Mice invasions are one of the most aggravating issues encountered by homeowners around the world. When dealing with or working to prevent a mouse infestation, knowing the best scents to keep mice away is critical.
A mouse infestation is annoying and upsetting. Mice damage properties, produce chaos in the household, and give the appearance of a house being untidy and unhealthy, in addition to transmitting several viruses and diseases such as Leptospirosis and rat-bite fever. Using scents that deter mice helps avoid a rodent issue before it begins and saves unnecessary home damage and stress.
Several home remedies and DIY mouse repellents help with a rodent problem. Fortunately, removing or repelling mice from your home does not have to be complicated. There are options for smells that keep mice away to suit every home and situation, whether you prefer aromas like pleasant essential oils or want to use spicy scents like chili oil and cayenne pepper.
- Scents that Deter Mice
- Scents to Keep Mice Away – Peppermint Oil
- Mice Hate the Scent of Kitty Litter
- Ammonia is a Mouse Repellent
- Mothballs Deter Mice from Your Home
- Cinnamon Offers a Quick Answer to a Mice Infestation
- Smells that Keep Mice Away – Cayenne Pepper
- Repel Mice the Natural Way with White Vinegar
- Smells That Repel Mice – Chili Oil
- A Live Trap Tackles a Mouse infestation Humanely
- Peanut Butter is the Best Bait for a Mouse Problem
- Mice Hate the Smell of Clove Oil
- Eucalyptus Oil is a Mouse Repellent
- Tea Tree Oil Prevents Mice
- Dryer Sheets Prevent a Rodent Infestation
- Commercial Mouse Repellents
Scents that Deter Mice
Controlling mouse activity and removing mice from your home are essential for disease prevention and cleanliness. Using scents to keep mice away is an easy and efficient pest control method. It’s not necessary to use remedies to kill a mouse fast when you prevent them in the first place.
However, it’s critical to address the environmental variables leading to your mouse infestation for the best success when using scents that deter mice. Learn what attracts mice to your yard and house to avoid making the problem worse. Seal potential food sources, such as dog food, birdseed, and grass seed, in rodent-proof and airtight containers.
To prevent mice from accessing your home and as a way to deter chipmunks from coming indoors, inspect your windows, door, and walls for gaps or places where rodents could gain entry.
Learning how to use smells that keep mice away to prevent or help resolve a mouse problem is straightforward. Homeowners have a wide range of scents to choose from, and many of the necessary supplies are everyday items likely already available.
Thanks to their keen senses, mice pick up scents at a distance and are easily discouraged by encountering an aroma they dislike or feel threatened by.
Scents to Keep Mice Away – Peppermint Oil
Peppermint essential oil is a natural mouse repellent and provides an easy option when you require a natural way to remove mice or other rodents from your home and want your space to smell good. Dab some peppermint essential oil on a cotton ball and place it in the problem area or get rid of mice in attic and walls with blown insulation, or make a simple spray that smells great.
Fill a spray canister with the mixture and spray generously over your garage and home. The spray leaves things smelling fresh and keeps mice away. When combined with removing potential feedstuffs, this keeps mice out of your home.
Mice Hate the Scent of Kitty Litter
While cat litter isn’t the most sanitary way to get rid of mice without using chemicals, it works. Mice are a natural food source for cats, and rodents avoid your home if they suspect you have a predator inside.
Put little disposable cups of old kitty litter near possible access sites and outside your home, so rodents sense a predator and stay away. When mice smell the cat’s urine, they’ll flee.
Ammonia is a Mouse Repellent
Because the molecules in ammonia imitate the scent of urine, it’s often employed as a sensory repellent in mouse infestations and other rodent issues. If you don’t have a cat or feel uncomfortable leaving old cat litter around your home, ammonia is a valuable alternative.
Use disposable cups to leave small amounts of ammonia outside your home and in mouse-prone areas such as the garage or attic. The scent of ammonia mimics urine and deters rodents from entering.
Mothballs Deter Mice from Your Home
Moth balls are a great product to keep mice out of your garage or house. Note that mothballs will keep rats away but they’re highly toxic and a cheap way to get rid of pest infestations.
Using rubber gloves, place the mothballs in strategic spots throughout your residence, including the carport, basement, and attic. Mothballs are dangerous to you, your pets, and your children, so use them cautiously. Always place mothballs where your pets and children won’t come into contact with them.
Cinnamon Offers a Quick Answer to a Mice Infestation
Cinnamon is a strong, pungent scent, mice despise it, and you probably already have it in powder or sticks in your cupboard. Cinnamon repels mice, so grab some from your spice cabinet and keep them at bay.
There are many methods to use cinnamon to repel mice, depending on what control you want to accomplish, how much work you want to put in, and what materials you already have. Put cinnamon sticks or sprinkle the powder in drawers, closets, cupboards, below furniture, and wherever else you see mouse activity or mice droppings.
Cinnamon’s scent keeps rodents away while providing a pleasant aroma in your home without the need for pricey candles or wall plug-ins. If you prefer, use cinnamon oil rather than fresh or powdered cinnamon.
Smells that Keep Mice Away – Cayenne Pepper
Cayenne is a variety of chili pepper with a distinct, strong scent and intense heat. Like many other rodents and insects, mice despise the smell and taste of cayenne pepper. Sprinkle cayenne where you’ve seen mice, expect them to assemble, or know they might enter, just like cinnamon.
Cayenne pepper irritates mice’s senses, making it perfect for getting them to stay away from your home. When working with cayenne pepper, put on a pair of gloves, and take care not to get this spicy substance on your skin or in your eyes.
