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Old 10-24-2019, 07:55 AM   #1
jrhoads23
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Outback 23RS - How are mice getting inside!?!?!

Getting ready to winterize my Outback 23RS for the winter I noticed some mouse poop in various spots in the camper. So I have been putting traps out and every couple days each trap has a mouse. The other day I got on the ground under the trailer with some expanding window foam to seal up any gaps. For the life of me I have no clue how mice are getting in. It has the belly pan on it and all openings are already sealed up. Things seems to be tighter than a snare drum.

Any thoughts on where these mice are getting in from??? I know that all a mouse needs is the tiniest of openings to get through, but I can't figure out how they are doing it
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Old 10-24-2019, 08:41 AM   #2
JRTJH
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Originally Posted by jrhoads23 View Post
Getting ready to winterize my Outback 23RS for the winter I noticed some mouse poop in various spots in the camper. So I have been putting traps out and every couple days each trap has a mouse. The other day I got on the ground under the trailer with some expanding window foam to seal up any gaps. For the life of me I have no clue how mice are getting in. It has the belly pan on it and all openings are already sealed up. Things seems to be tighter than a snare drum.

Any thoughts on where these mice are getting in from??? I know that all a mouse needs is the tiniest of openings to get through, but I can't figure out how they are doing it
Open the vanity and galley sink cupboard doors and look at the size hole cut for the drain and plumbing runs, open the furnace access panel and look at the holes cut for furnace duct runs that go under the floor, remove the power panel access door, loosen the 4 screws that hold the power center to the cupboard wall and pull it out enough to see behind it, there's HUGE holes where the ROMEX goes into the basement. Pull your shore power cord out of the "mouse hole" (named that for a reason) and look at where it allows free access to your RV interior.

Then, go under your trailer and look at the two main frame rails (the ones the axle/springs are tied to) and count the number of holes in them. (I bet you don't have enough fingers to count them all).....

Each of those HOLES is a "wide open invitation" for any mouse, chipmunk, ground squirrel to set up housekeeping in your trailer. If there's any food in the trailer, that's motivation for them to remain after you close up for the season. If there's a "smell of any food" that's enough motivation for them to keep looking until they find the source. If there's any cotton, paper towels, tee shirts, old rags, toilet paper, they all become "instant bedding material" for an extended stay.

These are just the "you can control it" conditions..... Do all you can about "mouseproofing" your RV. There's many that you can't control, things like "CHEAP" soy based (smells like food) ROMEX insulation, underbelly openings that you can't access, tires that remain in contact with the ground that serve as "ladders" to the holes in the I-Beam rails....

Do what you can to "mouseproof" and use Cab Fresh to help... Even then, if you're the "unlucky kind" you may still find occasional evidence of rodents... I'd bet it's significantly less "evidence" than if you just do nothing and clean up the messes as you find them.....
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Old 10-24-2019, 08:45 AM   #3
flybouy
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"somewhere" there's an opening. On most units there's plenty available. Everywhere a pipe or wire penetrates the floor, the furnace ducts if you have the kind that blows air as part of an "Arctic Pkg."
And then there's the front door, yes they can "scoot by" even when you are entering or exiting the camper.
Also those "free riders" that tag along from home when you bring in the linens, or ride on a towel or mat that you had outside.
There are many mouse preventative remedies as there are "cold remedies". The best prevention I'm aware of is removing food sources, i.e. clean up crumbs from counters/floors, remove "boxed" foods like cereal, noodles, popcorn, etc. Most experienced folks use "Fresh Cab" which is a cache of scents that discourages mice.
Use the search function (3 rd tab from the right on the black bar at the top of the page" and you will find many posts on this topic.
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Old 10-24-2019, 09:04 PM   #4
KSH
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JRTJH View Post
Open the vanity and galley sink cupboard doors and look at the size hole cut for the drain and plumbing runs, open the furnace access panel and look at the holes cut for furnace duct runs that go under the floor, remove the power panel access door, loosen the 4 screws that hold the power center to the cupboard wall and pull it out enough to see behind it, there's HUGE holes where the ROMEX goes into the basement. Pull your shore power cord out of the "mouse hole" (named that for a reason) and look at where it allows free access to your RV interior.



