Essential oils for repelling mice
6 Home Remedies That Repel Rodents
If you’ve ever dealt with rats or mice in your Pacific Northwest home, you know how unnerving it can be. Rodents may be a common pest all year long, but did you know infestations spike during the fall in Portland, Seattle, and Boise? Fortunately, there are home remedies that repel rodents naturally. Here are 6 home remedies to repel rodents:
Plants
Plants like lavender, elderberry, daffodils, and any type of mint plants are known to repel mice. You could plant some around your home or keep them in pots inside your home. Bay leaves and oak leaves have also been known to deter rodents. You can leave some around your home or put some in sachets and leave them in closets and drawers. This method not only makes your home look and smell nice, but it can help deter rodents.
Ammonia and Vinegar Spray
Another natural rat and mouse repellent is ammonia. These rodents hate the smell of ammonia because it’s similar to a predator’s urine. Fill a spray bottle with 1 cup ammonia and 1 cup vinegar, then mix it. Spray it where you often see rodent activity. Alternatively, you could spray or dip cotton balls with the solution and leave it in these areas, they’ll just need to be replaced after two weeks.
Essential Oils
This method not only helps deter rodents but it also makes your home smell nice in the process. Essential oils that may be helpful in repelling rats and mice include peppermint oil, lemon oil, citronella oil, and eucalyptus oil. You can make an essential oil spray by mixing 2 teaspoons of oil with 1 cup of water or rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle. Then spray it anywhere you see traces of rodents. Like the ammonia spray, you can also use cotton balls. If you choose the spray method, you’ll want to reapply in about a week and if you use cotton balls, replace them after two weeks.
Fill in Holes and Use Barricades
If you notice cracks or holes that a mouse or rat may use to gain access into your home, fill them in with caulk. You can also fill in larger gaps with a mix of caulk and steel wool. Steel wool is a harder material to chew through for these rodents.
Rat and Mouse Traps
If you aren’t seeing success with your natural rodent repellants, you may need to resort to mouse and rat traps. There are traditional snap traps, glue traps, and the more humane option, catch-and-release traps. You’ll want to first identify which type of rodent you’re dealing as a mousetrap is too small for a rat.
If you are dealing with a much bigger rodent infestation, it may be time to call in the experts. PURCOR has been providing pest control services to the Portland, Seattle, and Boise metro areas, and we provide pest control solutions for all types of pests. So contact us or call us today for fast, effective, and affordable pest control services.
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What Natural Scents Will Repel Rodents?
Research has proven that mice are extremely sensitive to scents. Another study that was conducted by Harvard University backed this statement. Mice in some studies have even been trained to detect specific odours. Their efficient sensitivity to scents can also be used to against them since they tend to be repelled from specific smells.
It is important to note that using essential oils as a repellent can be a tricky affair since every situation calls for a different mixture and measurement. And you might have to cope with trial and error in the oils and placement areas to see where it works best. Feel free to call our mice exterminator Toronto services if you need help dealing with mice infestation.
Table of Contents
Peppermint Essential OilThis natural essential oil smells good to humans, it’s refreshing, uplifting and tangy. There are also several ways that you can use peppermint oil. Peppermint oil is popular for addressing some health concerns that affect humans such as allergies, and muscle aches symptoms. Its aroma is known to boost low energy levels and surprisingly, there is another way peppermint oil can be used. To repel mice. Mice find the smell of mint offensive and overwhelming, keeping them away.
To get maximum results, add 20 to 30 drops of peppermint essential oil to a few cotton balls. Place them in strategic areas where you have notice mice activity in or around your home.