Repel Mice the Natural Way with White Vinegar
Mice, with their acute sense of smell, despise strong odors. Vinegar has arguably the most potent aroma of any substance, especially when undiluted. Many species, including mice, are driven away from this strong, sour odor.
While it is practically impossible to cover your home with this pungent liquid, it is still a viable solution to deter rodents when adequately implemented.
In a spray bottle, combine water and vinegar, mist any areas where mice are spotted or where you expect them to travel, and around doors, flooring, counters, and closets.
Although vinegar is not an ideal aroma to have all over your house for an extended time, it does assist in repelling mice temporarily. If you don’t like the smell of vinegar, use it outdoors around entry points to keep mice out, and choose a more pleasant scent to use inside your home.
Smells That Repel Mice – Chili Oil
Like cayenne pepper, chili oil has a naturally hot and spicy smell that irritates mice’s senses. While delicious in food, the aroma of chili oil is sometimes overpowering, and even more so to the delicate olfactory systems of many rodents and insect pests.
To make a powerful natural mice repellent, spray or drop small amounts of chili oil around your home, focusing on places of mouse activity and entry points. Replenish the scent every few days until signs of mice begin to reduce. Wear protective gloves and wash your hands thoroughly after working with chili oil, and never touch your eyes. Keep away from children and pets.
A Live Trap Tackles a Mouse infestation Humanely
Using a live mouse trap is the most responsible and compassionate technique for removing mice from your home. Live traps are not harsh like other traps such as glue or snap traps, and they do not harm children, household pets, or the ecosystem.
Putting a bucket under a countertop makes an easy and effective live trap. Place a dab of peanut butter on the end of the spoon handle; balance it on the counter so the handle is hanging over the bucket.
Both the spoon and the mouse end up in the bucket below when the mouse steps out onto the spoon to receive the peanut butter bait. Check the live trap every day and relocate the mouse far away from your house.
Peanut Butter is the Best Bait for a Mouse Problem
Peanut butter spread on a cotton ball is an excellent mouse trap bait and perfect if you have devised a live trap and require a trustworthy lure. Mice cannot resist the flavor of peanut butter.
The nutty and sweet taste makes it difficult for rats to fight, and the scent is robust, so rodents smell it further away, increasing the likelihood of engaging with the trap.
In addition, peanut butter is economical, readily available, and harmless to your children or pets if they find it before the rodents do. When you need the absolute best bait, consider using peanut butter, whether restocking a bait station or setting up a humane trap.
Mice Hate the Smell of Clove Oil
Cloves have a strong aroma, making them one of the best natural mouse repellents. As a bonus, it’s also one of the essential oils to repel snakes. If you leave a whole clove out, its scent may not be powerful enough to keep mice away or deter snakes, but there is another strategy better suited for pest and rodent control. Use the clove essential oils for a more potent aroma to control rats.
This oil has several benefits in addition to being a superb mouse pest control. Keep using your clove essential oil after your rodent issue is gone. One purpose of this product is to ease toothache discomfort. If you prefer a different aroma, try combining clove oil with lavender or peppermint essential oils for a similar yet unique blend.
Eucalyptus Oil is a Mouse Repellent
Rodents despise the strong smell of eucalyptus oil, yet most humans find it pleasant, leaving your home smelling clean and fresh. Essential oils are naturally occurring, safe for you and your family, and effective in mouse control.
To use eucalyptus essential oils as a natural mouse repellent or as a natural rat deterrent for outdoors and indoors, apply a few drops of the oil to several cotton balls and spread them around the house. Due to the pleasing scent of the oils, they’re suitable to put inside your closet or armoire and leave your clothes smelling fresh while also preventing rodent damage.
Tea Tree Oil Prevents Mice
When you prefer natural products, essential oils are a humane and straightforward pest control method for mice. Tea tree oil is used in many health and personal care products, and, surprisingly works as a mouse repellent. Use the oil on cotton balls around the home to deter mice from entering.
Dryer Sheets Prevent a Rodent Infestation
Dryer sheets have a strong odor, and mice dislike them; this is fantastic news because you probably already have this product in the laundry room. Spraying, dusting, or misting other scents takes more effort than using dryer sheets. Place a dryer sheet in remote locations where mice might be attracted and leave it there for a week, whether you are getting rid of mice and rats outside or inside the house and garage.
Leaving them out longer has no negative consequences, but they lose their fragrance over time and must be replaced to remain effective. Place a dryer sheet under furnishings, closets or cabinets, and wherever else you think mice might be lurking. The smell of dryer sheets is pleasant to humans, but unpleasant to mice.
Commercial Mouse Repellents
A range of commercial rodent control and deterrent products are available. Items like Victor pest repellent deter rodents, spiders, crickets, and more. If you prefer to purchase a commercial product, always read the product label carefully, pay special attention to safety warnings, and use as directed to achieve the most impact on your rodent issue.
In the long run, keeping mice outside in the first place saves a lot of time and work. Use various exclusion strategies to keep these pests out of your home. Mice fit through the tiniest openings, as little as a dime. Examine your premises for cracks or gaps that allow these obnoxious rodents to gain access.
Mice are attracted to scraps, breadcrumbs on counters, and foodstuff left outside. Spaces under porches and patios, attics, cellars, and inside your structures provide safe havens for nesting.
Maintain your backyard by mowing the grass, picking up any waste or food leftovers, and repairing any leaking pipes which provide mice with water. Combine good home care and prevention strategies with smells that keep mice away to remove the pests quickly.
If you loved this article on scents to keep mice away, share this vital information on scents that deter mice with your friends and family on Pinterest and Facebook.