Getting rid of rats/mice (merged threads)

ollyf

That's correct they do and apparently all is ok there.

maninthestreet

So is the neighbour on the other side of the Chinese takeaway having the same problem with rats?

ollyf

I believe not no, but my neighbour my side has had Rat activity and used to have them a lot in a cellar before it was filled in. He has had them under his lounge floor

ollyf

Seven Trent Water have checked the Sewer again have said that is all fine now. Environmental Health have also visited the takeaway next door and checked drains, Sewer and the ford storage rooms etc and they said that's all clear. I have asked them now to visit my other neighbour and check his premises.

LittleMissAspie

Help, I need some advice. I just found 6 mice droppings in the cupboard under the sink and 1 dropping in the cupboard next to that. The internet says that mice can carry disease - are we going to get ill??? Obviously the cupboard under the sink isn't used for food but the one next to it has our saucepans in. I can and will wash everything in the cupboard but will that be enough? I read a site that said use disinfectant but I don't have any. I have a bleach spray, will that do the same as disinfectant? Do I need to bleach the saucepans as well as inside the cupboards? What about my teatowels and cleaning cloths, what temperature should I wash them on? Do I need to use special stuff in the machine or will normal washing powder and a high temperature be enough? And what about the bottles and sponges and brushes inside the cupboard, do I need to bleach those? The sponges and brushes are for washing dishes, will they contaminate our dishes, should I throw them away? All the reading I've done about mouse droppings and viruses has terrified me Can the diseases spread to other rooms as well, I've been walking in and out of the kitchen so have I spread it to the rest of the house? Please help this is making me panicky, I'm thinking everything I've touched is contaminated now. I don't mind animals being in my house it's just the stuff about germs that's scaring me

Biggles

The first thing is to find where the mice are coming in and block it (bear in mind that, if you can insert a pencil into a hole, mice can get into it), then set traps to catch the mice that are already indoors.

Just wash your stuff each time you use it till you know you've caught them, just normal washing with detergent will do.

LittleMissAspie

I will have to check outside as the kitchen cupboards have a backboard in them so you can't see the wall. As I say I'm not bothered about the mice themselves and I can't kill them so I might try one of those things you plug in as long as they won't hurt my cat's ears. There are plugs inside the saucepan cupboard.

It's the germs I'm worried about, are you sure normal detergent is okay? What about my bleach spray? Will the sponges and brushes be safe to use, bearing in mind they are for washing things we eat off? Is a 60 degree wash hot enough for the cloths? The next one up is 95 degrees so maybe I should use that setting. Maybe I should put the brushes in the washing machine or maybe that will damage the drum? Best not I suppose. I just don't know what is safe. I don't even want to go in the kitchen anymore, I hoovered the floor and then I read you shouldn't hoover so now I think the air in there is contaminated. I'm just really worried about the germs and whether they are spreading through the house and how to wash them off. Maybe I should hire a cleaner, I don't think I can go near it again. This is horrible

Biggles

Yes, check the outside for airbricks etc. Bear in mind their point of access may not be in the wall to the kitchen, it could be elsewhere, the kitchen is where they headed because there was food.

Then you need to get a couple of traps before they start having little meece. Peanut butter is the best bait. Keep using them till you don't catch any more, till that point you'll never know if you're 'clear' or not. You need to worry more about mice increasing than about 'germs'.

LittleMissAspie

It must be the kitchen wall, we are mid terrace and they couldn't have got into the cupboard from the outside. The droppings were only on the top shelf in both cupboards, which I find odd. There are holes both top and bottom in the cupboard backboard for pipes.

There are no airbricks but I can see two holes in the mortar that might lead through to the house. One is above the damp proof course and one is below. Can they get in below the damp proof course? We have concrete floors downstairs. What do we fill such small holes with, I've looked up mortar mix and it comes in huge quantities. Would this Polyfilla stuff work:
http://www.polycell.co.uk/products/polycell_multi_purpose_exterior_polyfilla_ready_mixed.jsp

I'm thinking I need to repel the mouse first then fill the holes, otherwise it might get stuck inside the house. I'm hoping it doesn't live here, there would be a lot more droppings if it lived here, right? It must have just been visiting. Do you think if I put my cat inside the cupboard for a few minutes it will repel any mouse that is in the kitchen? Serious question. Then the holes can be filled.

I've been to the supermarket and got new cleaning supplies including a disinfectant spray, as I realised the old ones are in the cupboard. I'm going to disinfect the outside of the washing machine and the fridge freezer so I can use them, I just need access to food and to do my laundry for Monday. My boyfriend comes home on Tuesday, he said he will deal with the cupboards then. He also reminded me that there are anti-bacterial wipes in the bathroom cupboard so I can use those on the kitchen floor so I can walk on it. So I'm okay for now. You say don't worry about germs but everyone says mouse droppings spread disease so all I can imagine are infected molecules spreading out around my house. I'm not good with this sort of thing.

Errata

The droppings you can see, the urine you can't. Get some snap traps and use them.