OH RATS! Can you believe it?

[SirGrady226]

Yep, a dam rat infestation in this part of town caused by the clearing of a property where homeless people had been living. Now this is right next to our high school, town hall, and community center which all borders our neighborhood. It seems a few decided to nest in my boat, just what I needed right? So traps were set and I was able to get four of them, but I was still seeing signs of droppings on occasion. Our exterminator said that the scent that the rats leave will attract others, so he suggested lemon scented ammonia sprayed into the bilge and any area where they nested. Now ammonia mixed with any bleach type chemical will create a poison gas, so I'm thinking some residue of bleach was down there and it killed any rats that happened to be still in the bilge. Now I have a stench of dead rat under the deck, it seems to be located on the port side underneath the live well on that side. There is no access under this other than a few small areas big enough for a rat to get through. I think my only option is to let nature do its thing and the bugs will get rid of most of the dead rat / rats. Then I'd like to wash out the areas with water and possibly some bilge cleaner. My concern is that the area in question is on the outside of the port stringer, I'm thinking it should be ok to hose this area out and that it will drain properly. My worry is that it will have voids that do not drain and hold water, does anyone have any knowledge if it is ok to do this? I see a small round drain hole under the port side live well, I'm thinking this is the drain for that whole side of the stringer. My exterminator says that at least no more rats will want to get in there now, UGHHH, I said no humans will want to use the boat either unless this stench is gone. Unbelievable!

 

[RussGW270]

Never thought I would have rats in my boat.. lol.. I think I would need a live-aboard cat!

R

 

[SirGrady226]

Never thought I would have rats in my boat.. lol.. I think I would need a live-aboard cat!

R

First dry wood termites, now rats, ughh

 

[SirGrady226]

I was wondering if the part of the bilge that is on the outside of the stringers can be flushed out with a hose. I'm not sure if water can get trapped somewhere, I would think it should have drains that go through to the center bilge. Anyone have any knowledge of this on a Seafarer?

 

[HTHM]

This....This is how you get ants.
As far as advice, I got nothing except to let it decompose. Sympathies.

 

[pckid]

Everything drains towards the rear of course. Be sure to raise the bow up and let it drain. There may be some small pockets that will hold a very small amount of water, however you can use fans afterwards to get it dry. I had a 1997 226 and it had a good size floor access panel just in back of the helm seating. The panel access was mostly for fuel tank accessibility. I had to remove it at one point to replace fuel lines that Grady sent me as a recall. The panel removes fairly easy after cutting the silicone perimeter. That should give you the largest access to the bilge. There is also a small floor drain under the entry step to the cabin. If you have the factory porta-potti you will need to remove it to gain access to the drain. Grady wants you to use that drain to flush the under side of the fuel tank periodically. I would start by flushing from the anchor locker then the cabin storage lockers. From there flush the floor drain ahead of the fuel tank and work towards the rear. I think the bleach / water mixture your using is a good idea. I used GE silicone (almond color) to reseal the floor panel afterwards and it matched pretty good. You can get the exact color silicone from Grady White if you prefer. You may also want to put some fans and blow air in the bilge to dry any moisture so you don't have a mildew problem afterwards. I think you will find most of your rat problem around the fuel tank and removing the floor cover will give you access. Actually... the 226 has decent bilge access compared to the 209 I now own. BEST OF LUCK!

 

[SirGrady226]

Everything drains towards the rear of course. Be sure to raise the bow up and let it drain. There may be some small pockets that will hold a very small amount of water, however you can use fans afterwards to get it dry. I had a 1997 226 and it had a good size floor access panel just in back of the helm seating. The panel access was mostly for fuel tank accessibility. I had to remove it at one point to replace fuel lines that Grady sent me as a recall. The panel removes fairly easy after cutting the silicone perimeter. That should give you the largest access to the bilge. There is also a small floor drain under the entry step to the cabin. If you have the factory porta-potti you will need to remove it to gain access to the drain. Grady wants you to use that drain to flush the under side of the fuel tank periodically. I would start by flushing from the anchor locker then the cabin storage lockers. From there flush the floor drain ahead of the fuel tank and work towards the rear. I think the bleach / water mixture your using is a good idea. I used GE silicone (almond color) to reseal the floor panel afterwards and it matched pretty good. You can get the exact color silicone from Grady White if you prefer. You may also want to put some fans and blow air in the bilge to dry any moisture so you don't have a mildew problem afterwards. I think you will find most of your rat problem around the fuel tank and removing the floor cover will give you access. Actually... the 226 has decent bilge access compared to the 209 I now own. BEST OF LUCK!

Looks like the rats only nested under the rear port side live well and under the port side cooler/fish box. I have two large floor panels, forward one is where the tank is and rear one is empty. They did not install a rear tank because of weight issues with twin outboards. No signs of rats in either and I recently replaced the tank and cleaned the bilge. The rats seemed to have only nested on the port side on the outside of the stringer. I will park the boat hooked to my truck on the sloped section of my driveway and give a good flushing. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Fishtales]

Just remember that there may be a way for water to get out but not a dead rat. Hope it works out for you.

 

[SirGrady226]

Just remember that there may be a way for water to get out but not a dead rat. Hope it works out for you.

I'm letting the natural wiggly things do their work first. I have everything opened up and after a couple days it's already getting better. Flies have done their job, hoping to flush it out over the weekend. Crazy stuff!

 

[SirGrady226]

I spent a whole weekend cleaning out the below deck areas, first by spraying a heavy stream of water, and then a 50/50 mix of bleach and water. I had the boat parked on my sloped driveway which seemed to help flush everything out the back. Now after a week of airing out, I'm getting the smell of new hoses and fitting from the access holes instead of dead rodent (recently replaced thru hulls). I was told by my exterminator friend to put strong smelling air fresheners in the cabin and back compartments, the rodents have a very strong sense of smell and avoid these things. A lot of us in this neighborhood have set traps, hopefully this problem goes away for good now. Bottom picture is of the yuk that came through the small bilge drain hole, the large leaves and grunge had to be scooped out.
Most certainly were some wiggly things coming out.

 

[Clark.N]

I spent a whole weekend cleaning out the below deck areas, first by spraying a heavy stream of water, and then a 50/50 mix of bleach and water. I had the boat parked on my sloped driveway which seemed to help flush everything out the back. Now after a week of airing out, I'm getting the smell of new hoses and fitting from the access holes instead of dead rodent (recently replaced thru hulls). I was told by my exterminator friend to put strong smelling air fresheners in the cabin and back compartments, the rodents have a very strong sense of smell and avoid these things. A lot of us in this neighborhood have set traps, hopefully this problem goes away for good now. Bottom picture is of the yuk that came through the small bilge drain hole, the large leaves and grunge had to be scooped out.
Most certainly were some wiggly things coming out.
View attachment 9974View attachment 9975

I had squirrels and they ate my engine electrical cables and other wiring 3 times in 2 years. Bought two live traps, set one on the boat and caught the live aboard. I now keep a live trap on the boat 24/7 and trap in the yard. My boat is on a lift and no squirrels or damage for months. I also run a radio 24/7.

 

[Fishtales]

Tree rats. Just hang a feeder and a bucket of water under it. When they are feeding just clap your hands.

 

[glacierbaze]

Moth balls are recommended for a lot of rodents.

 

[Goose77]

Agree with glacier...mothballs really discourage live aboards. I put them in plastic pop bottles and poke holes in the bottles. The compartments have to be dry, and I don’t put them in the cooler. Man, I’m sorry for your problems, but it sounds like you are over the worst of it.