Mice ugh......Mice proofing new heater?

Jump to latest Follow Reply
T

travelcat18

0
Apr 12, 2018
57
Indianapolis, IN
We went on vacation heater was working, when we got back out heater was dead, no power nada.

Pool guys comes out yesterday and opens up our Rheem gas unit and discovers a den of mice living in it. It seems they chewed up our wiring but good. Estimate to repair 12 year old unit $1200, or replace for $2600 all in.

Any suggesting how I mouse/rodent proof the new unit that I'm being forced to buy? I have moth balls, and mouse bait on standby, I was reading a bit about MK rat proofing screen.

Our first year of pool ownership is getting expensive.

Chemicals $75
water $200
autocover repair $300
New heater $2600
Mouse proofing unit $???
 
A 12 year run on a heater is pretty good. I realize the pool may be new to you, but that’s about the life expectancy for them. Very likekybthe rat/mouse problem always existed and you just caught the tail end of it. The MK Mouse-proofing should help a lot. An outdoor cat as a pet is also a great mouse deterrent. Mothballs are useless in my opinion and poisons should not be used as they are too dangerous and cause unintended secondary kills. Just make it difficult for the mice to get into the new heater and they’ll look for a better location.

Your water and chemical expense seems reasonable. Unfortunately autocovers are just expensive, no way around it.
 
I feel for you. I replaced a motorized Jandy valve that required opening up my outdoor breaker panel and found a mouse nest inside. Luckily they didn't chew any wires. There was a wire access hole knockout open on the bottom of the panel that they came in through. We closed that with some putty.

First thing to do is make sure that the unit is totally sealed and no holes, even small, for them to get in through. Installers are often sloppy and not sealing unsed access holes for wiring and plumbing.

I have a Pentair Mastertemp heater that is well sealed.

That nest was probably in there for a while. You just didn't know about it until they chewed a wire that made it inop.
 
A few things.

1. Steel wool - stuff in and around all cracks and openings. Mice can't chew through and it rips up their mouth so they move on.
2. Dryer sheets - told they hate the smell
3. Put one of those green mouse killer treats inside.
 
borjis said:
Our resident heater installer expert Paul (Ps0303) told me recently that the newer Raypak/Rheem units are much less
prone to vermin intrusion the way they are now designed, if that helps.
Click to expand...

Hmm, are you sure I was talking about mice or was I talking about the bottoms rusting out on the newer ones.
 
ps0303 said:
Hmm, are you sure I was talking about mice or was I talking about the bottoms rusting out on the newer ones.
Click to expand...

it was about mice. Someone posted a product that was like sheets of hardened screen to place in different access areas of heaters.

I had replied that seemed like a good idea, then you had posted something about the newer Raypak/Rheem units the way they are constructed
having less of an access issue for critters.

It was a while ago, I might have been mistaken. Perhaps you meant in general they are less prone to rodent infestation than other heater brands.
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply