Mice are undeniably cute. Squirrels and raccoons also have their appeal. However, they’re not so adorable when they set up house inside your attic or garage. Even mice, as small as they are, can do a massive amount of damage to wood and plastic, and even the wiring to your garage door opener, which could be a major issue.
Just a single pair of mice can mean major problems for your garage. For instance, did you know that a female mouse can give birth to up to 14 pups every 21 days? It takes just six weeks for those babies to grow up and start their own families. If you do the math, you’ll find that within a single year, you could go from two mice to almost 5,100 mice.
Getting rid of mice can be time-consuming and expensive. Have you priced exterminators lately? Obviously, prevention is the better option. In this guide, we’ll talk about how to control your mouse problem and what to do to prevent them from colonizing your garage.
We do want you to bear in mind two things while reading, though: organization and insulation. You’ll understand why when we get farther into the guide.
Got Mice? Here’s How to Start
Do you already have mice? You’ll need to evict those freeloaders before you can do anything else. You could go the route of poison or lethal traps. But what about your own pets?
Perhaps you’re an animal lover and can’t bear the thought of needlessly killing even a mouse. Poison and deadly traps are no option because your kitty and doggie roam freely in the garage?
There’s good news. Mice only enter your home during the winter when they need shelter. During the summer, they’re likely to migrate outdoors once more. This gives you the chance to seal up the house and cut off all food supplies, so they don’t come back.
With that being said, if you think it is just a single mouse, consider using a humane mouse trap. These don’t kill the mouse and you can easily take it about a mile from your home and release it out into nature.
Even very small cracks can allow mice into your garage.
If you’re less squeamish about lethal control for mice and own a cat, you can let it into the garage for a few hours each day. Not only might that get rid of your mice, but it will also help your cat hone its hunting skills.
Finally, you may also be able to confuse the mice. Things with very strong smells can short circuit a mouse’s sense of smell. Think peppermint, white vinegar, and others.
With that being said, do not assume that this will keep mice out forever. It’s a stopgap solution at best. Once they’re out, you need to get started with the prevention steps.
Tell Mice “No Vacancy”
Once mice are out, it’s time to take a long, hard look at your garage. Are you unintentionally creating a mouse hotel that encourages them to set up house? Here are a few tips to help organize and clean your garage:
- Clutter: Mice thrive in cluttered, disorganized spaces where they can hide in safety. Cut the clutter to cut the mouse population.
- Food: Dog food, birdseed, and even grass seed can be an open invitation to a buffet for mice. Store these in metal, airtight containers.
- Trash: Keeping garbage in the garage can attract mice and other pests (as well as insects), so get it to the curb quickly.
- Firewood: Mice find firewood very tempting – it makes a great home, and they love to chew it. Store your firewood outdoors.
- Sweep and Inspect: Make time to sweep your garage and inspect the baseboards, walls, and other areas for signs of mice (droppings, chewed areas, gaps, etc.).
Prevent Incursions First
In the previous steps, we’ve talked about getting mice out of your home and we’ve helped you remove the things that attract them in the first place. Your work is not done, though. Now it’s time to bar their entry.
Beware of tree branches that touch your home’s roof.
Do you have tree branches that touch your roof? This could be a pest superhighway. Cut them off and cut them far back. Squirrels can jump nine feet horizontally, so make sure they can’t leap into your home.
Insulation in your walls helps prevent mice and other rodents.
Ensure your walls are well insulated.
Mice and other pests can make a home in the gaps within your walls. The way to prevent that is by filling those gaps with insulation. You can go several routes here, including mineral wool, but our recommendation is polyurethane spray foam. It’s easy to install, cost-effective, and, best of all, it is bitter, which makes insulation less appealing to mice in the first place. Some brands even include a rodent repellant to make it less appetizing.
Keep an eye on the cracks and crevices.
Mice can make their way into your home through even the smallest cracks. It’s important that you keep an eye on those gaps. And remember – they can chew through plastic, which means vinyl siding is not proof against them. The same is true for wood. Only metal and concrete can prevent them from chewing through to the inside of your home.
Check the floor, the base of walls, and areas higher up the wall, as well. If you find any gaps or holes, make sure to fill them in. You can cover holes with metal to prevent mice from getting in, but a professional solution will last longer. Spray foam insulation can also be used here.
Is your garage door a hidden source of threat? Are there gaps or holes?
If your garage door has seen better days, it’s probably time to change things up a bit.
Deciding on Your Garage Door
It’s never a simple, easy thing to change out your garage door. You’ll need to consider quite a few things, including how the door will look on your home. However, you also need to think about how resistant the door will be to mice and other rodents.
Wood is out. Mice can eventually chew through even the thickest wood doors. Vinyl is also to be avoided. Choose steel or aluminum doors instead.
You should also pay attention to the level of insulation – it will help deter mice from trying to make nests inside the door.
You will find that our doors are exclusively made from galvanized steel. That means they are fully mouse-proof (if a mouse can chew through steel, you have bigger problems to worry about). You’ll also find that the insulation in our doors is more than a match for any mouse.
You can see that our R-16 and R-12 doors, Standard+, Townships Collection, and Acadia 138 doors all feature robust polyurethane foam injected at high pressure right into the center of the door between the two layers of metal to create a sandwich. That not only prevents mice from calling your door home, but it helps with temperature control inside your garage.
Check out the interior of our R-16-rated door featuring polyurethane foam.
There’s more to love about our garage doors. They’re custom-designed just for your garage, for one thing. For another, we include weatherstripping to prevent airflow (or mice) from entering or leaving the garage. Say goodbye to daylight shining under your garage door!
Let’s Change That Aging Garage Door
Concerned that your garage door is how mice are getting in? It’s time to make a change. Get in touch with the experts here at Caspersen Door Systems. We’ll be happy to help you explore your options and find the right garage door for your needs and budget. Call us at 508-563-5633 or contact us through our website.
We understand that choosing a garage door can be hard, so we make it simpler by allowing you to compare doors by price or their style. You can also create a unique model just for you.
Ready to reach out? You can get a free quotation by email without any hassles or obligations.
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