Mouse hole in 291RSTS

[GHen]

Just picked up our new 2017 291RSTS and love it, but so did some mice. In the Island there is a hole in the floor where the drain, water and power enter the RV. It appears to be just above the kitchen gray water tank. I think I could look down and see the tank. A couple mice came up through the hole and dropped down into the garbage can and luckily couldn't get back out. Had some cleaning to do, packed the hole with steel wool and the covered the hole with some chipboard to prevent the steel from being pushed up. maybe even some sprayfoam would work, buts definitely an open door for pests. All should be good now.

[richie t]

Just had a similar incident. Had dog biscuits stored in a Tupperware container under the center island. After returbing

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[richie t]

Originally Posted by richie t

Just had a similar incident. Had dog biscuits stored in a Tupperware container under the center island. After returbing

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After returning from a trip the container was chewed. Also the paper label on disinfectant wipes. Put normal glue traps under there and it just left droppings on the pad. When to Tractor Supply and got bigger ones that would trap a rat. Next morning I had a field mouse sticking to it. No more problems.

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[Earthmover]

I dont like mice, fortunately i havent had that problem...yet.

[Isaacs]

I like the steel wool idea. The next mouse is going to have rusty teeth!

[goducks]

Spray foam? I use it to plug any of the penetrations where cold are can leak in.

[GHen]

I re-read my post and should clarify. I think Sprayfoam would be a good option for plugging the hole. Without plugging the hole it is a open door for pests. Jayco should have plugged it.

[Tail_gunner]

As opposed to regular spray foam, they do make spray foam specifically for mice. I went through our entire trailer last fall spray foaming every hole that came through the floor. No mice last winter. Knock on wood!!

[ALJO]

Let the mice buy their own Jayco. So far I haven't had any mice problem.

[tld]

Yes, plug all of those holes coming into the cabin areas, under the sinks, etc. But, another big problem that must be addressed is all of the gaps that Jayco leaves in the underbelly covering. The problem is when the rodents get past the underbelly material, they WILL find a way into the living area and they will also damage wiring, hoses, pipes and tanks that are all located in the underbelly. The best fix is a two part process. First, use Great Stuff where ever you can! Plugging all the potential access holes coming through the floors under your cabinets, furnace duct work, etc. If a hole is fairly good sized, like were a bundle of wires come through, or a pipe, then use Great Stuff and steel wool combined. Second, buy a roll of Gorilla Tape. Crawl under your rig and apply tape wherever you see gaps between the underbelly material and your frame, and there will be a ton of them, and also tape the gaps between the pieces of the underbelly material itself where the factory didn't quite get them together. Plan on spending a couple of hours on your back looking up. Also use Great Stuff in the larger holes underneath, like where the propane lines go through. Remember, a mouse can actually compress his skull to get through incredibly small openings. This a lot of work that the owner should not have to do. This is a problem that should, and could, be taken care of at the factory but isn't. And after doing all of this, there is still no guarantee that the rodents still won't get in. If you are going to be in storage or parked for a while, putting traps under the rig, especially by the tires, is a great idea. Getting them before they even try to find a hole into your underbelly is best. Good luck!

[Wldor]

Hear me out before laughing me outta the forum...

...We live in a rural location. Mice are EVERYWHERE around here. Despite applying steel wool and spray foam to every conceivable nook and cranny on our last trailer, the little swines would still get in. Each winter, EVERY winter.

We were chatting with a farmer neighbour and this topic came up. He suggested a trick they'd learned when putting their farm equipment away after harvest to keep the little beggars away from wiring, air filter boxes, cabins etc...

Bounce sheets!

Buy a box of these things, then hide them under drawers, under beds, at the base of cabinets, in storage lockers... essentially all around the lower levels of your trailer.

We tried this idea last fall, 'cos: "what's the worst that can happen? We're out $10, and STILL have to clean up mouse poop". We checked the camper through last winter, we checked again prior to taking the rig on our first camping trip... no poop, nor in fact evidence of mice -anywhere- in the trailer.

We picked up our new Jayco a month back now, and that was the first thing my wife did - hid bounce sheets everywhere!

(I'm neither an employee of, nor shareholder in Bounce sheets, but we are (to date) mouse-free!)

[Diggerdan17]

My brand new 330 rsts had mice coming up through the center island into the garbage can too!

I spray foamed the plumbing opening, then crawled underneath the trailer and spray foamed all the gaps and holes left where the coroplast underbelly wasn't snug

No more mice !!!

[kaneman 357]

Put Moth Balls around anything that touches the ground, haven't had a problem in years.

[GHen]

Moth balls, lol, I use them around our fish camps to keep the bears away from our tents, not kidding. Works perfect, they walk up to where the line of moth balls are and turn around and never bothered us since we started using them. Need to use the "Old Fashion" kind, not the new style wax ones. The "OF" kind supposedly are a cancer risk.


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[oldmanAZ]

Originally Posted by GHen

Moth balls, lol, I use them around our fish camps to keep the bears away from our tents, not kidding. Works perfect, they walk up to where the line of moth balls are and turn around and never bothered us since we started using them. Need to use the "Old Fashion" kind, not the new style wax ones. The "OF" kind supposedly are a cancer risk.

To keep mice away, I've used the moth ball 'cake' type that is in a plastic holder with a hook on the end. Very easy to place where it is needed.

[Jagiven]

I hate mice! I have tried nearly every trick out there and they never seam to work. I have not tried the spray foam, and probably will not, for multiple reasons.

What I have found about campers, there are tons of holes through the floor. Every 12V items is grounded to the chassis, and very few of those items are daisy chained together. Plus there are plumbing items through the floor.

I have an open underbelly, so it was easy for me to seal every crack, crevice and hole. From the outside I stuffed steel wool into the hole, then used a small squeeze tube of marine silicone caulk, to cover the hole. Once I was done on the outside, I went inside and tried to find all those holes again, filled and caulked them. I have had NO mice so far! I found lots of holes. I think the biggest one was where the 7 pin wire harness came into the camper.

My shore power cable is pulled through the wall. I use a 3M stainless steel Scotch bright scouring pad. I cut a little slit into it, and wrap it around the cord, right behind the weather cover.

A friend of mine thinks he has mice coming in through his slide out mechanism. That hole just cannot be filled.

Good Luck!

[igofishn]

Yes, Great Stuff Pest Blocker, the others they will chew thrum TASTY!!

[vcbice]

fwiw i have had packrats chew through the pestblock too

[33 RLDS]

I read somebody used the bounce sheets and the mice made a nice bed out of them

I gave up trying to keep them out. With the "enclosed" under belly and 2 large slides. I keep electronic rat/mouse zappers under the sinks where all the plumbing comes up and leave the cabinet open. Unfortunately I have to check them frequently all winter to remove and reset traps.

My kitty also kills a few every week but living in the woods we have an endless supply.

[tld]

My fiver was brand new and I had had it one week when a pack rat chewed right through the under belly material and then proceeded to chew the insulation off some of my electrical wiring and chewed through some of my pex water lines (caught him in a trap and ended his RV life). I have found that the best way to stop any rodent from getting into my fiver is to trap them before they do get in. After my really bad experience, I have used moth balls, dryer sheets, Fresh Cab, electronic devices and just about everything else on the market that is suppose to repel them. But I have to believe that sealing the underbelly up as tight as you can, setting traps under the unit (and also inside if you can check them regularly) to try to get them before they figure out how to get in is the only way to best insure against them getting in.