If you park your RV next to your house or in a detached building over the winter, you may have problems with rodents looking for shelter and food. Rats are a serious nuisance pest for RVs since the motorhomes stay parked and vacant for several months at a time. Rodents can do a lot of damage over the winter if you don't find a way to keep the pests away. Here are some ideas for keeping your RV safe from mice and rats.
Close Gaps Around And Under The RV
Small mice can get in tiny gaps, so be meticulous about sealing everything you find. Use caulk for permanent seals and steel wool for openings like the exhaust that you'll want to open back up in the spring. Rodents are experts at gnawing, so they may still find their way inside if you don't take extra measures along with sealing gaps.
Keep Weeds Trimmed
If you're parking the RV in the grass near your home, trim the grass, or put down gravel so rodents can't hide in weeds and tall grass as they sneak toward your RV. Keep stacks of wood and other clutter away from the area so mice and rats aren't attracted and have places to hide.
You might even want to put up a metal perimeter fence around the bottom of your RV so rodents can't get close to the underside. If the rodents get under your RV, they can work on gnawing and come and go without being noticed.
Try Repellents
You may not want to rely on repellents since they may not be as effective as other things like poison and traps, but they can't hurt and might work. Common repellents include peppermint and cedar. Both have pleasant aromas so your RV will smell good when using them. You also want to avoid aromas that attract rats, so remove all food from your RV and don't snack in or near your RV while it's in storage.
Get Professional Treatments
If you suspect your property has rats or mice and you're worried about your RV, call a pest control company for help. Eliminating rodents in your house and on your property helps keep the pests out of your RV too. Professional pest control treatments not only protect against rodents, they can keep destructive insects out of your RV as well.
An RV is a big investment so you don't want rodents chewing on the upholstery or wiring and causing damage and stinking up your RV. With proper pest control measures, your RV will still be in good shape when it's time to take your first trip in the spring.
To learn more, reach out to a company with rodent control services such as Xtermco Inc.
When you come upon an ant in your home, what do you do? Maybe you kill that one ant and then set some traps to catch any others that come with it. Perhaps you spray some insecticides along the baseboards or in other places where ants tend to congregate. Sometimes these measures might take care of the problem, but other times they don't. If ants continue to be an issue, you'll need to call a pest control company. The same goes if you are dealing with roaches, mice, or some other pest. Learn more about pest control and what these companies do as you explore this website.