What’s the going price for mouse plews?

If you have to,ask: you can't afford them.

[dhwort]

We have 2015 palazzo and also have mice. I buy a rodent repellent from tractor supply and spray it all around it on the ground. What is the trap you used?

[morningglory]

I understand why you are looking for openings - mice leave a scent trail that other mice can follow once they establish a path into your rig, so even if you catch all the mice today, you will still have a neon sign welcoming a new generation next week. (btw - checked this information and found a university study that confirmed it.

For my 2014 Thor Axis 24.1, the biggest mouse door was somewhere under the sink... can't remember exactly, but the manufacturer did a horsecrap job of sealing holes. Some where not completely filled, and some just had the foamed in sealant that seems to encourage mice to chomp on it. I filled gaps with steel wool and then foamed or siliconed around it. They don't like the little wirey stuff. After storing for our first season, we had to do a full cleaning and caught a bunch... then found we kept catching them until I did the fill every hole possible patrol.

We still have to worry about packrats, now that we store the rig in the desert all winter. Even if they don't find a way into the rig, they can chew on the wiring an cause considerable damage. They actually seem to like chewing on wiring - like it sharpens their teeth or something.

We use a combination of a product called Mouse Proof - buy it in big jugs and my wife makes lots of cheesecloth little bags with twist ties so we can put it in every compartment and toss around the rig... and can refill them as needed. I also take some plastic coffee cans and toss in a rock and some of the mouse pruff smelly stuff and punch holes in the lids... and set them around under the rig in the engine area and under the sink/kitchen area that still might be a problem area. Finally, I surround the rig with solar lights that shine underneath.

None of these are 100% effective, but since we are storing where there are other rigs during the winter, it is the old story about not having to be able to run faster than the bear, just having to run faster than your buddy. We just make sure that there are other rigs around us more friendly to packrats than ours. This has worked the last 4 years.

In Minnesota in the summer, we also use solar lights to shine underneath. We also leave all cupboards and drawers open - mice like dark spaces... and I put a solar light or two to shine inside the rig as well. Some people also put lights in the engine compartment if wire chewing there is an issue.