Rat damage to cars | Protection, solutions & advice

inder_s1 · 7th October 2008, 17:06

Raccoon,

You are right that they carry it to places. In my case , they carried it righ to the Engine Bay. I chk the car daily by opening the bonnet and found 2 half eaten pieces out of 4 cakes that I had laid at certain points.

Engine bay seems to be their fav spot. Found cakes one time in Swift Engine Bay and other in Bimmers Engine bay. Imagine my state.

1 Bandicoot size of a giant squirrel ..roaming around the engine. Man...

Raccoon · 7th October 2008, 17:52

Yes Inder... and the thought of those half eaten cakes coming in the proximity of some cat or dog or raccoon

etc., gives me the creeps!

Btw, the devils that were successfully wiped out by my Mortein were also fairly large sized ones... much bigger than the average squirrel!

Another solution you desperate guys could try out - I saw some glue sheets at a supermarket last week. The pack mentioned that they were good for catching all kinda creepy crawlies - roaches, lizards, rats, etc. All that the thing needs to do is try and walk across it... and you got one (or more) properly glued vermin for your disposal...

Anybody tried it?

abhinav.gupta88 · 7th October 2008, 19:09

My vRs's right fendor indicator wire was eaten away by the rat
and the engine bay assumed to be a pot ( if you know what i mean)

archat68 · 7th October 2008, 19:17

Try not to touch Mortein rat kill by hand - i have seen that once touched the rats don't eat them - they can smell human touch i suppose. There are zinc Phosphide rat poisons available which are very cheap and available as powder - you have to sprinkle it over some food which rats like - they are much effective I think - but rats which eats Mortein supposed to die outside your house.

Raccoon · 8th October 2008, 01:17

Quote:

Try not to touch Mortein rat kill by hand - i have seen that once touched the rats don't eat them

Hmmm?? I doubt if they are so fussy about food they eat! But anyway, if there is any element of truth in it, I'v never handled the Mortein cakes I used, with my hands.

HappyWheels · 8th October 2008, 10:59

I have found the mortein rat 'cake' effective.

Had an issue with a team of rats making feast on my car's wiring. Few 'cakes' and stinging mornings later, all of them were done for. Last 1 year, no cakes, no rats and wirings are fine!

Another things that I do is place a cloth in the engine bay and spray some dettol on it before packing for the night. These guys hate the smell of dettol. And the cloth is tight rolled and the dettol is injected using s syringe; this is to make sure that dettol does not evaporate quickly. This, I used to do, when doing the cake treatement. Did not want them to die in the engine compartment!

wanderernomad · 8th October 2008, 13:37

I had a problem and i baited with a trap. Took 3 days but finally caught the rascal yesterday. Am still keeping the trap to see if there are more of them.

muralisk · 8th October 2008, 13:51

I use the rat poison powder (not too sure about the brand), mixed with atta and onion (so that the rats cannot smell the poison) to keep them away. Also, got to know from one of my friend that boric acid powder also keep rats away. I haven't yet tried it though.

VJ_MAVRICK · 8th October 2008, 13:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by muralisk

I use the rat poison powder (not too sure about the brand), mixed with atta and onion (so that the rats cannot smell the poison) to keep them away. Also, got to know from one of my friend that boric acid powder also keep rats away. I haven't yet tried it though.

Wow Murali ! That is quite a main course meal for the little fellow

. I still maintain and suggest people to go ahead and try by placing Tobacco Pouches @ the various entry points for the intruders

.

muralisk · 8th October 2008, 14:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by VJ_MAVRICK

Wow Murali ! That is quite a main course meal for the little fellow

. I still maintain and suggest people to go ahead and try by placing Tobacco Pouches @ the various entry points for the intruders

.

When the shop keeper had suggested the onion part, I was quite surprised and asked him why. He said that they are smart and can smell poison. And sure, I will try tobacco pouches as well.

Srini76 · 8th October 2008, 14:07

Hey guys,

I will try this for sure, tobacco pouches !! are we referring to the pouch we get at the smaller stores outside town or will emptying a few cigarettes under the carpet also help and can be vacuumed later. I had this problems during the rains and the rat had a party in the car since the car is not used when I am not in India !!!

I noticed someone asking about electronic cigarettes, a good brand is Gamucci but the refils are hard to find in the Middle East. The Govt has banned those if i am not wrong !!

VJ_MAVRICK · 8th October 2008, 14:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Srini76

Hey guys,

I will try this for sure, tobacco pouches !! are we referring to the pouch we get at the smaller stores outside town or will emptying a few cigarettes under the carpet also help and can be vacuumed later. I had this problems during the rains and the rat had a party in the car since the car is not used when I am not in India !!!

I noticed someone asking about electronic cigarettes, a good brand is Gamucci but the refils are hard to find in the Middle East. The Govt has banned those if i am not wrong !!

Srini! Thes pouches i am referring to are the ones available in smaller stores (read as pan shops) outside town and in Telugu they are referred to as "CHHUTTA" . These are basically tobacco leaves and have quite a pungent smell to ward off the little intruders. Definitely not the Stylish Stamina Sticks or so called Cigarettes when i meant Tobacco Pouches

. You can find these on the outskirts of a town with most of the village population love these for a smoke.

gpa · 9th October 2008, 23:47

Buy a can of WD40 and spray it in and around your engine bay. Most rodents like rats, cockroaches find the smell very offensive and will stay away from your car. I used the same when I had rats feasting on the fuel lines of my M 800

Spraying WD40 also serves a dual purpose of acting a water repellent.

