Protecting a (Honda) Home Generator from Mice

On Oct. 21, 2003 there was a post on alt.honda that said, in part:

"I have a Honda EM5000SX generator I paid $2100
for new 5 years ago. It only has about 10 hours on
it as it's just backup for home. The other day it
gave no output and turns out some mice got inside
and ruined the generator portion. The Honda dealer
where I bought it said it would cost more to replace
the brushes and other components than to just buy a
new generator. . ."

Here's some more quotes on mice damage:

Nov. 21, 1999
" I recently finished rebuilding a (fixing mouse damage)
Honda EFs-5500 generator. . ."

Sep. 24, 1998
"I will need to fab up a metal box to keep the mice out
of the windings. . ."

Jul 30, 2006
"Mice in my shed have eaten away all insulation
from the inside of my EU3000is. Seems the
generator is noticeably louder without the insulation.
I can not find a dealer who can order these two
insulation 'blocks' from Honda. Can someone
please measure both insulation 'blocks' and post
the dimensions? I will try to glue alternative
insulation in its place."

I recently took a box cutter and made a small box cardboard box (out of
a larger one) and put it over my Honda Generator. Then inside the box I
put a can with holes in it filled with naphthalene moth balls.

Now, one problem that I have is those moth balls really smell bad. In
fact, they are stinking up my entire garage. That's a relatively small
problem, though. A bigger potential problem I am wonder about is
whether the fumes from the moth balls might damage the generator. Given
the potency of the gas that those moth balls (napthalene), another
problem, of course, is whether there is a health risk.

Here's an excerpt from something I found on the internet:

"CANCER HAZARD
Naphthalene may be a CARCINOGEN in humans since it has been show to
cause nasal and lung cancer in animals. Many scientists believe there
is no safe level of exposure to a carcinogen."

So, mothballs might not be a great idea, unless you can completely seal
the container. Even so, the question still exists in regard to the
generator. Is napthalene safe for a generator?

Does anyone have any other ideas on how to protect a generator from
mice?

 

There are sticky pads which will trap mice until you can remove them. And,
there is
a pesticide cake called 'Just one bite' which mice love and which will kill
them.

 

You could also make a "box" out of metal cage wire to place the generator
in.
The metal grid would have to have very small holes in it, because mice can
squeeze through very small holes.
Maybe chicken wire with screen wire lining it?
Also, Walmart sells "D-Con" mouse poison which is very effective.

 

On 10 Sep 2006 10:18:11 -0700, wrote:

[snip]

My brother-in-law placed theirs on a small table that has large
diameter, very smooth, varnished legs. Mice can not climb the
smooth large diameter varnished legs of this tale. This table is
located away from any other items that mice could climb up then
jump to the table with the generator on it.

 

That strikes me as a pretty good idea!

The box could, for example, be made out of 2" x 2" lumber and
door-screen material.

 

You might also try the "Rat Zapper" I used to sell them and everyone who
bought one was very happy with the product. They are basically a plastic
box with a metal floor and I assume a BIG capacitor since they were powered
by 4 AA batteries. Highly effective and a kind of fun way to deal with rats
and mice.

 

The proper way to protect it is with fine metal screening covering all
the openings. Keeps out both rodents and many insects. You do not need
to enclose the entire unit, just seal off the problem areas with a fine
mesh, no more than about 1/8" opening size.

Pete C.

 

I think you are right. Protecting the problem areas or building an
entire box out of fine metal screening is the best and possibly the
only practical solution. I'm not sure why I didn't think of it right
off the bat.

 

Yeah, get a cat....

 

Mine rests on an metal shelf about 4 ft above the floor. You can build your
own with square tubing and plate steel. If you cannot weld , drill holes
and use good bolts with nuts and lock washers. Then attach shelf to the
wall using lag screws. Good luck.

 

Here in rural north central Texas I have had problems for years with
mice eating everything out of equipment like wires, vacuum lines, and
insulation from my vehicles. I've had to rewire a bunch in a Corvette
and re-do vacuum lines and the car was still never right again. I've
had to replace the air filter and clean out the air filter housing on
my 3/4 ton pickup where mice had moved about a 10 inch diameter piece
of the firewall instulation to the airbox as a nest, and the list goes
on and on.

I've used D-CON poison and various traps and they were all problematic.
Supposedly, with D-CON, it makes them thirsty and they "go outside to
die". HA! Yeah, right. Sure. Maybe some do. But some (if not all)
do not. And those have a way of rotting in a very unique way; very
distinctive smell. You most likely will not like it. And there's
always the problem of secondary poisoning (cats, dogs, etc. that eat
the poisoned mice/rats).

