As a bass boat owner, I know how frustrating it can be to find evidence of mice running around inside. They can cause a ton of damage to your baits, gear, boat wiring, upholstery, and everything else. Our bass boats are the nicest house on the block, and the mice know it.
Winter is when I notice problems with mice the most. Come March, I’ve often had a few baits with nibbles on the corners and towels that are shredded. It makes sense. They’re looking for a place to live and I’m not using the boat as much so they’re not being disturbed.
But, it doesn’t seem to matter what season it is, the mice are always looking for a nice place to make a home. Just this past summer I had a whole family in my boat that likely went fishing with me more times than I realize. One day I was leaning on my boat while it was parked in my garage and “mom” ran up the side of a carboard box nearby, leaped to the deck of my boat and bailed into an open hatch. A few days later I had baby mice running around my compartments. I even had a mouse jump out of my drain plug when I opened it up after getting off the water.
I’ve owned some kind of bass bass for well over 12 years. Mice are nothing new to me and I suspect they’re not new to you either. I’ve made war with them in my garage, turning to the Internet to read up on everything I could in addition to my own experimentation.
Why do mice like bass boats?
Mice are attracted to boats for several reasons, including warmth, shelter, and potential food sources. Do you keep your hatches open or closed? Even if you keep all your hatches open, a boat still offers far more shelter from weather and temperatures than most other options available to them. Things like paper and fabric offer easy materials to make a nest. With the hatches closed, they’ll still find a way into your big, beautiful, insulated, expensive rodent hotel.
Food may be plentiful. Crumbs from your last ham and turkey sandwich litter the cracks and corners. You know, the ones that fall down behind and between your seats. And when those are all gone, all those lures and scents that bass fine tasty, the mice find edible in a pinch. More than likely, they’re coming and going from your boat as easily as we come and go to the grocery store. It isn’t necessary for the to find food in your boat. They don’t mind bringing what they need back to squirrel it all away for later.
How do mice get into bass boats?
Remember how I mentioned a mouse climbed a cardboard box near my boat and then jumped in? Well, that box was over three feet tall. And that leap from box to boat was a little more than two feet. That mouse got from concrete to bilge in a flash.
Is your boat near a wall stud or wood pole? I know from evidence in other places around my garage they can climb a wall stud even easier than a box. Are you leaving the straps to your boat cover loose and hanging down to or near the ground? Or, the safety and emergency break cables on your trailer? How about the power cord going to your charger?
They can enter boats through ridiculously small gaps and openings, so it’s important to seal up any potential entry points. It’s unlikely you’ll be able to close or block them all. I keep my hatches close except one. But, I protect that area. We’ll get into that in the next section.
How do we keep mice out of our bass boats?
I recommend starting with the area surrounding your boat, whether that’s a carport, pole barn, garage or just your driveway.
- Keep the area clean of clutter and debris. Don’t give mice a place to hide near your boat or material to make a nest.
- Keep food and water away from your boat. Pet food, bird food, grass seed, plant bulbs, etc.
- Some mice will eat bugs, so keeping all pest under control in the area may have benefits.
- Are the weather seals around your man doors and garage doors damaged? Can mice just crawl under or around them?
- Avoid putting your boat near things mice can climb like boxes, walls, poles, trees.
Protecting your boat…
- Pull up cover straps, trailer cables, chains, and power cords. Don’t give mice something to climb.
- Close drains for you live wells and bilge if possible. They can jump from floor right into these small openings if they’re not plugged or covered.
Can you repel mice?
The short answer is sort of. Nothing works 100%. But, every little bit might help and I recommend combining as much of the following as you can.
Mice aren’t blind, but they don’t have especially great vision either. They use their nose a lot. Mice typically prefer to travel along the edges of a room, dodging obstructions, but usually returning to the bottom of a wall. This is where you should focus repellants outside your boat.
I’ve use peppermint spray around edges of my garage. I think it helps, but I think it needs to be resprayed every couple months. Similar to peppermint spray, I’ve tried something called “Fresh Cab” at the corners of my garage doors. They’re palm-sized bags with oil-based scents mice don’t like.
Again, a clean boat is less interesting. If everything smells like chemicals, cleaners and polishes, they’re more likely to look elsewhere. Make sure to clean inside and behind everything you can.
I like to put fresh drier sheets in most of my hatches. Especially in my bilge because this is the one hatch I keep open. I don’t know if one scent is better than another, but I’ve had good success with original Bounce sheets. I’ve never tried mothballs, but I hear they’re similar to drier sheets. If I had to pick, I like the smell of drier sheets way better.
Consider your lures and gear if you plan to use repellants in your boat. I recommend taking out anything you don’t want to smell or taste like repellant. I wouldn’t want to take a chance of repelling bass too.
Finally, I want to talk a little bit about electronic devices. They emit a high-frequency ultrasonic sound that are supposed to repel rodents and bugs. I have 3 in my garage plugged in at about waist height. The devices I have do a job of repelling bugs, which has some benefit, but it’s not ideal. If you’re going to try these devices, I highly recommend getting a style you place on the floor and plug in with a power cord. Putting the device on the floor puts the sound right in the faces of the mice. And, putting them near doors and openings where mice might try to get in is more likely to give you the best results. There even have a style you can put right inside your boat.
Professional Help
When all else fails, it may be time to seek professional help. A professional pest control company can provide you with the expertise and equipment necessary to eliminate any rodent infestation in your boat.
It is important to note that professional pest control services can be expensive. However, the cost may be worth it if you have a severe infestation that requires specialized equipment and expertise to eliminate. Our boats and equipment are usually costly too.
Hopefully, this information helps you keep mice out of your bass boat. For me, every year is a little different. Sometimes it’s the chipmunks. One year I had birds making nests inside my garage and pooping on everything. But, mice are a constant. Whether you see them or not, they’re trying to get in. And, they’re coming for our bass boats.
