I’d like to start this post off by saying that once you have mice in your home, the only way to get rid of mice is to use traps, poison them, call an exterminator, or get a cat that likes to hunt mice. Once the mice are in your home or car, they’ll likely put up with any repellents.
That being said, peppermint is one of the best natural repellents for mice to make them reconsider entering your home and also a great deterrent to keeping them out of certain parts of your home. The smell of peppermint can keep mice out of the kitchen and also out of your room if you’re scared of mice in your bed.
Mice are more attracted to the smells of trash which means food for them. They are scavenger animals looking for food almost always. This could be the reason they are turned off by the minty smells.
Below are a few of the simple ways you can use peppermint oil to get rid of mice and other tricks using more peppermint products.
Plant Peppermint to Keep Mice Away
If you live in an area that peppermint can grow outdoors, you should definitely consider planting this mint around your hard. The peppermint plant makes a refreshing smell when you enter and leave your home if you plant them close to your house.
If you also have a garden, peppermint plants can keep mice away from messing with your other plants. Mice usually see a garden as a free buffet, but the aroma of mint can overpower the smells of other plants in your garden, keeping them from destroying your garden.
Peppermint Plants in Your Kitchen
You can also grow small peppermint plants in your kitchen to keep mice out. This isn’t the strongest deterrent, but it definitely can help. There is also an added bonus of a better smelling kitchen and a constant flow of mint to use for cooking.
Many grocery stores have live peppermint plants that you can buy and keep in a plant pot in your kitchen. If you don’t want to worry about taking care of a plant, there are indoor herb growing stations that you can get off of Amazon that makes growing herbs and other plants like tomatoes incredibly easy.
Peppermint Oil Spray – Natural Mouse Repellent
This is something that a lot of people already do just to make their homes smell nice and clean. In a spray bottle make a mixture of water and peppermint essential oil. Spray this in the areas that you want to keep mice out of and around any areas that you believe could be entry points for mice or other pests.
The spray will be most useful around the perimeter of the room where mice tend to walk.
Mint Soaked Cotton Balls
If you have to leave some food out in your kitchen, like a fruit bowl, consider this mouse deterrent hack. Using the same essential oil mentioned in the spray above, add several drops to a cotton ball. Leave these either in your fruit bowl or nearby.
If you know where the mice already are and what their regular pathways are, use the cotton balls to keep them away from certain rooms. Mice have very poor eyesight and rely on their hearing and smell to navigate themselves. They urinate while walking around which gives them a smell to follow, like a smelly breadcrumb trail.
Place the cotton balls around their paths to confuse the mice and ruin their trails.
Altoid Mouse Repellent Hack
“The curiously strong mints” can also be used as a natural mouse repellent. For this method, get a tin of Altoids and crush the mints into a powder. This powder can be sprinkled around areas like your kitchen or pantry where you want to keep mice away from. Some people will sprinkle the Altoid mint dust around their beds so mice won’t go near the bed.
More Reading about Getting Rid of Mice
Afton Jackson says
I had never realized that peppermint is such an effective deterrent to mice and that even keeping plants of them around can make a difference. This makes me think about my aunt and how she’s been at a constant battle with the mice in her kitchen that she’s about to look for drastic measures that can help her with taking them out. Once I find her a pest control service that can get rid of the mice that are already in her kitchen, I’ll help her get some peppermint plants going so they won’t come back and pester her again.