ClovesThey are aromatic flower buds that belong to the Syzygium aromaticum, Myrtaceaetree family which have ancient traditional medicinal value. These herbs are used to add flavour to several cuisines around the world and especially in Asia, the MiddleEast, and Africa. Unfortunately, mice do not share the same fascination produced by the scent of cloves as humans. This smell is often overwhelming or distasteful and the essential oil produced from cloves is proven to be irritating to rodents
You can either prepare whole cloves or essential oil. Wrap whole cloves in a cotton cloth. For essential oil, use around 20 to 30 drops on a cotton ball. It is very important that they are placed in strategic places in your home.
Cedarwood oilIt is considered one of the best mice repellents. This is because it contains natural effluvium that is known to irritate mice. It also contains hydrocarbons such as phenols as well as acids that are harmful to mice. Cedar oil is known to cause the respiratory as well as skin irritation problem to mice when they are exposed to certain concentrations.
To yield maximum effects, sprinkle the product directly to a spot you are sure mice frequent. You could also soak cotton balls into the cedarwood oil. It is very important that these cotton balls are strategically placed in areas with mouse activity.
Essential oils are a natural and effective way to deter mice. However, it will take more than a dozen cotton balls every single day to completely chase the mice out of your property. Contacting a professional pest control Toronto service is the most effective method of getting rid of mice in and around your property. Pest control professionals have the industry experience, skill, and know-how to effectively get mice out of your property for good.
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Folk wisdom against mice - Domovod.guru
No matter how great the scientific progress of mankind, including in agriculture, there are problems that still cannot be completely solved. One of them is mice. Over the long years of fighting annoying rodents, people have accumulated a truly extensive arsenal of so-called folk remedies - from household chemicals to aromatic herbs. What is the best way to expel mice?
Contents
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1 Barn without mice
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2 House without mice
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2.1 Fragrant herbs helpers
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2.1.1 Herbs against mice - photo gallery
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2.2 Scented helper oils
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2.2.1 Peppermint against mice
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2.3 Helper spices
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3 Garden without mice
Shed without mice
Non-residential premises are primarily at risk of mouse invasion: warehouses, sheds, the yard of a village house, barns - in a word, all those places where there are no permanent residents, but there is food. nine0003 Root crops are in danger as long as there are mice in the house
Thus, the harm from rodents is obvious: they gnaw holes in walls, earthen floors and boards, and also eat our crops and spoil it, because they do not hesitate to shit right into food bags . And especially dangerous is the fact that mice carry many dangerous parasites and infections, such as leptospirosis and tularemia, for example.
In order to save the harvest, and the premises itself, you need to get rid of the impudent invaders once and for all. One of the most common ways is to repel mice with unpleasant odors. Harsh and strong-smelling household chemicals - the kind that are almost always available either on hand or in the nearest hardware store - are great for this. nine0051 Vinegar, bleach, ammonia, kerosene, gasoline, turpentine, formalin are most often used. The odorous substance is dissolved in water and floors, walls, baseboards, door and window openings are treated with it, furniture is wiped with it, and if mouse holes are found, the liquid is poured inside.
Non-flammable substances - vinegar, ammonia, bleach - can be poured into small containers and placed around the perimeter of the room to make the unpleasant smell stronger. Vinegar is also impregnated with cotton balls, which are laid out in the corners, along the baseboards and next to the mouse holes. Since we are talking about non-residential premises, you can not be afraid of poisoning yourself with toxic fumes, although directly during processing it is still worth protecting your hands and face. Products stored indoors should also be placed in tightly closed chests or containers before the procedure. nine0051 However, the main thing is to observe fire safety, since substances such as turpentine, gasoline and kerosene are very dangerous in themselves due to their combustibility. Do not light an open fire or smoke in the room treated by them, and in very hot weather it is better to completely abandon flammable products.
