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**Ogrekhan** · 10-11-2010, 11:11 AM

Hey,

If it weren't for your wife's health problems I'd say put on a dust mask and gloves, grab your favorite cleaner , and go to town. Being a farmer I've ran into this problem more than I'd care to mention. Being as the vehicle can be moved away from the house , and kept away from your wife I'd say a shop vac with an extension cord is a good tool. There are good products available that use enzymes to actually destroy the urine. Be careful with that bleach around the cloth, and plastic.. but by all means use bleach it kills most everything. Make sure you are in a well ventilated area though! Clean it..let it air out awhile then inspect, and clean it again. G'luck!

P.S Be sure to check the heater vents for nests. Mice are notorious for building them there.

**boydg1** · 10-11-2010, 11:30 AM

.... You are talking my language, I do appreciate your experience and info.

Thank you very much

Originally posted by Ogrekhan View Post

Hey,

If it weren't for your wife's health problems I'd say put on a dust mask and gloves, grab your favorite cleaner , and go to town. Being a farmer I've ran into this problem more than I'd care to mention. Being as the vehicle can be moved away from the house , and kept away from your wife I'd say a shop vac with an extension cord is a good tool. There are good products available that use enzymes to actually destroy the urine. Be careful with that bleach around the cloth, and plastic.. but by all means use bleach it kills most everything. Make sure you are in a well ventilated area though! Clean it..let it air out awhile then inspect, and clean it again. G'luck!

P.S Be sure to check the heater vents for nests. Mice are notorious for building them there.

**Pu241** · 10-11-2010, 12:19 PM

Originally posted by boydg1 View Post

�. So, if you can shed any light, share your own personal experiences, or have first hand GOOD knowledge of how to go about handling such a circumstance it would without question be very much appreciated. :?:

Strange you should say "shed any light".
For whatever biological reason, mammals urine fluoresces under UV light.
So with a florescent "black" light, available at Wal-Mart($) or a special ($$) pet urine detection light, from Pet Smart, you should be able to see were the mice/chipmunks made "deposits".
Definitely use this in a dark garage or outside with no moon or a tarp covering the windows.
Darker it is and the more dark adapted your eyes, the better you can discern the spots of fluorescent material.
There are other biocides that can be used in place of bleach.
My concern is that the bleach will corrode the wiring under the dash.
A good start would be to pull the interior and use a carpet/upholstery cleaner to do the seats/carpet/ and door cards.
Using a solution of Lysol and an anti-forming agent (the Lysol will foam in these machines).
Use as hot a water as you can get into the machine.
When it's all cleaned set it in the sun to dry (UV sterilization) and then use hot water again with nothing it it to remove residual Lysol, as this may cause your wife as much issues as the original "problem".
Let dry again in the sun.
And that should go a long way toward making this vehicle safe for your wife.
You may want to pull as much of the air handling "tubing as you can and wash them out as well.
I'd be very careful of "hosing" off anything under the dash.
Good luck with this.

**kumalaba** · 10-11-2010, 01:36 PM

^

dont 4get to check your wiring they are known to chew em up!

**graywolf_14** · 10-11-2010, 04:50 PM

Good luck getting it all cleaned out, why were they sitting so long if you dont mind me asking...

**JPT** · 10-11-2010, 05:47 PM

If you do decide to use bleach, you only need to use a little. About an ounce per gallon. if the water has a smell to it, that's enough.

Most likely you'll find mold in the car too. Probably a lot. You might be tempted to use one of those bathroom mold killers in your car. Bad move. Way too strong. It will leave bleach marks and the smell will live in your car for months (believe me, I know). Use bleachwater.

With the shop vac, get some pieces of small hose, like rubber vacuum lines. Tape or hold them onto the end of the vac hose for getting into tight places.

One way to get SOME of the stuff out of the vents is to block all but one, put the vacuum cleaner hose on the open one, crank the fan all the way up and work the fresh air/recirculated air lever back and forth. do this for each vent. Work in stages, floor, dash and defrost.

Good luck

**boydg1** · 10-11-2010, 09:00 PM

why were they sitting so long if you dont mind me asking...

Originally posted by graywolf_14 View Post

Good luck getting it all cleaned out, why were they sitting so long if you dont mind me asking...

