A mouse can be cute and cuddly at first glance, but when you get down to business with the way they affect your home, they turn into nothing but a pest. Mice reproduce quickly and in large numbers, can get into small spaces where you can’t reach them, and chew up your furniture and electronics. Another big problem mice pose is the diseases they can carry. Bottom line is that they can’t be in your home. So how do you go about removing them? There’s many ways to take care of it, using all sorts of different mediums. One of these ways you can eliminate mice is with a spray.
How Effective are Mouse Repellent Sprays?
The efficacy of a spray all depends on the ingredients. First of all, a repellent is different than a killing spray. Repellents are meant to keep a mouse from ever coming into your house or yard in the first place, so that you don’t have to deal with an infestation at all. These typically use ingredients that are repulsive and disgusting to mice, or that cause irritation but not death.
Some of the ingredients that are used in mice sprays include:
- Ammonia: The odor of ammonia is present in predator’s urine and so naturally scares mice when they smell it.
- Peppermint oil: This essential oil is one of the most unfavorable smells and tastes to mice there is, which is great, considering that humans find it pleasant. Find more information about peppermint oil and how it gets rid of mice here.
- Thiram: This substance has been found to be disgusting to rodents. It’s widely used as a repellent to keep mice away from trees and greenery.
- Castor oil: This doesn’t have a strong odor to humans, but to mice, it’s disgusting. Spray a mixture or castor oil and water and a mouse will turn right around and go back where they came from.
- Cayenne pepper: The spice in cayenne is so powerful to mice that they absolutely hate it. Spray a mixture of it around the house and watch them run in the other direction.
So how should you apply these sprays? You’ll need to have a look around your home and find any kind of entry points. Where do mice hide? Read here. Remember, mice can squeeze into holes as small as a quarter-inch wide. Once you find any spot that a rodent could enter, spray repellent all around the entry spot, and close up the hole, if possible. You could also spray it around the perimeter of your house and yard for extra tight security.
Mint-scented mice sprays almost always use essential oils, which are both powerful and effective. Click here to learn more about essential oil mouse repellent.
Mouse Away
Mouse Away brand is great in that it’s all natural, without any kind of harsh chemicals or rodenticides. Just the right amount of Spearmint and Peppermint are balanced together to create a blend that mice absolutely hate. One whiff of this spray and they’ll run in the other direction.
Spray Mouse Away any places you want to keep mice out of. Keep in mind, though, that it’s not a product that will kill, only one that will repel.
Spray them with mint
One attribute of mice is that they’re very clever and witty; one reason why they’re used in lab experiments so often. Unfortunately, this also means they can avoid traps and baits that you set out to catch or kill them. But there’s something they can’t avoid: mint spray. Coat areas of your home with this smell and there’s no escaping it. We suggest using Mouse Oust.
Using essential oils is really the way to go when you want to make a minty mouse repellent spray.
There are three you can choose from:
- Peppermint.
- Wintergreen.
- Spearmint.
One reason mice hate the smell of mint so much is because of its flavor. Another is because of how strong the smell is; it overwhelms and confuses them. But since we as people find it to be a rather pleasing smell, a mint repellent is perfect for us. Mix 50 drops of one type of oil with 2 cups water, and make sure it’s potent, or use 2 or 3 different mints to make the smell even worse for them.
You’ll want to spray the repellent in any of their trails, which can be located by their droppings or chewing activity:
- Mint will help to mask the pheromone trail they put down that tells other mice where to go.
- Then, basically spray any place that you don’t want mice to be.
- Once they enter an area where it smells minty, they’ll turn right around and get out of there.
- Remember to leave an exit point or two free of spray so that the mice already in your home will be able to get out through it.
Another minty spray you should consider is called Rodent Gone. It has a precise blend of essential oils that mice can’t stand but humans don’t mind at all.
Spray any place you might suspect mice to be and rid your home and yard of these disease-carrying pests.
Don’t Just Spray Mice, Kill Mice
So repelling mice is a great idea, but what if it’s not enough? Or what if you just want to cut to the chase and get it completely over with? Using a spray that will kill mice is probably the answer for you. And although killing sprays aren’t common, there are some available.
Ingredients that kill mice are called rodenticides.
Common ones include:
- Anticoagulants.
- Growth inhibitors.
- Dehydrating agents.
Sprayable poison
Diphacinone is a rodent killer used in many kinds of pesticides. It works by inhibiting vitamin K and thus causing the mouse to bleed to death internally. Put in a spray bottle and spray liberally in areas where you might suspect mouse activity, preferably in places where it could collect enough to let them drink.
Killer Foam
You may not have ever heard of a mice-killing foam, but it’s out there. Something great about this product is its ability to get into places you couldn’t otherwise reach. Packed with poison, once the mice trample over it, it gets stuck onto their bodies, and when they groom themselves, end up ingesting it.
The method of death is through anticoagulation. The mouse will bleed to death internally within a day or two. Another plus to using killer foam is that you can see the level of mouse activity, as the foam will be trampled down only a little if your infestation isn’t too bad, or will be trampled a lot if your problem is big.
We all know mice love food, and especially peanut butter. But a little known fact is that there are particular tastes and smells mice absolutely hate, that we may not think of. So, what smells do mice hate? Find out here.
The Best Mice Spray Out There
You can make mice spray at home, or you can buy some at the store, but no matter what you use, you’ll want the best.
A product you can count on working is:
- Critter Out: This spray is all natural and based on Peppermint. And although you can make your own mint sprays at home, Critter Out knows the exact proportion of oil to water that gives the most potent repelling factor possible.
So if you’ve got a problem with mice, don’t wait around for them to go away – they definitely won’t. Decide on a method of action, and if you want to go with spray, get the best one for your situation and immediately get to work. Mice won’t stand a chance with these sprays, and before you know it, you’ll have a rodent-free home once again.