A house without mice
Smells of household chemicals can actually keep mice away for a long time. However, using them in an apartment and in a country or village house is not a good idea. Not only are these pungent smells unpleasant for humans as well as for mice, the fumes of some - especially formalin, naphthalene, gasoline and kerosene - can have a deplorable effect on the well-being of your household, especially the elderly, children, allergies and pregnant women. Fortunately, there are safer means to deal with gray rodents. nine0003
Fragrant helper herbs
Some plants, quite available in our latitudes, also have specific odors that will make mice retreat from your home. Bundles of such herbs in a dried form are laid out or hung around the house - in the corners, next to doors and windows and under furniture. The most effective in the fight against mice are black root medicinal (aka rat rat), wild rosemary, lavender, peppermint, wormwood and common tansy.
Herbs against mice - photo gallery
- Peppermint is a great mouse killer.
- The sharp camphor smell is not to the liking of gray pests
- Bitter wormwood effectively repels rodents
- Scented boletus will also help drive mice away.
- The rat racer has long been known to man as the best herb for rodents.
- Lavender will decorate your home, flavor the air and protect you from mice.
If you are worried about the cleanliness of floors and furniture, fearing that dry leaves will lull the whole house, you can make a sachet. To do this, dried plants must be cut into small pieces, and then sewn into any clean cloth, thin enough so that the smell of fragrant herbs freely penetrates. Sachets can also be hung and laid out throughout the house. nine0003
In addition to frightening smells, plants can cause other problems for mice. Some housewives advise laying dried burdock and thistle inflorescences in the corners, under furniture, and especially next to mouse holes. The thorns cling to the fur of rodents and cause them severe discomfort - as a result, the pests leave the dangerous house and then bypass it.
The only serious problem you may encounter when working with herbs is allergies. So if you or your family can't tolerate any of the recommended plants, it's best to use other options - or even different ways to repel mice. nine0003
Scented Helper Oils
Another way to get help from scented plants is to use their essential oils. And among the leaders here will be oils of lavender, wild rosemary and peppermint. By itself, essential oil is a very volatile substance and, as a result, quickly evaporates. To consolidate the effect, you need to mix the essential oil with something more resistant. There are several popular options.
- Oil. Any vegetable oil (50 ml) is mixed with essential oil (no more than 20 drops), then window and doorways, baseboards, furniture are wiped with the resulting mixture - in a word, all those places where, according to your assumption, mice may appear. When the smell disappears, you should wipe the "mouse" places again, and if necessary, repeat the procedure later. nine0010
- Water and alcohol. For 400 ml of water and 10 ml of alcohol, no more than 15 drops of essential oil are taken, then the liquid is poured into a spray bottle, shaken and all the same mice-friendly places are treated. After a couple of days, the smell will disappear, and the room will have to be sprayed again, and the treatment should be repeated for a month as the smell disappears.
- Water and soap. There is also an option to wash floors with essential oils. Most housewives add a soapy agent to the water for mopping - in this case, it will help make the mixture more stable, keep the essential oil from evaporating too quickly from the surface. It is simply added to soapy water, and then the floors are washed in a room that needs to be protected from rodents. nine0010
Peppermint oil remains the most popular anti-rodent essential oil and is sometimes mixed with a tincture of the same plant to increase its effectiveness.
Peppermint against mice
Helper spices
Not only plants have a strong, pungent smell, but also something that no kitchen can do without - spices and spices. Bay leaves, cloves and coriander are best deterred mice, so they are advised to put them in cabinets and drawers in the kitchen. nine0052
You can also make a strong decoction of spices and wash kitchen furniture with it. Spices are also suitable for laying them out among food supplies that mice can encroach on, both in the house and in the cellar. By the way, the essential oils of laurel, coriander and cloves can also be used against rodents by mixing them with vegetable oil or with water and alcohol. The resulting mixture needs to process the kitchen and furniture in it.
In a slightly different way, ground hot red pepper can help against mice. Of course, its sharp, pungent smell also repels rodents, but only at first, as it quickly disappears. However, it is supposed not so much to protect the products, but to scatter pepper powder along the walls and near the mouse holes, so that the rodents, firstly, inhale the burning poison (and the pepper is usually ground very finely), and secondly, they get an upset stomach by licking it off their paws. and wool. nine0051 Some craftsmen, however, turn ordinary pepper into a poisonous gas, constructing appliances based on a blowtorch.
