Mice smell?

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cuda65vpt

cuda65vpt

cuda65vpt
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Any pointers or success stories on getting rid of mice smell in a car?

My Barracuda had mice and I have replaced the whole interior. It for the most part did the job but my Yorkshire Terrier insists there is still something in the console.

The real reason I am asking is for my daughters car I just bought. It is a 1990 Celica and it stinks way worse than my Barracuda did. I'll start by removing the interior and power washing everything I can get to.
 
Try putting a few briquettes of charcoal in some plastic containers under the seats and change them out every few weeks. Charcoal absorbs odors over a period of time. Also try a spray called "Ozium" it masks the offensive odors as the charcoal absorbs them. Just a thought, other than stripping out the interiors.
 
I would like to know also.
Bought a 79 vette, the car came out of a barn.
Clean, let the po bring it to me.
After sitting in the sun one day, you could not stand sit in the car mice motel.
Ripped the entire interior out and replaced everything, $2K.
Still to this day there is a faint sent of the little rodents.

My buddy who is a detail pro, said to put pans of charcoal in the car and close it up for a month it will absorb the smell, this is after cleaning the best you can.
 
My buddy also said, to keep the car closed, all windows up and do not open the doors, and several pans of charcoal for over a month.
Like 25 lbs in several aluminum pan for over a month, he used to do this to flood cars.
 
A few years back, I bought some seats just for the frames. They came out of a mouse infested car and stank like piss bad. I stripped them down to the bare frames and sandblasted them clean. After some fresh paint the frames sat around my shop for a few weeks until I got the new foam buns and covers in and put on the frames. The seats went in and looked great! The first time I parked the car outside on a warm day, I opened the door and was smacked in the face by the smell of mouse piss! It took months for the smell to dissipate.
 
Baking soda is an excellent odor absorber and is mega cheap.
 
I have heard the Bounce dryer sheets will absorb the smell and keep the rodents from coming back.
 
Baking Soda as RustyRatRod suggests....spread it all over, spread it right on the carpet and leave it. Just vacuum up after at least a week,,,longer if possible. Removes cigarette smell as well.
 
I bought a car that was so infested you could smell it 10 ft from the car with the windows
up. I paid scrap price because I figured it likely was a lost cause I could still recoupe.
This was a 2000 Pontiac Bonneville and was meant for the little lady so I knew
It could not have a odor or she would reject it and me also probably.
My Buddy's were all laughing and said it was a total loss and she would kill me
just for thinking about giving her this car if she knew about it.
I kept it at my friends house and made them swear not a word about the car to here
or the mice.
I will say it wasn't easy but it is possible. She has been driving this car for nearly 3 years
now with not a complaint or hint of mouse smell.
The mice had gotten everywhere. They had nest above the headliner. Built tunnels and caverns
through the foam in every seat. In the doors were nest where they had relocated jute pad from
under the rear seat
The carpet was a lost cause. A cardinal got in the car and died under the passenger seat due to
a bad power window motor that left the window stuck down 4" for the last couple years it sat
unused.
I didn't even want to try and clean that up.
But every thing else cleaned up. I striped the floor of its carpet and pad and cleaned it with bleach water then brushed a coat of black rustoleum paint.
Same for the metal above the headliner. I was able to save the moulded headliner by striping the cloth and painting the fiberglass insulation type board with more of the paint. Both sides. When dry I patched the holes they bored thru it with aluminum furnace tape and glued new fabric to it. Good as new.
The seats I striped to the metal frames and washed with bleach water. Then painted over where the mice had been and had it rusting. The foam buns I submerged in bleach water
and flooded with a garden hose. Let them dry and glued in pieces to replace the eaten sections.
The car had cloth seat covers so I threw them in the wash machine with some tide. They
came out soft and clean. For whatever reason the mice didn't eat the covers just the foam buns.
The rest was just scrubbing the plastic parts down. The worst part was removing the defroster
ducts but they were plastic so once washed the smell was gone. And I really do mean gone, not
a trace. It took a few weeks for the paint to cure and the smell of the paint & upholstery glue to go away. But it did work out very well.
 
