[13 Tips] How To Get Rid Of Squirrels In Car Engine

Squirrels may seem to be harmless creatures but they can be a nuisance when it comes to affecting your daily life activities. Imagine when you are about to sit in a car and you realize the wires have been chewed by an unsettling squirrel.

In this article, we are going to look at ways that will help you get rid of squirrels in the car engine. The methods have been mentioned below:

By making use of the above-mentioned methods, one can get rid of the squirrels in the car and also prevent them from causing any harm to the engine wires. Read till the end to save your car and its parts from unexpected squirrel attacks.

[13] Tips To Getting Rid of Squirrels in Car Engine

1- Spraying Squirrel Repellent On The Car

One can spray squirrel repellents on the car, specifically the parts most likely to be affected by the squirrel attacks. The good thing about such sprays is that they are rodent specific and will not be causing harm to you in any way.

Furthermore, you can put the spray on your tires, bumper as well as undercarriage. This is done to ensure that the squirrel does not enter your vehicle in any alternative way. Spray repellents are flammable; you do not want them to spray on a hot engine. It will end in the ignition.

2- Making Use Of Ground Peppers

The ground peppers are natural repellents of squirrels and can be placed at any location to keep the squirrels away for good. The ground habaneros and cayenne pepper have a strong smell. It is unpleasant to smell them for the squirrels.

Since squirrels are rodents, they have a good sense of smell and can show their reflexes toward it by maintaining their distance. It is more unpleasant for little squirrels as well, as compared to grown-up adults. Squirrels change their direction once they smell ground peppers.

3- Making Use Of Moth Balls

The squirrels can also be repelled away by the presence of mothballs as they cannot bear their smell. Mothballs are naphthalene balls and can be purchased from the market. You can place them inside your car as well as on external areas as well.

However, the mothballs diminish with time and can be washed away quickly. You will have to put new ones as the old ones fade away. This is an effective measure is keeping your car engines safe. Also, this methodology is convenient for many users.

4- Using Squirrel Poisons

Though this is a difficult way to get rid of squirrels, it is also a method that guarantees the results. You must buy a few squirrel poisons like Contrac Blox, Final Blox, or Farnam. All these are possible poisons. They are available in the market and can be purchased online as well.

Once you have the poisons, you must place them in your engine area. Any squirrel will eat the poison and die if it comes near it. The only drawback of this method is that you will have to pick up the dead bodies of squirrels when they are found dead.

5- Using Traps To Capture Squirrels

The squirrels can also be captured by the same old conventional trap method. Applying this method is better to have bait ready for the squirrels. This will help them in being attracted to the trap. You can place various seeds and nuts to help attract the squirrels.

You can set up multiple traps inside your car and specifically the engine. It will help prevent the likely damage a squirrel can cause to your car. Moreover, once the squirrels realize that your car is a danger to them, they will try their best to steer clear of it.

6- Parking Your Car In the Garage

It is the simplest method for those people who have the facility of a garage in their homes. All you have to do is keep your car parked inside your garage at the end of the day. This will not allow the squirrels to enter your vehicle and start nesting there.

Furthermore, you can look for any holes and gaps in the garage doors. This is to make sure that there are no inlets of squirrels present. If you spot any cracks, you need to fill them or repair them immediately so that squirrels cannot get into damage your car.

7- Keeping The Hood Open

If you suspect that your car’s engine has squirrels in them, the easiest method is to pop the hood open. This will reveal what you are guessing. You should keep it open for a day or two at least. Why? The answer is simple. This will expose the squirrel and its babies to noise and light.

A squirrel does not like lots of light and noise as they begin to feel insecure. To make themselves safe, they will leave the previously occupied place in search of a new one. This is the easiest method to go for.

8- Introducing Light And Sound

You can make use of the previous method and add to it by exposing squirrels to light as well as sound. You can introduce bright lights inside your engine by lighting up torches, and the timid squirrels will run away immediately.