A garden without mice
In addition to directly human dwellings and outbuildings, mice attack gardens and kitchen gardens - their minks can often be found under trees, and in beds, and in a flower garden.
Mice burrow under the trees and in the gardenTo start with, to prevent the appearance of rodents on the site, it is worth planting repellent plants around its perimeter, and elderberry and castor bushes work well here. Lilies of the valley, aconite and foxglove can be settled in the flower garden - their roots are poisonous, and mice, having tasted them, will try to bypass the dangerous place. Next to the beds, it is good to plant wormwood, tansy, lavender and cilantro - these plants will also be a good prevention against pests, both rodents and some insects. nine0003
For more information on how to get rid of mice in the garden, read our article - How to deal with mice in the country.
However, if mice have already appeared in the garden and you have found exits from their holes there, it is worth starting to act more radically. And here simple economic means will help us.
- Tar. The most common birch tar - you can buy it at a hardware store or a pharmacy - is good for soaking sawdust, which can then be used as mulch on those beds that are in danger. The passages between the beds should also be covered with sawdust. nine0010
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Carbide. Usually calcium carbide is used for welding, but gardeners have found other uses for it. Small pieces of it are laid in mouse holes and immediately sprinkled with earth on top. Absorbing moisture from the ground, the carbide begins to release acetylene - a poisonous gas - which fills the rodent's hole and makes it flee. The carbide mining left after welding also helps - it is mixed with the ground in the problem areas of the site. nine0003
- Ash. Many country houses are equipped with heating wood stoves - they accumulate ash, which can also be used in the fight against mice. The method of application is very simple: you need to scatter the ashes on the beds, especially around the holes, and in all places where you have seen mice. Rodents run through it and then get skin irritation, as well as mucous membranes - when they begin to lick the ashes from their paws. nine0010
- Household chemicals. All the same sharp, unpleasantly smelling substances that are used to protect outbuildings can also be used on the site. To do this, you need to take pieces of cloth or cotton wool and generously soak them, for example, with gasoline, ammonia, kerosene, formalin or turpentine, and then plug the exits from mouse holes with them and sprinkle with earth on top so that the smell does not disappear too quickly.
Mice, for all their outward harmlessness, are quite dangerous pests, they can cause serious damage to your household and your health. In addition, given that these rodents also reproduce very quickly, it is important to start fighting them immediately after they are discovered. And it turns out that you can get rid of them with the help of the most ordinary home “chemistry” and a front garden with fragrant plants. nine0003
- Author: Lara Lisina
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all plants and essential oils
Mice and rats often choose places next to humans, as they receive from such cohabitation a sufficient amount of food residues and reliable protection from adverse external influences. nineOl000 Conclusions
Rodents are a common problem
People are against such an invasion of uninvited neighbors, who not only cause inconvenience from the presence of stench, feces, noise, damage to things, but also spread dangerous infectious diseases. To combat rodents, ultrasonic traps, poisons, chemical and physical protection, as well as more humane ways to deal with rats are used. This article is devoted to the use of folk methods in the fight against rodents and will tell you what smell repels rats. Animals will simply leave their homes on their own and you will not have to get rid of decaying corpses, which are not always easy to remove from cracks and floors. nine0003
Rodent control in non-residential premises
To eliminate rats from a garage, basement or shed, you need to use poisonous plants or other sources of a pungent odor that is disgusting not only to animals, but also to people. Well proven:
- Burnt rubber;
- Burnt wool;
- Bird down;
- Naphthalene;
- A strong-scented cologne, such as those that were mass-sold in Soviet times;
- Kerosene or diesel fuel. nine0010
A frightening smell in non-residential premises
Naturally, such smells should not be used in rooms or where people stay for a long time, as this is dangerous to health. But if you spend a minimum amount of time indoors, then the use of the listed funds is fully justified.
