Rodent damage - any ideas or tricks to prevent?

[REM]

You may want to try an electronic rodent repellent similar to this:

https://a.co/d/43QGl4Q

I have one of these in each vehicle that stays outside.

Don't waste your money, these are snake oil

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[Friday]

Get a roll of this. Honda made this specifically because the soy based plastic is delicious to vermin. Cheap compared to the continued damage to wiring on an expensive vehicle.
https://www.collegehillshonda.com/product/4019-2317.html

Some believe peppermint oil is a deterrent.
https://www.orkin.com/ask-orkin/peppermint-oil-pest-control

Some RVers use led rope lights to deter vermin
https://www.bluecompassrv.com/blog/rv-care-keep-mice-out-of-your-rv-with-led-lights/

The under the hood flashing ultrasonic doohickeys to not work.

If you have any fruit bearing or edible vegetation near your parking spot, get rid of it; or move your parking spot. That brings the vermin into the area and then they explore from there.

Local cats are good too. But most people don't like domestic cats outdoors and feral cats are a problem with overpopulation. If there's "cat people" doing TNR (trap neuter release) programs in your area, you may have resident cats in the area that could help keep vermin population down. That's a whole nother issue though.

 

[Friday]

I forgot to mention, a healthy population of rat snacks, gopher snakes in your area would be helpful too. ???

 

[TickTock]

RV owners keep rope lights on the ground under their RVs to discourage them. Along the lines of removing hiding places. I've found bucket traps to be quite effective, too.

 

[dw321]

My local service center discovered why my front camera stopped working. The evidence points to rodents chewing up some wires, plastic, and insulation behind the front bumper and frunk area. They must really like Tesla plastic/rubber for some reason. Any ideas/tricks to help protect from rodents going forward?

I use Rid A Rat, the battery model. I Change the battery once a year. Have them under my truck, wifes car and my travel trailer.Do they work.. Can't prove it but no issues with mice for 4 years

 

[Boo23]

As a few have mentioned get a cat that sleeps in the garage. For years I would trap 10-20 mice in the garage every year, in 2018 a cat adopted us, I didn’t remove the traps but there hasn’t been one mouse in the traps for 6 years they don’t come in the garage anymore because they can smell her.
On duty!

 

[MoePoulin]

My local service center discovered why my front camera stopped working. The evidence points to rodents chewing up some wires, plastic, and insulation behind the front bumper and frunk area. They must really like Tesla plastic/rubber for some reason. Any ideas/tricks to help protect from rodents going forward?

I've had rodent issues with my snowmobiles, they like to chew wires. I don't know if the scent would enter the truck cabin but I have eliminated the issue with moth balls. They do not like the scent and I have not had any issues in the last 5 years.

 

[brur]

Why is your bumper damaged here?

a neighbor encircles his truck with a ring of white string lights on the concrete driveway. maybe a little awkward but I think it works

 

[Gogster2k]

Try placing a soap bar called Irish Spring inside behind the Frunk cover or around inside the garage to keep the critters out. Smelly but does the job. Putting the soap bars out in the yard works too. Just keep them out of reach from pets.

 

[roadrunner32]

My local service center discovered why my front camera stopped working. The evidence points to rodents chewing up some wires, plastic, and insulation behind the front bumper and frunk area. They must really like Tesla plastic/rubber for some reason. Any ideas/tricks to help protect from rodents going forward?

1. No food, or food wrappers in garage in or around the car (I see trash cans in your garage)
2. Keep the garage lights on overnight, all the time.
3. keep a radio on overnight. talk radio is good
4. A flashing light and sound rodent device is placed near the front of the car.
5. A gallon jug of Peppermint Spray is good to use. spray under the front of the car every night.
6. Do not bait rat traps in the garage. They attract rats and usually don't work.
7. A cat would work best. Grandpa had one but one cold night "Tommy" climbed up in the engine compartment near the fan and that was the last of "Tommy".

 

[Leifmb]

You may want to try an electronic rodent repellent similar to this:

https://a.co/d/43QGl4Q

I have one of these in each vehicle that stays outside.

Just make sure you find a 12V source on that one!!!

 

[roadrunner32]

Try placing a soap bar called Irish Spring inside behind the Frunk cover or around inside the garage to keep the critters out. Smelly but does the job. Putting the soap bars out in the yard works too. Just keep them out of reach from pets.

I never did find the smelling dead rat but I did find the soap bar with rat teeth marks on it along with bird seed that it had carried into the front of the car. don't let anyone tell you that its a problem peculiar to Teslas. It is the wiring in any car that attracts them.

 

[TorqMonstr]

In my shop we deal with rodent damage all the time. Our latest defense recommendation doesn’t smell ? good but it’s effective and that is to deploy “Fox Urine”. This can be sprayed on the vehicle and around your property where the vehicle is parked.

 

[M0unt41nm4n]

Ahhh rodent damage... have the same issues (not with the CT yet thank goodness). Rodents have a strong affinity to vehicles because they are warm, they are dark, and they ar fairly safe. So mice LOVE to nest in them. They like the wires because most manufacturers now use soy in the insulation. There are lawsuits going on with auto manufacturers due to the use of that. Rodents can do a shit load of damage. I had one mouse do one $2K in wiring damage to a Toyota Highlander I once had.

When I moved to Durango we had a serious pack rat problem (much worse than mice). On the 3rd day of my new F150 Platinum, I opened the hood and a pack rat already started nesting and chewing up the engine cover that was made of foam. This was war.

I put traps loaded with poison all around the vehicles. I put snap traps as well and built a bucket traps (Google that.. they are easy to make and they work really good). I must have killed nearly 40 mice. It took a couple of weeks and they are all gone now. But you have to keep it up. They will come back if you don't have a continuous plan to take them out. Thats where the poison does its job.

I agree with those who have cats. I have a little kitty that is about 6 months old, but the vet and wife said, not until she is 1 year old (I don't get why) can she not be outside. My wife probably will never let the kitty outside on her own, so I have given up on that one.

 

[TheEternalShore]

I keep a small block of d-CON under both my cars in my garage. Works perfectly. Be careful if you have pets. That stuff obviously tastes good and dogs will eat it and die. You could even install a block of decon inside the workings of the vehicle. I did that with a mini excavator I have after discovering a mouse living in it. Works. They can’t resist the stuff.

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