Quote:
Originally posted by TimT
Check the refrigerator. The mice seek water when they are posoned, and sometimes the head for the works on the back of the refrigerator The compressor and a drip tray for condensation are usually located behind the fridge.
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I pulled out my refrigerator tonight, and didn't find anything except a lot of dust. The back isn't open at the bottom--a plastic plate with vented holes and hexagonal screws securing it to the metal back. Didn't see any drip pan inside. Nothing obvious from the front, either. No smell, so I figure they aren't in there, though we saw one early on run in back (trapped behind range next day-probably same one).
A lot of the odor is coming from droppings in the cellar along the garage wall and shelves, where i figure they were entering. When we had cats, my wife had a litter box there with edible (corn-based) litter! Call it yuppie litter. The mice had a field day, even with a cat around. I can't have cats anymore because of the allergies. That's bad, because we live in a wooded neighborhood with many field mice. Everybody without cats has them.
I'm using an odor control detergent called ZEP--used in hospitals.
I've sprayed it undiluted everywhere I can smell the dander, and it's effective though not completely. There are still places where there are droppings--in the cellar--and that may be the source of the odor at this point. I also have to get behind the lower cabinets in the kitchen, where there is some odor.
Thanks for all your suggestions so far.
I wish there was something you could put in your duct system to neutralize the odor. The duct-cleaning guys bombed it with something, but it wasn't effective for more than a few hours.
I have some lime (calcium-based), and am going to put some in the basement along the garage wall.