What I wound up doing, on accident, was getting two stray cats and that
took care of all my problems. I used to have mice that would get into
my house (concrete slab, brick home), too, and that doesn't happen any
more, either. The cats are great and have been a God-send for taking
care of the mice. Of course, I don't have many squirrels anymore,
either, so maybe they took care of more than I needed them to.

One suggestion someone else posted below, if cats are not an option, is
to use a table to support the generator off the floor and prevent
access to the unit (both with smooth legs and with an overhang so that
even if they could climb the legs they couldn't get over the top edge).
That's a great idea, too, but it won't take care of the rest of your
possessions. A simple piece of plate steel and some steel tubing would
work well. Welding it would be the best (or at least fastest) way to
build it. You could try a simple flux-core wire welder if you want the
cheapest (and almost the easiest) way to go (available at Home Depot,
Lowe's, etc.) or stick welder (get an AC/DC unit in case you want to do
different types of welding in the future) also available at Home Depot,
Lowe's, etc. For more money but better results, and, I think, the
easiest welding (if not the strongest but sufficient for this table
idea) get a gas-shielded wire welder (my Millermatic 210 by Miller
Welding cost about 1,500 dollars after paying for the gas, wire, wire
lube, etc.). For larger selection of machines find a place like
Tractor Supply Company (www.tractorsupply.com) or a dedicated welding
shop.

FWIW, HTH.

--HC

 

Here in rural north central Texas I have had problems for years with
mice eating everything out of equipment like wires, vacuum lines, and
insulation from my vehicles. I've had to rewire a bunch in a Corvette
and re-do vacuum lines and the car was still never right again. I've
had to replace the air filter and clean out the air filter housing on
my 3/4 ton pickup where mice had moved about a 10 inch diameter piece
of the firewall instulation to the airbox as a nest, and the list goes
on and on.

I've used D-CON poison and various traps and they were all problematic.
Supposedly, with D-CON, it makes them thirsty and they "go outside to
die". HA! Yeah, right. Sure. Maybe some do. But some (if not all)
do not. And those have a way of rotting in a very unique way; very
distinctive smell. You most likely will not like it. And there's
always the problem of secondary poisoning (cats, dogs, etc. that eat
the poisoned mice/rats).

What I wound up doing, on accident, was getting two stray cats and that
took care of all my problems. I used to have mice that would get into
my house (concrete slab, brick home), too, and that doesn't happen any
more, either. The cats are great and have been a God-send for taking
care of the mice. Of course, I don't have many squirrels anymore,
either, so maybe they took care of more than I needed them to.

One suggestion someone else posted below, if cats are not an option, is
to use a table to support the generator off the floor and prevent
access to the unit (both with smooth legs and with an overhang so that
even if they could climb the legs they couldn't get over the top edge).
That's a great idea, too, but it won't take care of the rest of your
possessions. A simple piece of plate steel and some steel tubing would
work well. Welding it would be the best (or at least fastest) way to
build it. You could try a simple flux-core wire welder if you want the
cheapest (and almost the easiest) way to go (available at Home Depot,
Lowe's, etc.) or stick welder (get an AC/DC unit in case you want to do
different types of welding in the future) also available at Home Depot,
Lowe's, etc. For more money but better results, and, I think, the
easiest welding (if not the strongest but sufficient for this table
idea) get a gas-shielded wire welder (my Millermatic 210 by Miller
Welding cost about 1,500 dollars after paying for the gas, wire, wire
lube, etc.). For larger selection of machines find a place like
Tractor Supply Company (www.tractorsupply.com) or a dedicated welding
shop.

FWIW, HTH.

--HC

 

I made a steel 'box' using 1/4 steel and a welder. Dammed thingalmost blew
out my hernia. Buy no more mice! Unfortunately, when I need to use my gen,
I need myself and two other people to remove the 'box'

 

....
Moving heavy things is what tools are all about.

One method would be to mount a winch/hoist above the box to
lift the thing. Another method might be to mount a steel
I beam with a pivot in the middle and attach the box, perhaps
via chains, to one end and a heavy weight on the other to
counter-balance it. The same could be done with a pulley and
counterweight. Pneumatics and screw jacks are possibilities
as well but they would cost money.

Myself, I would probably set the 1/4 steel box aside and
rebuild it out of sheet steel. To the best of my knowledge,
mice have problems chewing through sheet metal.

Anthony

 

...get a cat that loves micies. Many do not like the leetle rodents!

Q

 

Or 2 cats even !

Graham

 

Dont feed the cat expensive cat food for a few days, he will eat the mice..

 

For my Honda 2000i, I wound up using a Rubbermaid "Roughneck", #2162,
35-gallon, storage container. These cost $14.99 at Target.
http://www.rubbermaid.com/rubbermaid/product/product.jhtml?prodId=HPProd150029

 

Start of new thread: "Can you please tell me how to protect my home
generator from cats?" :Oo

 

Euthanize the cats?