Acorns in my heat exchangers
02-08-2010, 11:01 AM
#1
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Acorns in my heat exchangers
This happens every winter,the car sits in the garage,it's a nice day I take it out for a drive pull the levers for the heat and get the smell of roasted acorns.I have mice that use the exchangers for storing acorns.Last year I had to pull off all the hoses to the exchangers and was able to suck most of them out with a shop vac.How can I keep the mice from doing this? Also if I drive with the acorns in the exchangers will it cause a fire? So far they have stayed away from the wires causing no electrical problems.I do have a device that's suppose to let out a high pitch noise and keep them away but this doesn't seem to be working.
02-08-2010, 11:23 AM
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I had a situation where mice stored food inside my blower shroud. tucked up near the top of the heads.
I believe this percipiated needing a valve guide / top end rebuild. the intake valve guides were worse than the exhaust. it appears the food the mice stored was causing spot overheating on the intake valve side.
I now have cats to protect my car.
I believe this percipiated needing a valve guide / top end rebuild. the intake valve guides were worse than the exhaust. it appears the food the mice stored was causing spot overheating on the intake valve side.
I now have cats to protect my car.
02-08-2010, 06:39 PM
#4
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the answer is this .. stuff steelwool into your exhaust pipes ... you still need to trap them though as they love to chem through rubber wire insulation and leather
02-09-2010, 12:37 AM
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oh yeah of course ... never thought of that .... 
if those armour plated mice did that then you would pass out from the CO poisoning .. they say mice can collapse their skull and fit through a hole the size of a dime ..
the last mouse that got into my garage though couldn't out negotiate my hockey stick .. and became the first 100mph mouse .. with no helmet .
if those armour plated mice did that then you would pass out from the CO poisoning .. they say mice can collapse their skull and fit through a hole the size of a dime .. the last mouse that got into my garage though couldn't out negotiate my hockey stick .. and became the first 100mph mouse .. with no helmet .
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02-09-2010, 09:00 AM
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I think the acorns in your exchangers are the tip of the iceberg. You really need to get rid of the mice (rats, squirrels, flying squirrels, etc). Last year I had substantial damage to a Jeep I had stored for the winter. Mice or rats ate the hoses for the windshield washers, under hood wires, and even the rubber trim around the windshield. I found dead rats that had probably died from drinking the washer fluid that contained antifreeze. Unfortunately they had done their damage before their binge drinking got them!
Get rid of them anyway you can. The cat sounds like a particularly good idea, but traps, Decon, etc also work.
Get rid of them anyway you can. The cat sounds like a particularly good idea, but traps, Decon, etc also work.
02-09-2010, 03:53 PM
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I closed up the exhaust pipe last year and they still got in.There is gaps in the outer casing on the exchangers so that is where I think they are getting in.I do have 3 cats but they are basically house cats.Also it's a little cold here in the Northeast to leave them in the garage for any length of time.