The reality for most people is that, despite their best intentions, their garages become receptacles for castaway items. Things that need to be fixed, and unused and outgrown items are left to languish until finding their way into new hands.
But garages are also storage places for frequently-used items—unfortunately some of them are magnets for mice. These rodents may not only take up residence inside your garage, but they could venture farther into your home. Take heed of such items, and others that create hospitable conditions for mice.
Pet Food and Birdseed
Little Fido enjoys his dry dog food, unfortunately so do mice. If your garage serves as a cafeteria for your four-legged family member, or as a storage area for its vittles, it may also be a literal hole-in-the-wall diner for mice. The same goes for birdseed. If your garage is the storage place for your birdfeeder refills, you could be inviting mice, as well as other rodents, inside.
If you’re going to keep things like pet food and birdseed inside your garage the best way to discourage mice and other pests is to store the items in sealable plastic containers. Also, you can always opt to keep these supplies inside of your home and store them in your pantry on a high shelf, or atop your refrigerator.
Clutter
As we mentioned earlier, garages can become a no man’s land for items that have been banished from the home. Broken household appliances and obsolete electronics needing to be recycled, cans of half-used paint, old bikes with flat tires, and cardboard boxes filled with leftover odds and ends from the last garage sale are typical items among the quagmire.
Long story short: mice love this kind of environment—one where there are plenty of places to hide, cardboard boxes in particular. Your best protections, once again, are sealable plastic containers, as well as organization bins. They not only help consolidate space and provide fewer hiding places for mice, but they can discourage their presence altogether by keeping them out of your items.
