Mouse in electric cupboard

lindze

I heard a mouse (hopefully not rat) inside my elecric meter cupboard, scratching away. On inspection there is a large hole in the concrete floor where the mains electric cable comes in. I have read online that putting steel wool next to electic cables is not a good idea, so does anyone know what should be used to block this at all?

Is cement okay do you think?

tacpot12

Concrete (e.g. a small bag of Post Mix) would be ideal.

Grenage

Might be worth capturing the rodent before you seal the hole. I'd want to know what was on the other side before filling a hole with concrete.

glennevis

What if the noise doesn't go away and you want to investigate further? I'd use a can of expanding foam for now.

lindze

Thanks everyone!

I struggle with this kind of thing as I don't really want to kill it (I am against poison especially as it will poison anything else that may eat it) but I don't want the little visitor either. I have heard it twice in the last week and a bang on the front of the cupboard sends it away so ideally I just want it not to be able to make a nest in the cupboard.

My floors downstairs are concrete and this hole is the only weak point. We have cavity walls so I am going to buy mesh grills for the front of the air bricks but not sure if there is anything else that I can do.

I also don't want to damage the mains cable with what ever I block the hole up with....fire risk mainly

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

lindze wrote: »

Thanks everyone!

I struggle with this kind of thing as I don't really want to kill it (I am against poison especially as it will poison anything else that may eat it) but I don't want the little visitor either. I have heard it twice in the last week and a bang on the front of the cupboard sends it away so ideally I just want it not to be able to make a nest in the cupboard.

My floors downstairs are concrete and this hole is the only weak point. We have cavity walls so I am going to buy mesh grills for the front of the air bricks but not sure if there is anything else that I can do.

I also don't want to damage the mains cable with what ever I block the hole up with....fire risk mainly

I'd put a trap in the cupboard and catch it/them (likely more than one) and when you are done fill the hole with wire wool.

I don't like killing mice but they breed quickly and you don't want them chewing on your cables.

lindze

More than one?! Oh I can't cope! :eek:

I'll get a humane trap for now then and see what happens before filling in the hole.

Grenage

Peanut butter is good bait.

lindze

Grenage wrote: »

Peanut butter is good bait.

Will it bring all his mates, and the kids, over for a bit of peanut butter though :rotfl:

silverwhistle

Peanut butter is good, but do check live traps (ahem..) quite regularly or they turn in to dead traps. Sorry mouse..

EachPenny

lindze wrote: »

I'll get a humane trap for now then and see what happens before filling in the hole.

You need to have a plan what to do with any mice you catch.

Letting them go outside will just mean they come back inside again. Letting them go in the 'countryside' may mean they starve to death.

Also, if the 'hole' the cable comes through is in fact the end of a pipe (or 'duct') then filling it with concrete wouldn't be a good idea and may be something you one day bitterly regret. If you want to post a picture of the hole people on the forum might be able to advise. (and if it is a duct then it might not be where the mouse is coming in through anyway)