How to Protect Your Car From Pest Infestation

Pests do not discriminate when looking for a home. A car is no different than a hollowed-out tree and the last thing you want is to find a pest making their home inside your vehicle, under the hood, or deep within a trunk.

Use the following tips to help protect your car from mice, bees, and other pests that can not only invade your vehicle but may also cause damage due to their presence.

Park in a Garage

Limiting exposure has a big impact on pest access to your vehicle. Parking in a garage can help limit a lot of exposure, especially for insects. Insects like bees and wasps are unlikely to be found inside your garage and you do not need to worry about the insects building nests in your car mirrors or windows.

When your car is parked outside during cold weather, the warmth of a recently used engine may draw pests to the area under your hood. From there, the animals can easily find a way into the ventilation system of the vehicle. In some cases, a mouse could have babies inside the vehicle and cause bigger issues as the mice explore and gain access to the interior.

Keep Your Garage Door in Good Condition

While garage parking helps, you also want to ensure small animals do not have easy access to your garage. Proper weather stripping will help eliminate gaps and holes that small animals can easily crawl through. Mice have been known to crawl through extremely small spaces so blocking out gaps is an essential process.

Along with the large automatic door, check any of the side doors or access doors to ensure they all shut properly. Add extra weatherstripping to the bottom of those doors as well.

Block Holes

Some areas of a garage may have vulnerabilities. The walls may not have as much thickness and insulation as the home itself. Small gaps and holes can open up easy access for pests. A pest control company can block those holes with copper mesh installation. The copper mesh prevents a rodent from squeezing through the gap and the copper is strong enough to prevent chewing.

During an inspection, a pest control worker will find any vulnerable areas. Some may be hidden in the dark corners of the garage or may not be visible with just a quick glance. The quick fix will help keep rodents out and away from your car.

Use Rodent Control Devices

For extra insurance, you can keep future rodents away from your vehicle with the use of rodent control devices. Pest control workers use a variety of items to help keep rodents away. A professional ultrasonic sound machine may emit high-pitched sounds to help ward off mice and deter the creatures from coming near your vehicle.

A pest control company may also set traps for mice. The traps are set near some of the more vulnerable areas of the garage and will help capture rodents before any critters can reach your car.

Remove Any Nests

The warmth and easy access to a garage could turn the roof, siding, or window areas into a nest-building site for bees or wasps. Without you noticing, a nest may grow very large and start to become an issue within the garage. Some insects will eventually make their way to your vehicle to build nests of their own. Paper wasps, for instance, are known to build small nests in side mirrors.

A pest control company will completely remove a bee or wasp nest and determine how the insects entered the area. In the case of honey bees, you can request a safe removal and relocation of a nest to ensure the bee colony survives and continues their nest at a safer location.

Employ Perimeter Solutions

One of the more ideal solutions to pest problems in your garage is to block the pests from the outside in. A pest control worker can use pesticides and treatment options on the exterior of the garage. After an initial exam and survey of the area, the worker can determine the best course of action.

Ideally, you want the process repeated annually to help keep insects and rodents away. The strength of the chemicals can wear off and may disappear due to poor weather like rain or snow. Depending on your location, you may consider a three-season service plan to help keep your car pest-free throughout the majority of the year.

If you park in a driveway, then you may consider the perimeter options for the driveway area. A pest control worker can help build an invisible wall with certain products. While a car is better protected in the garage or driveway, the solutions will make a difference and prevent invasions.

For more information on our services, contact us at Paffy's Pest Control. Whether you have one car or a whole collection, we will help keep everything pest-free and eliminate pest problems from your life.