Then, go under your trailer and look at the two main frame rails (the ones the axle/springs are tied to) and count the number of holes in them. (I bet you don't have enough fingers to count them all).....



Each of those HOLES is a "wide open invitation" for any mouse, chipmunk, ground squirrel to set up housekeeping in your trailer. If there's any food in the trailer, that's motivation for them to remain after you close up for the season. If there's a "smell of any food" that's enough motivation for them to keep looking until they find the source. If there's any cotton, paper towels, tee shirts, old rags, toilet paper, they all become "instant bedding material" for an extended stay.



These are just the "you can control it" conditions..... Do all you can about "mouseproofing" your RV. There's many that you can't control, things like "CHEAP" soy based (smells like food) ROMEX insulation, underbelly openings that you can't access, tires that remain in contact with the ground that serve as "ladders" to the holes in the I-Beam rails....



Do what you can to "mouseproof" and use Cab Fresh to help... Even then, if you're the "unlucky kind" you may still find occasional evidence of rodents... I'd bet it's significantly less "evidence" than if you just do nothing and clean up the messes as you find them.....
I have silly question. Is there any point in sealing all that if you have a heated underbelly? There's a vent down there, they can get in the vent and into the trailer through the duct, right?
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Old 10-25-2019, 06:25 AM   #5
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I have silly question. Is there any point in sealing all that if you have a heated underbelly? There's a vent down there, they can get in the vent and into the trailer through the duct, right?
I have a serious response: Is there any point in NOT sealing all that if you want to "mouse proof" the interior??? Think about how your RV "heated underbelly" is constructed. There are uninsulated heat ducts that "meander" through the underbelly. Some people complain that they provide reduced air at the register. I'd ask, "Where does that heat go, if not to the register?" The answer: That heat is absorbed in the underbelly through the UNINSULATED duct runs. Then there's the "dedicated heat duct" from the furnace to the holding tanks. Granted, it's only a 2" duct, but that's sufficient to provide enough heat to prevent holding tanks from freezing.

Assuredly, any "industrious mouse" could easily chew through the mylar duct wall and enter the trailer. Will they? Who knows, but assuredly, they will "take the steps necessary to migrate through a wide open access that's not properly sealed.

There's only so much you can do with 2" walls and 3/16" coroplast with a 1/4" sheet of mylar bubblewrap on top of it.

If you're thinking that your "heated underbelly" is intended to keep the underbelly at temps similar to your basement at home, you're not looking at it correctly. Water freezes at 32F. The "heated underbelly" is designed to "hopefully keep the temperature above 33F when the outside temps hover near 20F (the "claimed performance achieved by the "polar pack" or "arctic Package").

You're not getting "sufficient heat FALLING (heat rises) through the holes in the floor" to affect the "heated basement". You are, however, providing a "super-highway" for mouse travel between the outside environment and your trailer (as evidenced by the mouse droppings you've seen).....

Seal them up to slow "mouse migration" or leave them open "to protect the thermal transfer to the basement". But remember, with the trailer in storage, there's no heat in the interior, no heat transfer "down to the underbelly via those holes" and therefore, heating it is a "moot point".....

ADDED: When you look at your trailer chassis, remember that same chassis is used to build multiple models. What that means is that Lippert, in order to reduce the cost, builds all of them the same. They put all the holes needed for all the models that use that chassis in all the frames they produce. That way, Keystone can add slides for one model without having to switch to a different chassis. The result: Easier for Keystone and the "end owner" has all the extra holes that weren't used to deal with or to ignore....

Ford, GM and Fiat/Chrysler do exactly the same thing. In most models, the wiring harnesses all have "unused connectors" that connect to optional equipment. If purchased by the end buyer, they're used, if that option is not bought, the connector is "taped to the harness so it won't rattle. The mounting holes are drilled in every truck built, adapter/mount plates are added if the option is selected, left open (and covered by a vinyl plate) if not selected.

You'll find holes not needed, not required, not intended for your model because they are/were required by a different model built on that same chassis. They are "super-highways" into your trailer.....
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Old 10-25-2019, 07:49 AM   #6
flybouy
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Rodents are opportunists, as are all animals and most criminals. They will take the easiest, least energy consuming path to food. All the anti-rodent products are called "rodent deterrents" and not "rodent proof". A good barrier may deter a hungry mouse but an open door is on obvious invitation.
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