How to Rid Your Car of Spiders, Mice, Ants and Other Pests
Animals and insects are drawn to warm places that will hide them. Unfortunately, your car meets both of these criteria, which means that at some point you may be faced with the unpleasant discovery that some critters have taken up residence on your trip. Such contamination can not only harm the vehicle (and your health ), but you can inadvertently harm intruding animals when you turn on the engine. They can also be dangerous while driving – I am allergic to spider bites, and finding one of them falling from the ceiling of my car while driving is always a little annoying. So here’s how to get rid of the creepy sliders and critters from your car and keep them out.
Check your car for rodents and insects.
You probably won’t find a squirrel living in the back seat. Instead, small animals like mice and possums take refuge in the narrow crevices of your engine and other small spaces. Finding these cozy spots, rats and mice can often chew on wires and rubber hoses, clog filters, and otherwise cause serious damage to your engine – and possibly create the risk of a car fire. Animal excrement also comes along with small animals, and their feces can contaminate the interior of the car (or, say, cabin filters), which can harm your health . Insects such as spiders commonly inhabit side-view mirrors, car roofs, and air vents. (Imagine turning on the air conditioner and seeing spiders on your face!) Take a close look at your car if you suspect an animal is hiding inside. Modern Pest provides a helpful list of signs that a rodent is living in your car:
- Visual signs of droppings and urine, and an unpleasant odor
- Strange noises, especially when a heater or fan makes a rumbling or vibrating noise, indicating that the heater fan motor has a socket.
- Identify food sources such as acorns, dog food, and poultry food that rodents have brought into your car to eat. See old snacks like fries in unexpected places
- Sometimes you see a mouse or rat jumping out of your car or running around it.
If you see any tracks of mice, squirrels, possums, or even cats, do not turn on the engine or make noise before getting into the car to try to scare them away.
How to keep rodents like mice, rats and possums out of your car
You can keep pests out of your car with many of the same methods you use to keep them out of your home (and you might even get better results). Mice and other animals are very sensitive to strong odors and dislike the smell of cedar, mint and cayenne pepper. Place cotton balls with these fragrances all over your car to scare or scare away mice. Stuff steel wool or mesh in small crevices and open areas where animals can crawl to keep mice from getting into your engine. And you can always resort to traps and poisons – both are effective, but much less humane, ways of dealing with pests.
Animals find your car especially attractive when it is in one place for a long period of time. If you will not be using your car regularly, you should try to keep it on and take short trips from time to time. Animals will not find a suitable resting place here if they are periodically in motion .
To ward off animals that you suspect are hiding in your car, try ringing the keys and honking before starting the engine. The startling noise is likely to cause the animal to flee, allowing you to hit the road. Whatever you do, do not open the hood of the car trying to pull the animal out; it can only dig deeper into your car’s engine to hide.
Finally, wash your car as often as possible. Mice, rats, possums, and other animals are attracted to food debris and crumbs. Regular car washing and vacuuming during spills scares off hungry animals.
How to get rid of insects like spiders and ants in your car
Insects can’t bite your wires or ruin your engine, but no one wants to find a cockroach in their center console. Your first line of defense is to keep your car clean. Like mice, insects such as ants are attracted to food waste. Wipe down your dashboard regularly, vacuum up crumbs and remove food from your car every day. If you have the funds, get a full car wash service every time you change your oil. It’s an easy way to remember to clean your car thoroughly, and is well worth the investment (around $ 35) if you can turn it around.
Remember to clean the carpets when cleaning the car. According to the site Mantis , dedicated to pest control, car mats – the best place where bugs lay their eggs and larvae. Vacuum the rugs thoroughly and try not to let them stay wet for long periods of time.
Insects like spiders also dislike the smell of peppermint and citrus oil, so the same cotton swab method used to scare away mice can be used here.
Finally, and perhaps even more terrifyingly, bed bugs don’t only live in beds and, unfortunately, can also infect your car. If this happens, you will need to contact a professional – bedbugs and other pests that hitchhike, such as fleas, can hardly be found in the car and are extremely difficult to get rid of on your own. However, a pest control professional can apply a heating method or use cryonite to rid your vehicle of these stubborn infestations.