Mouseproofing and Insulating an Indoor Pipe Run

[Eric Johnson]

The piping to and from my boiler, which consists of 3/4 and 1-inch pex-al-pex lines through unheated building space, needed to be insulated. It worked OK without insulation, but it works a lot better with it. Part of this run goes through the barn ceiling joists, while the other part goes through a greenhouse, half of which is not being used at the moment, so it's pretty cold in there.

My problem was that after switching to pex from copper this past summer (I used the copper to make my heat exchanger), I was afraid that mice would nest in the insulation and chew through my nice new pex. Obviously, it's warm around the piping, so it would be only natural for the mice to seek refuge in there. Since I can't beat 'em, I figured I'd have to protect my pipe runs. What a pain!

Here's what I came up with. It's pex with foam pipe insulation, wrapped in fiberglass bat insulation and jacketed in heavy wire screen. Then, in the case of the greenhouse run, covered in another layer of fiberglass and wrapped in plastic to keep everything calm and dry. They may get into there, but they won't get at my precious pipes. The last pic is the run through the barn ceiling. A little different approach, but it gets the same job done. I put fiberglass and plastic over the top. I'm building a cabinet to house the greenhouse run, but I'm such an abysmal carpenter that I'm not posting any pics of that until it's done. And maybe not even then. Whatever. It does have a much higher WAF than bare pex snaking across the floor.

 

[Eric Johnson]

The barn ceiling run.

 

[drizler]

A box of DECON is a highly recommended addition wherever the little vermin tend to gather. Lots of folks don't like it but once you have had a fire started by the gnawing little critters you won't feel too sorry for them. Cats help but believe me (I have 4) they can't get em all by a long shot.

 

[wdc1160]

My dog is a mouser/ratter. She is 40lb terrier and she does't eatem, but brings them back to me like trophies.

I have never found anything that works for mice and rats if they are convinced that is where they need to be. they use glueboards at several food warehouses/ food and candy factories that I work at.
I also use glue boards at my house and cabin, but I know decon and farm grade poisons work.

But it is farm exerperience that tells me that you just have to try your best. They are destructive little critters. Do you think you are a critter target?

 

[Eric Johnson]

When I tore out the 1" copper, which had been in the same space for 4 years, there was evidence of mouse inhabitation in the insulation. Our 3 cats are worthless. I tell my wife not to feed them, but as usual, she ignores my advice. Plenty of mouse turds around the boiler room. Yeah, I've got mouse problems, but no evidence of any destructive behavior. Not crazy about the poison option, as I don't want to kill the cats (I guess), but I do use conventional mouse traps, which seem to work pretty well. Big, fat field mice.

 

[wdc1160]

The glue boards are usually effective and cheap as well. You can sometimes catch small rats. At a Candy factory in Chicago I work at some of the guys perform a coup de grâce with a pellet gun for the larger of the vermin caught in glue.

Or, get real barn cats. They attract coyotes, but they do keep the mice population down.

If possible I try to get rid of or hide what they are attracted too.

I am normally unsuccessful in getting rid of mice. My dog has a higher kill rate than me. So all I can do is repeat what the pro's have told me.

 

[Eric Johnson]

I'd like to get a Maine Coon. Now that's a real cat.

Barn cats are great. I grew up with them on a farm in central Wisconsin. Occasionally they get squished under a tractor tire, but there are always plenty more to take their place. My wife pampers her stupid fat cats. Say no more.

 

[wdc1160]

You know you could always get a terrier, they are good bird dogs and consider it fun to mouse.
Not to mention MAN's best friend.