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| Suwannee River |
One of the major tasks this past week has been battling an increase of pests invading our motor home. Both the heavy rains and cooler nights over the past week seem to have put them on the move for finding different shelter. Most are insects, but we also had a small mouse boldly walk out from under the sofa a few nights ago while we were watching a television show. Unfortunately, it appears the our new dog Quincy is not going to be much help in keeping rodents out of the RV. He never roused from his sleeping position under the table when the mouse appeared or even paid any attention when I stomped the floor loudly to chase it away. Oh well, at least he's an adorable dog to look at.
Battling pests comes with the territory of living a full-time RV lifestyle; especially when you are traveling or staying in the insect-heavy Southern states. RV's are not as solidly built as traditional sticks-and-bricks structures and just have too many access points for pests to enter like the electrical cable, loose fitting window screens and sewage discharge pipes. Even in newer units, pests can always find a way inside. It takes only very small cracks in seams for insects to enter and mice can fit through holes as small as 1/4 of an inch.
Battling pests comes with the territory of living a full-time RV lifestyle; especially when you are traveling or staying in the insect-heavy Southern states. RV's are not as solidly built as traditional sticks-and-bricks structures and just have too many access points for pests to enter like the electrical cable, loose fitting window screens and sewage discharge pipes. Even in newer units, pests can always find a way inside. It takes only very small cracks in seams for insects to enter and mice can fit through holes as small as 1/4 of an inch.
The problem is also compounded by the fact that most RV parks and campgrounds are located in natural settings. Here at Kelly's the park is not only filled with a large number of trees, but also surrounded by completely undeveloped woodlands.
Aside from the using the usual pest control methods, we have also found that running the engine and generator on a regular basis during extended stays helps to limit pest invasions. The noise and vibrations created by these engines is irritating to pests. It may not solve the entire problem, but it helps in keeping the number of pests at a manageable levels. Besides, we always make it a practice to regularly run the engine and generator to help keep them in good operating condition.
Hopefully, we'll soon have some colder temperatures that will decrease the numbers of insects around here. In the meantime, I need to look into some training for that adorable dog of ours. After all, if he won't even defend us against a mouse, what good will he be if something really threatening comes along?
Copyright 2009-2010 Lane A Geyer
RV photo by Deb
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