…. I had no real intent on reactivating either one of these two vehicles. But, economics and the cost of living has caused me to perhaps reconsider. My wife, many years ago was involved in a head on accident in our 1986 4X4 NISSAN KING CAB truck which saved her life . She was hit by a big heavy CHRYSLER LEBARON and on that very night she started to get into the KIA SOPHIA at home before she left and changed her mind after thinking she hadn't run the truck for a while, that move save her life, the truck was absolutely totaled. All indications were that this alcoholic guy who just left the bar because his seven year old son could NOT be there after dusk by law. His son, unbuckled and traveling without headlights and on the wrong side of the road coming over the top of a hill and making the curve all at the same time. My wife NEVER saw what hit her and there were NO skid marks on her side of the road. I was out of town at the time. At that time, when most people were using telephone modems and the Internet was just getting started there were NO real safety ratings to speak of on cars. After the accident, I found out that the FESTIVA XL and the KIA SOPHIA were just about the most unsafe cars on the road and this was after traveling over 476,000 miles in the FESTIVA alone not to mention another 160,000 miles or so on the KIA SOPHIA back and forth to work for many years. So, I decided NOT to replace the truck and to park both the FESTIVA and the KIA and replace all of this with a 5 STAR SUBARU OUTBACK LIMITED wagon which would do the job of all it was replacing. Now that eleven, twelve years or so have passed I have come to the conclusion that when your NUMBER is UP your NUMBER is UP. In other words when God calls YOU home it's NOT going to matter whether you're in a SAFETY FIVE STAR Car or NOT !! And all I can say to those that read this., Make sure you're SAVED and that you have reserved an ETERNAL ADRESS in God's LAMBS BOOK of LIFE.

.
Thanks
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**deathegg** · 10-11-2010, 10:30 PM

If it's within your budget, and if that interior is really bad, I would suggest going to the local pick-a-part and getting a used carpet, and maybe even seat covers etc. Might be a lot easier than trying to get everything (stains, smells) out.

**gauge_half_inch** · 10-13-2010, 12:57 PM

if it makes you feel a little more ambitious about this task at hand, the car im driving now sat in a field for over 2 years and had a half dozen or more field mice in it that had found themselves a sweet shelter. they had chewed the fabric from under the back seat to shreds, nested in the glove box over flowing it all over the floor. they also made a nest in the quarter-panel next to the fuel neck. there was feces and corresponding urine every where. the only other chewing damage i found was the key that was in the ignition and teeth marks on it. i gutted the car,(wearing gloves and mask) seats trim plastics, and the entire carpet carpet got clipped to a wall and pressure washed. the seats were the only item i did not try to clean to indepthly do to having racing seats ready to install. it still had a smell for about a month or so. lots of fresh air (windows down as much as possible) and a little air freshener here and there didnt hurt. as of now i cant even tell that it was neglected at all. if they didnt know the history they wouldnt have a clue. if the car if worth saving, it will take a little elbow grease but the results will be what you put in them. good luck!

**boydg1** · 10-13-2010, 01:34 PM

.... Yes, the car is worth saving. I am going to use a very similar approach that you used. And I thank you for sharing your experiences. I think it is a good idea to bring out unusual circumstances like these so that others can benefit. Most people jump into these kinds of things without realizing others have been there first and their experiences can save them from serious consequences which I for one DO appreciate. It's NOT everyday you come up against this sort of thing.
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Thanks again
.
......

......

Originally posted by gauge_half_inch View Post

if it makes you feel a little more ambitious about this task at hand, the car im driving now sat in a field for over 2 years and had a half dozen or more field mice in it that had found themselves a sweet shelter. they had chewed the fabric from under the back seat to shreds, nested in the glove box over flowing it all over the floor. they also made a nest in the quarter-panel next to the fuel neck. there was feces and corresponding urine every where. the only other chewing damage i found was the key that was in the ignition and teeth marks on it. i gutted the car,(wearing gloves and mask) seats trim plastics, and the entire carpet carpet got clipped to a wall and pressure washed. the seats were the only item i did not try to clean to indepthly do to having racing seats ready to install. it still had a smell for about a month or so. lots of fresh air (windows down as much as possible) and a little air freshener here and there didnt hurt. as of now i cant even tell that it was neglected at all. if they didnt know the history they wouldnt have a clue. if the car if worth saving, it will take a little elbow grease but the results will be what you put in them. good luck!

**freshtiva** · 10-13-2010, 03:19 PM

This is what Id recommend, Notice is destroys uric acid ( mouse pee ). You can also use it in your septic tank to decompose organic matter. It works, Ive used it.

**boydg1** · 10-14-2010, 07:39 PM

.
Where can I get this product? :?:
.
Thanks

Originally posted by freshtiva View Post

This is what Id recommend, Notice is destroys uric acid ( mouse pee ). You can also use it in your septic tank to decompose organic matter. It works, Ive used it.

**freshtiva** · 10-15-2010, 02:51 PM

I bought it from Hillyard. There is a link for them below. There just happens to be a Hillyard distributer across the street from where I work. I just walked over there on break one day and bought a gallon. Think it was less than $20. You mist it over the intended area and then put wet towels on it and the (dirt, grime, poo, etc ) wicks right up into the wet towels. There is a picture of it in action on the forum somewhere. Ill see if I can find it.

Hillyard

http://www.hillyard.com/