Mice
Mice in a Garage That Joins the House
Many interwar semis and detached houses in Edgware have a garage built against the side of the house, sharing a wall with the hall, kitchen or a later utility room. Some have a door straight through. Mice that get into the garage from the garden find cardboard to shred, dry corners to nest in and, very often, food: bird seed, dog biscuits, a crate of drinks and snacks, or the potatoes. The wider picture of what stored clutter does for pests is on Pest Control Edgware.
Why the boxes matter
A mouse nest is usually made from whatever is nearest and softest. In a storage garage that means the corner of a cardboard box, old curtains, a sleeping bag or loft insulation offcuts. Because boxes are moved so rarely, a nest can sit behind them for a whole winter, and the first anyone knows is a packet chewed through on a shelf.
Warm spots against the house wall
A chest freezer or second fridge gives off steady heat from its motor, and boilers are sometimes fitted in garages or utility rooms. Mice settle close to that warmth. From there, the holes where pipes and cables pass through into the house, or the gap under the internal door, lead straight into the kitchen cupboards.
The autumn move
Mice that spent the summer in hedges and flower beds look for shelter as the weather cools. A garage full of boxes is the obvious first stop, and the house is the second. How mice get into a house covers the other routes.
What to Look For in the Garage and Utility Room
- Small dark droppings along the base of the wall you share with the house
- Shredded cardboard, paper or fabric tucked behind stored boxes
- Nibbled bags of seed or pet food, or holes gnawed in plastic sacks
- Droppings under the freezer or around the boiler
- Scratching behind the utility room or kitchen units at night
The signs of mice has photos of what to look for. Larger droppings, or a burrow outside under the shed, may point to rats in Edgware instead.
What to Do Now
- Move food, seed and pet food out of the garage, or into metal or thick plastic bins with lids
- Pull boxes a short way off the shared wall so droppings and damage are easy to see
- Keep the internal door between the garage and the house shut
- Do not seal holes round pipes while mice are still active, or they may end up trapped inside the wall
- Do not leave poison in the garage where pets, children or other animals can reach it
Booking Mouse Control for an Edgware House
What to mention
When you book a mouse visit, say whether the garage is attached, whether there is a door into the house, and which rooms and outbuildings the signs are in. Tell us if there is a freezer, fridge or boiler in the garage.
Before and after
Give access to the garage, the utility room and the kitchen cupboards along the shared wall, and clear the area under the sink. The technician will explain what was found and what happens next. The time it takes depends on the house and how settled the mice are, as how long mouse treatment takes explains. Get back in touch if fresh droppings appear after it had gone quiet.
Making the Garage Less Useful to Mice
Store things on metal or plastic shelving off the floor, with a gap along the walls, and use lidded crates rather than cardboard. Keep anything edible in the house, not the garage. Fit a brush strip along the bottom of the garage door and a seal under the internal door. The small gaps round pipes and cables in the shared wall can be closed with rodent proofing in Edgware, and why mice keep coming back explains what happens if they are left. For mice across the rest of the borough, see Mouse Control Barnet.