Rat Repelling Plants
When you don't want to pour stinky chemicals into corners or regularly burn rubber to replace the old one, poisonous plants come to the rescue. The essential oils contained in wild rosemary and hydrocyanic acid in common elderberry for rodents have a strong deterrent effect. nine0003
Rats are intelligent enough to sense danger instinctively. Therefore, they leave dwellings in which there is a threat to their lives.
Read more - Ledum from bedbugs - a method of insect control
An effective plant for repelling rodents is black root. No wonder the people often call him a rat racer. The plant contains poisonous toxins in all organs. Its fruits are strewn with sticky thorns, which are firmly held on the hairline of animals and also carry a serious danger. nine0003
How to use poisonous plants
In order for the plant to repel rodents most effectively, the herbs must be collected in small bunches and dipped in boiling water for half a minute. Such a steaming will help open the cellular reservoirs with poison. After spreading in the room. A similar procedure should be repeated weekly with a large number of rodents or twice a month for the purpose of prevention.
How to protect your apartment with non-poisonous plants
The use of poisonous plants is not recommended. They do not pose a danger to humans if there is no direct contact. However, if you have children or pets, then keeping track of them is extremely problematic, so it’s better not to risk it. Among the non-poisonous there is a fairly wide range of plants that have pleasant and, moreover, medicinal aromas that rats and mice do not like. Let's figure out the smell of which essential oil repels rats? Commonly used herbs include:
- All types of mint;
- Lemon balm;
- Chamomile;
- Oregano officinalis;
- Thyme;
- Wormwood;
- Tansy;
- Feverfew.
Plants to repel rodents
You may be interested - Wormwood from bedbugs - recipes for the destruction of insects in an apartment or house
They are easy to use. It is necessary to collect the plants in bunches and spread them out in the corners and in places where rodents often appear. If you buy the herb from a pharmacy, put the ground mixture into socks or other rag bags. Contents should be replaced periodically. Such use is absolutely not dangerous and will fill your home with meadow scents. You can plant plants in pots, this will green the room and save you from unbearable cohabitants. nine0003
Instead of herbs, you can use essential oils obtained from them. To do this, moisten cotton wool or napkins, plug holes with them. It is important not to overdo it, because the smell of an essential oil is many times stronger - it is a concentrate.
Too much fragrance may cause allergic reactions.
How to drive out rats and mice in a country house
Rodents cause great harm when they settle in the country house. They damage fruit crops, gnaw roots and tubers, and consistently destroy root crops. And here fragrant plant cultures will also come to the rescue. nine0003
Rodent with carrots
Rats do not like phytoncides present in narcissus bulbs. Line the area around the perimeter with polynya, which will create a natural barrier. If you grow coriander in your garden, it will not only enrich your table with fragrant spice, but also drive out mice. Mint grows well in gardens, repels rodents and is a valuable medicinal plant. If you want to grow elderberry or black root, then you should plant them in a place where the admission of children will be excluded. nine0003
During the autumn-winter period, gardeners wrap tree trunks with these herbs to protect them not only from rats and mice, but also from other rodents, such as hares. Don't throw away the tops of the tomatoes. If it is poured into the root areas, this will also protect underground shoots from damage.
It is appropriate to spread the herbs on the floor in the cellar or places for winter storage of vegetables. Wormwood will be the best option, because its smell repels harmful insects.
Read on the topic - How to protect a frame house from rodents
Conclusions
Not everyone keeps cats in summer cottages or in private houses, and not all cats catch mice and rats. The use of modern poisons or traps somehow requires contact with unpleasant animals. Mousetraps need to be cleaned of corpses, and after the poison, it is also necessary to get rid of dead animals. Not many people like it. It is much easier to figure out what smell repels rats and mice and use herbs.