ᐅ The wall suddenly smells like marijuana and stale beer.

You wouldn’t believe where mice can get to and what they are capable of. We used to live with my sister-in-law and brother-in-law in an old multi-family natural stone house with very thick walls.

Since a large part of it was vacant for a long time, the mice really felt at home and spread out.

The mice managed to carry walnuts up into the natural stone walls, rolled them along the cavity floor, brought them up behind our wardrobe unit, and then cracked them open under it. We were almost going crazy because we thought they were gnawing on the cabinets.

We then set traps everywhere in various vacant areas, including the basement and attic, and emptied them at least twice a day. The record was 9 mice caught in one day. After half a year of intense trapping and over 300 mice caught, we had reduced their numbers so much that we hardly noticed them anymore.

Musketier schrieb:

You wouldn’t believe where mice can get into and what they’re capable of. We used to live with my sister-in-law and brother-in-law in an old multi-family natural stone house with very thick walls.
Since a large part of it was vacant for a long time, the mice really made themselves at home and spread out.
The mice carried walnuts up into the natural stone walls, rolled them along the crawl space, brought them behind our wardrobe, and then cracked them open underneath. We almost went crazy because we thought they were gnawing on the cabinets.
We then set traps all over the various empty areas, including the basement and attic, and emptied them at least twice a day.
Our record was catching 9 mice in one day. After six months of intensive trapping and over 300 mice caught, we had reduced them so much that we hardly noticed them anymore.

😱 Oh my goodness! That’s unbelievable! I think I’m going to buy a few more traps... 😀

Hello everyone,
thank you for your information and the pictures. Yesterday, I covered the area under the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room, where the smell is coming from inside, with plastic sheeting and tape, and also placed two animal repellent devices outside on the terrace in front of the windows. Unfortunately, this had no effect. This morning, when we went from the bedroom to the living/hallway area, the smell was still there as it had been the previous days. Now (midday), as it’s getting drier and warmer, the smell is gone, and it’s possible to air out the room without the odor returning after half an hour.
I am still investigating. The next step would be, as you did, to remove the terrace slabs outside. However, they are stone and have been there for over 30 years. It probably won’t happen before Easter. But it is strange that the smell—if it’s mice living under the terrace and near the windows, as in your case, Stefanie—penetrates so strongly into the interior of the house. Although the windows at that spot are floor-to-ceiling, they cannot be opened. The terrace door is much further forward, and there is no smell there. That is why I thought sealing all the cracks around the window should reduce the odor. During construction work (when the old oil heating system was removed), we also taped plastic sheeting inside the house, which not only reduced dust but significantly lowered the smell of heating oil and so on. Therefore, I hoped the “marijuana smell” would also decrease by doing this.

Stefanie, is the smell completely gone for you now? And are the mice gone as well? What are you currently using to combat them?

Best regards!

blueday schrieb:

Hello everyone,
thanks already for your information and the pictures. Yesterday, I taped off the area under the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room — the spot where the smell is coming from inside — using plastic sheeting and tape. Additionally, I placed two pest repellent devices outside on the terrace in front of the windows. Unfortunately, that didn’t help at all. This morning, when we walked from the bedroom into the living and hallway area, the smell was just as strong as in the previous days. Now (around midday), as it’s getting drier and warmer, the smell has disappeared and it’s possible to air out without the odor returning after half an hour.

I’m still searching for the cause. The next step would be, like in your case, to remove the terrace slabs outside. They are made of stone and have been there for over 30 years. So this probably won’t happen before Easter. But it’s strange that the smell—if it is indeed mice living beneath the terrace and under the windows, like you experienced, Stefanie—that it penetrates so strongly into the interior of the house. Although we have floor-to-ceiling windows there, they cannot be opened. The patio door is located further forward, where there is no smell. That’s why I thought that sealing all the gaps around the windows should reduce the smell. During construction work (removal of the old oil heating system) we taped plastic sheeting inside the house, which significantly reduced not only construction dust but also the smell of heating oil and so on. That’s why I hoped the "marijuana smell" would also decrease this way.

Stefanie, is the smell completely gone for you now? And the mice as well? What are you currently using to get rid of them?

Best regards!

Hello!

Honestly, I never thought something like this could infiltrate so much. My windows are triple-glazed, well installed, and only a few years old. But it was exactly like with you...

Now it still smells a little like the vinegar I sprayed, but no longer like mice! Yay!
Not a single one has been caught in the trap yet; maybe it has at least temporarily moved out.

Great that the smell has finally disappeared for you! I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it stays that way!

Last night, I also sealed another spot under our windows with foil. This morning, the smell was gone! In addition, I poured apple cider vinegar in front of the windows on the terrace. Interestingly, there’s no vinegar smell inside our house, even though our windows are already 30 years old and there’s always a slight draft under them.

However, the weather was warmer and drier yesterday, which usually helps reduce the smell in our case. I’m continuing to monitor the situation and am curious to see how it develops.

But it’s strange that no mouse has been caught in your trap yet.

A quick update on the mouse hunt... There was an animal at both snap traps, since the Nutella is less and the cheese is gone, but none of the traps were triggered. There’s also a slight smell again. So the peppermint oil doesn’t seem to help either. Vinegar seems to be more effective, but I can’t spray it under the veranda anymore (since it’s been put back together).
For now, I’ve ordered a better live catch trap and am hoping for the best.