Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FIRE!!

[ehuppert]

So, almost ready to put my new and improved 1008 on the road. Truck hasn't been driven in probably ten years and was sitting for most of that time. Last snow storm i was repositioning vehicles and leaving them running. CUCV was on choke (6.2 to 350 conv) and went to kick it down. CAB IS FULL OF SMOKE? Turned heater off, than back on.... sparks shooting out of the duct work.

So, i can get a extinguisher, but consequences of that will be quite the mess. Grab the impact driver and rip out the blower moter. Try to weasel my hand in and grab the smoldering mouse nest... No can do. Have the cuts and scrpaes to prove it! finally unbolted the heater box (minus the bottom bolt) and pulled the heater box back and removed enough material to fill a gallon jug. burning, smoldering nasty foam, insulation etc... Had jammed against the heater resistor and caught fire. The blower motor on high was very helpful in keeping the fire going.

If this had happened on the road it could have been disastrous as i only normally carry basic handtools!

morale of the story, if the vehicle has been sitting, at least pull the resistor out and do a visual inspection.... Better safe than sorry!

Happy holidays,

Eric

 

[dc3coyote]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

Or keep traps in your truck while they are sitting. Just remember to keep and eye on them.
Merry Christmas

 

[73m819]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

a guy i knew in cal had a gasser deuce line truck, it would idle fine, but going down the road it had no power, giving it gas, it would smoke and almost choke out, come to find out ,the truck had sat for a few years, he put a carb on and a bunch of other things but no good, he finily pulled the oil bath air cleaner and found a major mouse condo high up in side, cleaned that and the truck ran better then when it was new

 

[mangus580]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

I had a mouse nest in my deuce air cleaner, after sitting for only a FEW WEEKS!!!

 

[ida34]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

I used Ivory bar soap in my travel trailer to keep the critters out. Not sure how or why it works but the bar of soap will keep them out of the interior. I never had any rodent problem in the travel trailer and it was stored outside in the field. I need to take my own advice because they love to make a nest behind the glove compartment in my F-350.

 

[acetomatoco]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

I had a nest of snakes in the last M1008 I got from the USForest Service in NH...they sound funny going into the shop vac for sure...released em into the wild so they could walk home....

 

[dispatcher1011]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

I must admit that I was laughing out loud when I was trying to imagine the sound of snakes going through a shopvac... ehuppert, glad to hear you got the fire out. We don't need to lose any green iron that way!!

 

[jh1990]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

when my dad and i first got our deuce (jul 06), the entire air filter housing was full of what seemed like carpet, cleaned that out, and she just got a new filter a few months ago.

 

[vtdeucedriver]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

ditto here on the mouse nest in a deuce intake...............................he got me one spring.

 

[pa.rich]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

Someone told me that those scented dryer sheets work to repel the mice. I imagine one would have to replace them once they lose their scent. This was told by a man who restores cars and they sit in a barn. One time I had a Suburban that was only 6 mos. old, and a snake shed its skin under the dash. Found it when I was vacuuming.The car was closed and locked for about 2 weeks in a field .Dont kow how it got in. No rust holes!

 

[FrankUSMC]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

We just bought a new small farm, and it came with an outside kitty. I few days ago it showed me a mouse it had killed beside the new barn. She stays on the payroll.
One of the few, Frank USMC RET.

 

[Jake0147]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

You did shoo them on their way didn't you Jeff?

I found a batch in the air filter today, and another batch inside behind the drivers seat. The ones in the air filter got thrown into the woods with the nest and thereby a second chance. By the time I found more I was ready, they got snake loads. I guess that's what I get for shooing them out of my F-150.

 

[maxim]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

Went hunting on this guys farm in mid December. He had a old monster Cat dozer in the back of the field with intentions to get it in the spring. We walk by and see it is burned and scorched all in the cab area. He had a very dismayed look on his face when we told him. It too appeared the mice had a nest in the battery box and shorted out the battery and started a fire in turn lighting the seat and hoses. The thing had burned unoticed.

 

[Jake0147]

RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting! FI

I'm afraid they're going to do the same to my F-150. They tried once, luckily all I got was a no-start and a melted battery that I didn't dare try to jump start. I just got done setting traps at the deuce, the Ford, and by the wood pile where they always seem to move in every time I shoo them from any of their other favorite places.

I hate them, but I'll take this over moving back into town any day of the week.

 

[wdbtchr]

I have a different problem, squirrels packing acorns in every nook and cranny. The first winter I had my 5 ton they packed the air cleaner intake solid with acorns, now I have a mushroom from a deuce intake on it. Now it's part of my Spring mantenance on the vehicles a tractors to check for acorns.

 

[ONTOS66]

Ah yes! Acorns under the hood, I know it well. I've found them in a number of places on several vehicles, mine and the park commission. Then there was the recent problem with the printer at my office in the park - turned out to be a mouse nest deep inside the case - lots of fun to clean out (hint: a wire coat hanger makes a handy tool for those tight spaces)

 

[offroaddiesel]

Re: RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sitting

I had a nest of snakes in the last M1008 I got from the USForest Service in NH...they sound funny going into the shop vac for sure...released em into the wild so they could walk home....

snakes ,what kind.they seem to ruin my day every time i go to a salvager yard,but for mice i use moth balls. snakes, i dont know ,they just keep popping up around here in warm weather. steve

 

[citizensoldier]

RE: Re: RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sit

Here is a good story for this post. Although it was not good for me.. The MMMT had a nice M880 donated to it. It sat out behind a persons house for 2 or 3 years. Well the time came to get it tuned up so they could use it and I volunteered. Tuned up the carb and chased down some electrical ghosts..Anyway, time to stretch its legs and feel some breeze in the cab. Bigbee is driving and I am riding shotgun listening to the engine and watching for electrical fires.. Darn M880's.. Take it up to 55MPH I screem.. Ok cachug, cachug.. Man its hot in here! Open the vent he says.. by this time we are up to 60 MPH.. a couple piece of grass float around the cab.. I am yelling whats that stuff! kapoof! I get a mouth full of dead mouse ass along with a softball size mouse nest.. I have to say dont try mouse if you dont have to it taste like fur turpintine with a little ass funk mixed in... The whole vent box was full of a mouse city and shot me in the face and mouth at great speed! We then had to pull over because we could not see the road through the dabree dust field and were laughing so hard we fell out of the cab..

 

[offroaddiesel]

RE: Re: RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sit

haha sounds pretty wild, i guess thats better than having a bunch of snakes fly out , steve

 

[citizensoldier]

RE: Re: RE: Word to the wise for vehciles that have been sit

HATE SNAKES !! Now if that happened I would not be happy! I drove my deuce 200 miles after sitting for a long time and the mice just went along for the ride... My cats killed them in the drive when they exsplored there new surroundings..