Try it, it definitely works

Cheers,

gpa

Vivek.Martin · 10th October 2008, 08:48

Ok...stupid question...can the WD 40 be sprayed inside the car as well??

gpa · 10th October 2008, 10:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vivek.Martin

Ok...stupid question...can the WD 40 be sprayed inside the car as well??

Absolutely, it can be sprayed if you don't mind the mild smell that emnates from it. Like I mentioned rats and other rodents hate this smell and will not mistake your car's wires for food!

Cheers,

gpa

7th October 2008, 17:06	#166
inder_s1 BHPian Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 238 Thanked: 38 Times View My Garage	Raccoon, You are right that they carry it to places. In my case , they carried it righ to the Engine Bay. I chk the car daily by opening the bonnet and found 2 half eaten pieces out of 4 cakes that I had laid at certain points. Engine bay seems to be their fav spot. Found cakes one time in Swift Engine Bay and other in Bimmers Engine bay. Imagine my state. 1 Bandicoot size of a giant squirrel ..roaming around the engine. Man...
	() Thanks

7th October 2008, 17:52	#167
Raccoon Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Poona Posts: 1,851 Thanked: 116 Times	Yes Inder... and the thought of those half eaten cakes coming in the proximity of some cat or dog or raccoon etc., gives me the creeps! Btw, the devils that were successfully wiped out by my Mortein were also fairly large sized ones... much bigger than the average squirrel! Another solution you desperate guys could try out - I saw some glue sheets at a supermarket last week. The pack mentioned that they were good for catching all kinda creepy crawlies - roaches, lizards, rats, etc. All that the thing needs to do is try and walk across it... and you got one (or more) properly glued vermin for your disposal... Anybody tried it? Last edited by Raccoon : 7th October 2008 at 17:55.
	() Thanks

7th October 2008, 19:09	#168
abhinav.gupta88 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Delhi , India Posts: 4,092 Thanked: 325 Times View My Garage	My vRs's right fendor indicator wire was eaten away by the rat and the engine bay assumed to be a pot ( if you know what i mean)
	() Thanks

7th October 2008, 19:17	#169
archat68 BHPian Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Kolkata Posts: 897 Thanked: 619 Times	Try not to touch Mortein rat kill by hand - i have seen that once touched the rats don't eat them - they can smell human touch i suppose. There are zinc Phosphide rat poisons available which are very cheap and available as powder - you have to sprinkle it over some food which rats like - they are much effective I think - but rats which eats Mortein supposed to die outside your house.
	() Thanks

8th October 2008, 10:59	#171
HappyWheels Senior - BHPian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 4,106 Thanked: 537 Times	I have found the mortein rat 'cake' effective. Had an issue with a team of rats making feast on my car's wiring. Few 'cakes' and stinging mornings later, all of them were done for. Last 1 year, no cakes, no rats and wirings are fine! Another things that I do is place a cloth in the engine bay and spray some dettol on it before packing for the night. These guys hate the smell of dettol. And the cloth is tight rolled and the dettol is injected using s syringe; this is to make sure that dettol does not evaporate quickly. This, I used to do, when doing the cake treatement. Did not want them to die in the engine compartment!
	(2) Thanks

8th October 2008, 13:37	#172
wanderernomad Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Chandigarh Posts: 2,534 Thanked: 1,276 Times View My Garage	I had a problem and i baited with a trap. Took 3 days but finally caught the rascal yesterday. Am still keeping the trap to see if there are more of them.
	() Thanks

8th October 2008, 13:51	#173
muralisk BHPian Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Hyderabad, Bangalore Posts: 711 Thanked: 13 Times View My Garage	I use the rat poison powder (not too sure about the brand), mixed with atta and onion (so that the rats cannot smell the poison) to keep them away. Also, got to know from one of my friend that boric acid powder also keep rats away. I haven't yet tried it though.
	() Thanks

8th October 2008, 14:07	#176
Srini76 BHPian Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Chennai, India Posts: 138 Thanked: 106 Times View My Garage	Hey guys, I will try this for sure, tobacco pouches !! are we referring to the pouch we get at the smaller stores outside town or will emptying a few cigarettes under the carpet also help and can be vacuumed later. I had this problems during the rains and the rat had a party in the car since the car is not used when I am not in India !!! I noticed someone asking about electronic cigarettes, a good brand is Gamucci but the refils are hard to find in the Middle East. The Govt has banned those if i am not wrong !!
	() Thanks

9th October 2008, 23:47	#178
gpa Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Bangalore Posts: 1,789 Thanked: 340 Times	Use WD40 to keep rats at bay Buy a can of WD40 and spray it in and around your engine bay. Most rodents like rats, cockroaches find the smell very offensive and will stay away from your car. I used the same when I had rats feasting on the fuel lines of my M 800 Spraying WD40 also serves a dual purpose of acting a water repellent. Try it, it definitely works Cheers, gpa
	() Thanks

10th October 2008, 08:48	#179
Vivek.Martin BHPian Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Garden (Garbage?) City Posts: 109 Thanked: 0 Times	Ok...stupid question...can the WD 40 be sprayed inside the car as well??
	() Thanks