Mice and rats spread disease, contaminate your food, gnaw through your furniture and can even damage the wiring in your house. If you spot a rodent or signs of their presence in your home, act immediately -- these critters multiply quickly, and a small problem can become a major infestation before you know it. Poisons can leave you with dead mice or rats stinking up your walls, and exterminators can be expensive. Homemade traps are cheap and nontoxic, and they can be effective if you catch the problem early.
Lay a wide ruler by the edge of a table. Place some nuts on one end of the ruler.
Slide the end of the ruler with the nuts over the edge of the table until you find its tipping point. Balance the ruler so any extra weight on the end would cause it to fall off the table.
Place a tall trashcan under the end of the ruler where it extends from the table. Mice or rats will run across the ruler to get the nuts, and their weight will tip the ruler off the table and into the trash can.
Check the trap daily. Dispose of captured rats and mice in wild areas far from your home.
Dig a hole in the outdoor area where you have spotted rats or mice. Place a bucket in the hole, and repack the shoveled dirt around the edges of the bucket to fill in the sides of the hole. The lip of the bucket should be level with the ground.
Cut the ends off an ear of corn with a knife. Thread a 40-inch-long, sharp wire through the ear of corn lengthways. Push the corn to the center of the wire.
Dab a bubble of white glue onto the wire on either side of the corn to block it from sliding along the wire. Make sure the glue doesn't actually touch the corn, because the corn needs to be able to rotate freely.
Take the corn and the wire out to the bucket. Lay the wire across the bucket, so the corn is suspended over the opening. Bend each end of the wire at a 90-degree angle just past the edges of the bucket.
Stick the bent ends of the wire into the ground beside the bucket. This leaves a level walkway for rats and mice to use to reach the corn. Spread peanut butter on the corn as bait.
Fill the bottom quarter of the bucket with water if desired. When rats or mice try to eat the peanut butter, the corn will rotate under them and tip them into the bucket. If the bucket contains water, the rodents drown; if you leave it empty, you can capture them live.
Check the trap daily. Dispose of dead rodents promptly and change the water if you are using any; dispose of live rodents in wild areas far from your home.
Things You Will Need
- Wide ruler
- Tall trash can
- Ear of corn
- 40-inch long sharp wire
- Peanut butter
- Water, optional
- Rodents can jump. If you choose not to put water in an outdoor bucket trap, captured rodents might be able to escape.
- Wear gloves while handling live or dead rodents, their droppings and food they have been eating.
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