Mice are a nuisance for homeowners and businesses alike. Mice cause damage to property and spread diseases such as salmonella and Lyme disease. According to the latest report from the Indiana Department Of Health, 20% of world food is eaten and contaminated by mice every year.
Due to their curious nature, they are always busy in the activity of searching for food, and if they find better options inside than outside surrounding, you will face mouse problems in your home.
Small holes and cracks are not a big issue for them, they can enter any gaps, holes, and cracks as small as 1/4″. One of the easiest ways to enter a house is through gaps around drainage pipes in the wall of your home.
Sometimes plumbers don’t give any importance to the gap around the pipes and if a homeowner is not aware of this, it causes a huge problem in the future.
Whether you live in a rural area or in a city, you may want to prevent them from entering your property. Here are three best ways to prevent mice from entering your home by sealing those nasty gaps around pipes.
So without further ado
Let’s go ahead to fix those gaps…
Table of Contents
How To Seal Around Pipes To Prevent Mice: 3 Easy And Self-Applied Ways
The best way to keep mice and rodents out of your home is to seal all the gaps around pipes through walls. Only one side fix doesn’t work. You have to seal them from the inside and outside as well.
Proper sealing will not only prevent mice from entering the home but also prevent water leakage, and energy loss in your home.
Equipment Required For This Process
- Safety gloves
- Safety eye google
- Hammer
- Caulking gun
- Loctite Tile Foam
- Quickrete Advanced Polymer Concrete Crack Sealant
- Cement
- Utility Knife
- Chisel
- Bucket
- Sponge
Safety Tips & Precautions
Always use safety gear before fixing anything at your home. This is especially mandatory when you have to deal with some harmful materials such as Foam sealant, cement, etc.
These types of materials become hard when cure and it becomes really a tough job to remove them from your clothes and hands.
Foam sealants are flammable. Avoid using them near the source of the fire.
How To Seal Around Pipes Inside The Home To Prevent Mice And Rats
This step-by-step guide will help you in sealing those dirty gaps around the pipe inside your home:
Step 1: Clean Around The Pipe Properly
Clean all the dust and dirt from the site thoroughly before we start. You can use a dry cloth, a small brush for that.
For hassle-free cleaning, you can use a vacuum cleaner. To reach some hidden spots you can attach a small tube to the hose of the vacuum cleaner for better cleaning.
Once you have cleaned the surface the next step is to choose the right sealant.
Step 2: Choose The Right Sealant
The selection of the right sealant is really very important, there are different types of sealants available in the market but they are only effective for some specific purposes.
I’ve mentioned some best sealants to seal the gap between the pipe and the wall.
Use Aerosol-Based Foam Sealant
This expanding foam sealant works effectively on surfaces such as concrete walls, brick walls, wood, etc.
The expansion form works really well with all types of gaps. In our case, we have to fill the gap around the pipe so that we can prevent mice break into the house.
I personally love Loctite Foam Sealant. It can expand three times its size after applying it to the surface.
The Loctite Tile Foam is compatible with most surfaces such as Wood, Brick, Concrete, Metal, and Stone.
Use Cement
This is another method to fix the gap around the pipes. Cement is a mixture of sand, gravel, and clay, along with other minerals and chemicals. It becomes hard when brought into contact with water.
This is also a good sealant to fix gaps and cracks. Before applying cement, make a square hole around the gap using a hammer and chisel, if the size of the gap is narrow.
Now clean all the dust and debris within the gap so that cement can seal the gap properly. When cleaning is done, it’s time to prepare the solution of cement. Take a bucket pour some cement in it and mix some water with the cement.
Keep in mind that don’t mix too much water with the cement, otherwise, it becomes useless. Now it’s time to apply the cement in the gap, you can use a margin trowel for this.
At the end smoothen the surface using a sponge or a putty knife by gently pressing the surface.
Step 3: Leave The Surface To Cure Properly
Leave the surface for a few days to cure properly. When cured perfectly it becomes a hard and tough shield against mice and rats.
How To Seal Around The Pipe Outside Of The Home To Prevent Mice?
We have all done fixing the gap around the pipe inside the house now it’s our turn to fix the outside gap around the pipe so that mice and rodents can not penetrate inside the house.
For this, one of the best approaches I know is caulking. Caulking is a great way to get rid of gaps and cracks to avoid leakage, pests, mice, and rodents inside the house.
Follow These Steps To Seal Around The Pipe Outside To Prevent Mice:
Step 1: Clean The Surface Properly
As always I suggested, cleaning the surface using a vacuum cleaner, dry cloth, and a small brush so that the gap becomes ready to seal.
Step 2: Apply Caulking
Before applying caulking around the pipe make sure to use the right sealant for this process. I would strongly recommend using Quikrete Advanced Polymer Concrete Crack Sealant. This is one of the best sealants for outdoor use.
It is capable of sealing the gap permanently and making it waterproof. The good thing is it doesn’t look odd after applying because it comes with a texture matte finish.
Many other sealants won’t work with plastic pipe effectively, but Quikrete Advanced Polymer Concrete Crack Sealant does.
Step 3: Leave The Surface For A Few Days To Cure
After applying the caulk, leave the gap for at least two days to cure properly.
Conclusion
Your home is not a playground for mice, you can get rid of those unwanted guests, by applying simple tips and the step-by-step guide mentioned in this article.
This article is all about how to solve your problem in an easy and effective way. I’ve mentioned 3 different methods here to seal the gap around the pipe. Tell me which is your favorite method in the comment section.
FAQ
Q.1 What Sealer Keeps Mice Away?
Ans: Many options out there, I personally like to use silicone-based sealant to keep mice away from my home. This is a non-toxic material and is completely safe for your family. It is really hard for mice to chew through.
Q.2 Can Mice Get Through Expanding Foam?
Ans: The expanding foam which I recommend to fill the gap around a pipe, is very effective in pest control. Mice can not get through the expanding foam. Polyurethane-based expanding foam is best to prevent mice entry at home because it is very hard to chew.
Q.3 Will Mice Chew Through Silicone Caulk?
Ans: Silicon caulk is very difficult to chew for mice and there is no way for them to enter your home if the gap is sealed using silicone caulk.
Q.4 What Are Some Best Sealants For Mice?
Ans: I’ve listed some best sealants to prevent mice entry into your home some are Loctite expansion foam, cement, and Quickrete Advanced Polymer Concrete Caulk sealant.
