Garage and Vehicle Rodent Control in San Antonio

In a lot of San Antonio homes the garage holds everything except the car. Boxes, bird seed, dog food, camping gear and a second fridge make it a good place for mice to live. Rats and pack rats like it too, especially when a vehicle sits for a week or more with a warm engine bay to nest in.

Chewed wiring is the expensive part. A rodent that nests under the hood can gnaw through wires and hoses, and the repair bill can run high. This page covers getting rodents out of the garage and keeping them away from vehicles.

Droppings along garage walls or on shelves
Nest material in the engine bay or the air filter box
A check engine light or electrical problem after the car sat
Chewed bags of pet food or bird seed
Sticks, leaves and trash piled behind stored items

How rodents get into garages

The garage door is the usual culprit. The rubber bottom seal cracks and shrinks in the sun, and the corners of the door often leave a gap a mouse can walk through. Side doors with no sweep, open vents, and gaps where the garage wall meets the slab add more.

Once inside, mice move along the walls behind stored boxes. Roof rats can come in from above through the garage attic. On the brushy north and west edges of town, woodrats walk in through an open door and build a nest behind the water heater or under a workbench.

Worn bottom seal and open corners on the garage door
Side doors without a sweep
Gaps between the slab and the wall framing
Open garage attic access with no seal

What a thorough job includes

A good garage job goes beyond a handful of traps:

Inspection of the door seals, walls, attic access and stored items
Trapping along walls and near nests, away from kids and pets
New bottom seal and corner seals on the garage door
Sweeps on side doors and mesh in any wall gaps
Advice on storing feed and seed in metal containers
A check of vehicles that sit, including under the hood

Noise in the attic tonight? Talk to someone who handles San Antonio rodents.
Call (210) 955-2948

Step by step

First the technician finds where activity is heaviest. That usually means moving some boxes. Traps go in along those walls. Any vehicle that sits gets checked under the hood, and nests are removed with gloves after being wetted down. Over the next week or two the traps get checked while door seals and wall gaps are closed. The last step is storage: getting boxes off the floor and food into containers rodents can't chew.

Keeping cars, trucks and boats safe

Move vehicles that sit at least once a week if you can, and pop the hood when you do. Look for leaves, shredded insulation, acorns or pecan shells packed in corners of the engine bay, and for droppings on top of the battery or the air filter box. Clean out any nest material with gloves on. Park away from brush and woodpiles. For a boat or RV in storage, check under covers and inside compartments every couple of weeks.

If a vehicle starts showing electrical warnings after sitting, tell the mechanic you suspect rodents. They'll know where to look.

Why garages are busy in San Antonio

Our heat bakes rubber door seals. A seal that looks fine in March can be cracked by September. Many homes also have attached garages that share a wall with the kitchen, so mice in the garage end up in the pantry.

Vehicles add risk. Lots of households keep a second car, a work truck, a boat or an RV that sits for weeks. Near brush and greenbelts, that still engine bay is an easy nest. The rats in the car engine article has prevention tips.

Questions from callers

Will my car insurance cover chewed wires?

Some comprehensive policies cover rodent damage and some don't. Call your agent and ask.

Does leaving the hood up help?

Some people find it makes the engine bay less appealing as a dark nest. It isn't a fix. Moving the car often and closing the garage gaps work better.

Should I keep bird seed in the garage?

Only in a metal can with a tight lid. Plastic bins and bags get chewed.

Can I put bait stations in the garage?

Ask the technician. Bait near cars can lead to rats dying in the engine bay or walls. Traps inside and locked stations outside are a common setup.

Do moth balls or dryer sheets under the hood work?

We haven't seen good evidence that they keep rodents away for long, and moth balls give off fumes you don't want in a closed garage. Moving the car, closing gaps and trapping work better. See do rodent repellents work.

What about a shed out back?

Same approach. Seal the door gap with a metal threshold, get stored items off the floor, and check for nests. See pack rat removal for woodrats in sheds.