The next best thing you can do is, get a radio and place it underneath the car’s hood. This much noise will alert the squirrels, and they will run away from this distress in no time. You can also opt for other sound sources like mobile phones or speakers.

9- Calling Professional Pest Control

If the situations seem out of control to you and you cannot understand what to do about it, you can always seek help from professional authorities and call them for help. They offer good services and will help you address your squirrel issues.

This is also useful when fighting your fear of dealing with animals. Many people are too scared to deal with it and will have the authorities do it for them. All you have to do is pay them money and get your job done.

10- Being Observant

Being observant can also help you out. You can put your phone aside while walking through the parking lot. Moreover, you also want to ditch your headphone so that you are more aware of your surroundings. You can discover squirrel hideouts by only paying attention to your garden and valuables.

If you do this, you can be timely informed about any squirrel situations before it is too late to take action. You can also plan one step and report it to the authorities. It will help you solve your squirrel issues.

11- Removing Valuables From Cars

Another effective method is getting rid of the valuables from your vehicle. It would be best if you got rid of the ones that are visible through the window. Moreover, the national highway traffic administration states that all these valuables must be removed from plain sight.

Furthermore, all the windows and doors of the vehicles should be closed tightly to discourage squirrels from entering your engine. It would be best if you also kept your car keys with you to have easy access and monitoring in your car. By just working on these simple steps, you can increase your chances of protecting your vehicle from squirrels.

12- Using Rat Poison

Since squirrels are rodents, too, adding rat poison to your car engines will most likely kill the squirrels as well. This will help you get rid of squirrels from your machines. This method is easy as people usually have rat poisons present in their homes.

All you have to do is place the poison inside your car engines, and the squirrels will come to feed on it. The squirrels eat poison better if it is given with the bait. Hence, you must trick squirrels into eating it to get rid of them.

13- Using Bitter Apple Spray

The bitter apple spray can be used as a deterrent for squirrels and other wildlife. This spray is chemically synthesized, and you can purchase it from the market. To apply this, you must sprinkle it on various parts of your car.

This includes the windows, doors, and engine of the car. This is done to keep the squirrels from chewing on the car’s wires. It will help to keep your car squirrel free. It will also prevent the wild squirrels from coming back to your car time and time again.

Why do Squirrels Prefer Car Vehicles?

The squirrels are always on the lookout for nooks and crannies. Why? That is because they need a place to make their nesting area. The squirrels prefer car engines for several reasons, including the warmth provided by the car engine.

The squirrels also feel secure in small inconspicuous spaces. They opt for places where no one can sense their presence. Not even human beings. Adult squirrels, especially, are always on the hunt for such places.

Another important reason is that the vehicles usually offer squirrels a spot for putting their children. It becomes excellent ease for them to return to their kids after being on the search all day for food and other eatables.

Homemade Squirrel Repellent For Cars

You do not need to purchase squirrel repellents when you can also avail the option of making them at your home.

• The homemade squirrel repellents can be made by adding 4 cups of water and 1 ounce of hot sauce.
• One can also opt for putting hot pepper sauce in the water. It is better if you add three drops of dish soap. This will help in yielding better results. After you are done making the mixture, you need to test it.
• Sprinkle a few drops of it on your engine and wait for the response. If the squirrels do not come near your car engine, it is an effective measure. If they go near it, your pepper save or any other ingredient is probably not working correctly.

Wrapping It Up

The squirrels are timid creatures but can reside in your car engines and turn them into their nesting areas. While doing so, they also chew on the wiring inside the machines. You must be wary of this and do whatever you can to prevent your car.

This article has stated a very convenient way to choose from and get rid of squirrels inside your car engine. Hopefully, one or two methods will be sufficient to make the squirrels go away.

References

Rodent Control in Cars

Craig, Shuttleworth & Selonen, Vesa & Koprowski, John. (2016). Grey squirrel nesting ecology and the use of nest sites in European population management.