"Oh, crap!"
Removing the shroud that directs the cooling air over the cooling fins on the head and the top of the cylinder (right side of mower as shown above) I saw that mice had packed it with fiberglass. The flywheel also functions as the magneto and a cooling fan...hence the curved fins in the top.
Removing that fiberglass, I exposed two vent-holes in the bottom half of the shroud/duct.
That hole is plenty big-enough to allow mice to play house.
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| I know the picture is busy. The hole is outlined in yellow highlighter in this image. |
I bet the motor runs cooler now!
I remember a major truck manufacturer whose early 6.2l diesel engines had an air intake that was PERFECT for House-sparrows to use as an entrance to a nesting box. There are millions of English Sparrows in midwestern towns. Those diesel engines didn't breath very well after inhaling a bird-nest.
The fix was very simple. The air-intake was an injection molding. It is easy to add material to injection molds. They added multiple, vertical bars across the opening and the problem went away.
You would think major manufactures would know to avoid holes of certain sizes.
I need to research where the mice are getting into my corolla's cabin air filter. Every spring it seems I have a serious nest there.
ReplyDeleteAny ideas as to repellants that WORK?
Mouse traps?
DeleteMaybe stuffing the intake with some loosely packed, very coarse steel-wool?
Professional exterminators have something called "tracking powder" but I would be leery of using it in a personal vehicle.
Mice can squeeze through holes the size of a dime, so 1/4" hardware cloth might be your huckleberry.
Now to figure out what question that Google will answer where the air intake IS. Plenty of how to replace the cabin filter, I've been doing that knuckle scraping job for years :-).
DeleteGrandpa Gus's mouse repellant works IF you remember to replace every 4-6 weeks as the peppermint fades.
Looking for a longer term repellant :-)
Good idea using coarse steel wool, just have to figure out where the access is.
Fred in Texas, look under the cowling. That plastic shield between the engine and windshield. If you can contort yourself some, look in the opening where you access the cabin air filter and you might get an idea of where to look on the outside of the car.
DeleteOne option is to put the vehicle into "accessory mode" with the engine off and turn on the fan that blows the interior air. Then use your stethoscope to listen to the cowling at the base of the windshield. It will likely be in front of the glove-box area.
DeleteAlso, you might google what the air filter for your vehicle looks like. THAT would be the ideal place to glue the 1/4", steel hardware cloth...to the pleated, spun-bonded filter. Use silicon bathroom caulk around the perimeter of the filter and push a cut-to-fit-outline of hardware cloth into the fresh, silicon bead. Let cure before installing.
Turn you garage into a factory. Sell them for $129 each.
Mice are a continual problem with us. They’ve eaten the gas line, wiring harness insulation, chewed holes in the tiller and mower gas tanks; nest in about anything. They’ve been in tailpipes, under the dashboard, the plow truck heater box, in air filters, various engine spaces, even on cars driven daily. Now they are getting into the new car and the electronic sensors all go off with warning lights that Something Is Wrong. We can’t get to the space to clear it, so a trip to the dealer is required.
ReplyDeleteMy husband used to block any air intakes or vents with a piece of hardware cloth, but we can’t find any vent on the new car, yet.
I have a small parts multidrawer box in the barn. Always a nest in one of the drawers. I left a vest out there one winter; found a nest in one pocket in the spring. Twice there a nest in the shop vac. Once in the Weber grill that sat unused for a few months.
We bought a truck box body to store my 4 wheeler. It’s the only place that’s mouse proof.
Southern NH
Cats.
ReplyDeleteBucket mouse trap.
https://housegrail.com/diy-bucket-mouse-trap-plans/
I do a variant of #5.
We use the bucket traps in the summer. The cat used to get a lot of mice, but he’s old and slow now.
DeleteSNH