next question is: how to keep mice from getting in there in f irst place!!????? I bought a 65 cuda that came with new carpet, installed upholstery, got it all in and can't have the dainged nice move in!!!!!!! I keep rat bait in barn, crawl space, my cars sit under shed, nothing fancy.
I had friend back in 90's restored his 67 hemi X, left it in barn under car cover, like 4-5 years , then opened it up, BADdddddd, had me sell it for him, buyer pulled all interior out, even the under dash wiring, and steam cleaned it ALL! he paid $10,000 for what was a totally restoed car. the rechomed bumpers had even rusted, true story!!
 
barbee6043 said:
next question is: how to keep mice from getting in there in f irst place!!?????
Click to expand...

I use one of these for a car I store in a pole building.
http://www.carbag.com/products/carjacket
I put a good cover on the car before I seal it up. It comes with desiccant bags to prevent moisture. Seals the car up nice for winter storage. Once it's sealed up I put some moth balls around the perimeter to keep the mice from investigating. Other cars in the building have had mice in the winter.
Even for cars I store in my garage over winter, I put steel wool in the tail pipes. I hear mice hate the smell of fresh peppermint. You can buy bulk peppermint leaves on ebay for fairly cheap.
 
The car bag is a good idea for a classic. Not so much for a daily driver though.

I decided against buying this car because of the health risks in getting it cleaned. Based on all the mice poop I observed, Hantavirus would be a serious possibility.
 
No, not what you want for a daily driver. I was replying to Barbee 6043 about keeping mice out.
Unfortunately, unless EVERYTHING is removed from inside an infested car you won't get the entire smell out. Over the years on various cars I found nests under the dash, in the headliner, in the fresh air vents , behind the rear interior panels and in the trunk. I found a big nest in the corner of the cowl on my '69 Charger. The mouse pee was so bad it was rusting the cowl from under the cowl.
 
I tried everything you guys are talking about. You will still smell it.

They only true way to get rid of the smell is to rent an Ozone Generator, hook it up and let it do its thing in the car after you clean it out as best you can.

I went to a place that does flood damage work, talked to the guy.... He was a car guy as well. We actually looked at his bad *** restored 72 Blazer when I was there. The car was WOW nice. He let me take it on a hand shake and my word that I would bring it back in a couple days. I let it run for about 6 hours total. Smell was GONE. When I dropped it off I gave his secretary a gift certificate to a steak house for him and his wife for $100.00 for trusting me like that and helping me out.
 
Mad Dart said:
I tried everything you guys are talking about. You will still smell it.

They only true way to get rid of the smell is to rent an Ozone Generator, hook it up and let it do its thing in the car after you clean it out as best you can.

I went to a place that does flood damage work, talked to the guy.... He was a car guy as well. We actually looked at his bad *** restored 72 Blazer when I was there. The car was WOW nice. He let me take it on a hand shake and my word that I would bring it back in a couple days. I let it run for about 6 hours total. Smell was GONE. When I dropped it off I gave his secretary a gift certificate to a steak house for him and his wife for $100.00 for trusting me like that and helping me out.
Click to expand...

I will look into that, I still get a whiff of mice pee once in a while in my Vette.
All new interior helped but the smell is still there occasionally.
 
PA Dodger said:
I use one of these for a car I store in a pole building.http://www.carbag.com/products/carjacketI put a good cover on the car before I seal it up. It comes with desiccant bags to prevent moisture. Seals the car up nice for winter storage. Once it's sealed up I put some moth balls around the perimeter to keep the mice from investigating. Other cars in the building have had mice in the winter.Even for cars I store in my garage over winter, I put steel wool in the tail pipes. I hear mice hate the smell of fresh peppermint. You can buy bulk peppermint leaves on ebay for fairly cheap.
Click to expand...

thanks for the info. I drive these cars in winter when roads are dry so I won't be wrapping them..... Hantavirus????? I just cleaned about 2 5 gal buckets of poop out of 64 dart!! LOL not sure I want to know what it is!!! it was old vintage poop!!!
 
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