Home Remedies to Repel Mice in Winter

A mouse crawls along a foundation of a home

As winter approaches, temperatures drop and everyone is just looking for ways to stay warm. This is true for local homeowners as well as pests, particularly rodents. Mice can enter your property through cracks or holes that are even just 5 mm wide (that’s less than ¼ inch) surrounding your property. Although they seem cute, mice are dirty, destructive animals that can harm your property and carry disease. 

If you have mice in your home, Inman-Murphy Termite & Pest Control has a group of skilled rodent exterminators who can get rid of your mouse infestation. But if you never developed a rodent problem in the first place, that would be preferable. Here are some methods and tools you can use that may help keep mice away. One word of caution: DIY pest repellents are not as effective as professional rodent control. If you have a rodent infestation, you should contact us for an estimate.

Non-toxic DIY Mouse Repellents

There are several types of simple-to-use DIY mouse repellents. They have the added benefit of being non-toxic. Here are four common strategies for attempting to keep mice away using items you might already have around the house:

Peppermint oil: Mice don’t generally like the strong aroma of peppermint. In order to prevent them from entering, you can put a few drops of the oil on cotton balls, and then scatter them about any potential access sites. Even better, plant mint throughout the perimeter of your property as a mouse-repellent barrier!

Another odor mice detest is that of apple cider vinegar. To preserve the repellent effect, mix it with vinegar and spray it once a month along the perimeter of your home and around potential access points.

Mice are unable to tolerate the scent of fabric softener sheets. Put one of the sheets inside any openings you find that you believe could be entry locations. 

Steel wool: Mice can chew through a variety of materials thanks to their strong incisors. But research has shown that they are unable to bite through steel wool. Therefore, if you use the material to cover potential access points, it will prevent them from entering your home.

How to Keep Mice Out

The likelihood of developing a mouse infestation is strongly influenced by whether or not your home is a desirable environment for rodents. When it’s chilly outside, mice want the same things any mammal does: food, shelter, and warmth. They’ll look for any means to sneak inside and stay there if your home has those attributes. This is why it’s important to start your mouse prevention efforts before it starts to get cold. Let’s look at some techniques you might adopt to deter rodents from entering your home:

  • Check the dark corners of your home’s interior frequently for evidence of mice.
  • Locate every potential point of access into your home and seal or close it
  • Keep food covered, sealed, and stored.
  • Remove clutter from your home, both inside and outside.

Mice won’t want to stay for very long if there isn’t easy access to food or a quiet, dark location to nest. 

When DIY Approaches Fail, Turn to Inman-Murphy

Even if you take all of these precautions, rodents might find their way into your house. If they do, we can help. Since 1999, we have offered rodent extermination services to homes and businesses in the Mid-South TN area. Our rodent pest control technicians are ready to get to work making your home rodent-free. Want to learn more? Get in touch with us today!

DIY Pest Control: 3 Major Risks

DIY pest control - an insecticide fogger spraying in a room

DIY pest control may seem like a good way to save money, time, and unnecessary hassle: You don’t have to choose, pay or wait around for a professional exterminator. You can simply purchase some pesticide products at your local hardware store and you’re ready to go. However, DIY pest control carries significant downsides. If you’re considering this approach, you need to make sure you understand the downsides so you can take steps to mitigate the risks.

What Are the Risks of DIY Pest Control?

Do-it-yourself pest control carries several different risks, including the effects of overusing pesticides, killing beneficial insects, and wasting money on ineffective pest control products. Misuse of pesticides is the most common cause of illness and injury from pest control but you could also be injured by pests themselves, like getting bitten or stung while applying pesticide.

Here are the three categories of major DIY pest control risks: 

Pesticide Exposure

Exposure to pesticides can cause adverse health effects, even when used correctly. Improper use of pesticides may lead to chemicals leaking into water supplies, the soil, and possibly the air inside your home. Many DIY pest control chemicals have the potential to contaminate the ground around your home if not used properly. It’s important to read instructions carefully and use the right amount for the right job. 

For example, pesticides should be kept away from food and water supplies to avoid contaminating or poisoning people. When applying exterior treatments, oftentimes people forget that fish, frogs, and other animals may be living in or around their backyard ponds. If the product is applied too closely to that water source, it can be harmful to all species that are using it. 

Another common example of misapplication in DIY pest control is that homeowners forget to look for open windows while applying products on the exterior of the home, sometimes exposing those inside without realizing it. Pesticides should also be stored out of the reach of children and pets so they don’t come into contact with them. If you’re spraying pesticides inside a home, it’s crucial to ensure there’s adequate ventilation to allow the chemicals to dissipate. 

Health and Safety Issues

There are several potential health and safety issues to be aware of when undertaking do-it-yourself pest control. For example, you should always wear protective clothing and gloves when handling pesticides and other chemicals. Pregnant women and young children should avoid entering areas where pesticides have been used. You should also wear protective equipment like a mask and eye goggles when you are working in areas where there might be pests or rodents. This will reduce the risk of getting bitten, stung or sick. You should also clean up any mess that pests leave behind so they don’t attract more pests. Some pest droppings can contain harmful bacteria or roundworms that can cause serious illness. Proper sanitation of areas should be done carefully and after sufficient research, if you aren’t aware of the possible risks involved. 

Negligence

There are situations where you can be held negligent or liable for your pest control practices. If you spray pesticide in a stuffy room or trap pests in a building without proper safety precautions, you could cause significant harm to other people creating civil and possibly even criminal liability. This is doubly true if you’re trying to eradicate a species of pest that’s protected by law.

Some products require you to vacate the area after application and you need to ensure that no one would come in contact with that product for the proper amount of time. 

Conclusion

While DIY pest control could save you money and time, it also comes with considerable risk. If you’re not careful, you could make things worse by harming yourself or other people with pesticides or getting bitten or stung by the pests you’re trying to eliminate. Professional pest control specialists know how to find the pests on your property, where they are coming from, how they got in, and how to stop them. Plus, they are trained to find the reasons why the pests are there and offer methods of preventing further infestations. 

With the integrated pest management approach, your professional pest technician will also be looking for ways to improve your landscaping and other habitats around the home. This will help lead to less pest activity over time. When factoring all of this in, hiring a professional exterminator is more effective and more efficient than a DIY approach.

Professional Pest Control in the Memphis Metro Area

Inman-Murphy, Inc. has been providing affordable effective pest control services in the Mid-South metro area since 1999. Before you do it yourself, contact us for a free quote!