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Bugs and rodents are pretty much my least favorite part about RVing. Fortunately they haven't really been that awful over the last two years of full time RV living. Below are the types of pests we've encountered, what part of the country they were the worst, and what we have done about it.
Mice
Fortunately we haven't had any of these tiny rodents running around in Wendy. I would be freaking out much more if that were the case. BUT we have had them in our van. Like IN the van while I was driving! Yuck!
The first time this happened was in Columbia, MO during our winter stay. We were at an RV park and had a few snows so we were mostly using the truck and my van would sit for a week at a time without getting use. It was then that the opportunistic mice found there way under my hood and went to town on my wiring! Since it is not covered by a warranty it still needs to get fixed, 3 contracts later! It affects my entertainment system and cruise control which is an annoyance but not unsafe.
The second time we encountered it was in Phoenix, AZ where field mice love to roam. They chewed some nerf bullets and eventually made a home INSIDE my van unknown to us. Who knows how long I drove around like that!
Prevent mice from getting into your car or RV by:
Moving it often - don't let your vehicle sit too long
Place rope lights under your RV or cars
Place Irish Spring soap chunks around the outside of the car & inside
Keep it clean
Store food in air tight containers
Use Peppermint Essential Oil on a cotton ball
Flies & Gnats
Flies can be a pesky all across the country but it was the worst in Phoenix, AZ. This was likely due to the specific area we stayed at Saddle Mountain.
Here are some ways we handle flies:
Fly tape - this has been the most effective way
Keep food and trash cans covered
Spring on your screen door to try to keep the door shut (Thanks kids!)
A dust buster -yep, vacuum them up!
A bug assault - on John's wish list
Bag of water with a penny in it
Spray your screens with this natural bug repellent - https://bit.ly/3dtm27U
Ants
Ants have not been an issue until we reached the Blue Ridge Mountains. Here in North Carolina we are dealing with these tiny pests.
There are a few ways you can deal with them:
Terro Traps
Diatomaceous Earth sprinkled around anything that touches the ground
Keep food stored in air tight containers
Use peppermint, lemongrass, citrus or tea tree essential oils
I don't love bugs as you can tell. Overall we haven't had too many of them. The worst areas for bugs of all kinds have been in the Pacific Northwest and now the Appalachians.
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