Hi all, okay so week two we’re going to look at Air Vents, well more importantly, broken air vents!
Air vents or air bricks as they’re sometimes known are a common source of infestation for Mice, Rats occasionally too so be aware!
This one is going to be a quick edition, it’s very simple, take a walk around the outside of your home and simply look at the air vents, if they’re broken – cover them!
Now not always do air vents need to be broken to allow rodents in, some of the older Victorian style vents (they have grooves not holes) will allow mice in regardless of the condition. My advice is go and grab your pen or pencil again, if you can get a pen easily into the gaps (approx. 6mm) and there is approx. 12mm length in the groove then you need a cover!
We only recommend one type, Mousemesh. You can buy cheaper vent covers online or at your local DIY store however they’ll look terrible and sometimes don’t fix the problem. Mousemesh however is designed for purpose, now let me assure you that we make no commission from Mousemesh sales however if a product works well, we’ll tell others about it. You can find Mousemesh here on amazon or ebay sells them too I think.
We’ve looked at identification of broken or risky vent covers now lets talk about fixing the problem. Once you’ve received your Mousemesh covers (either buy them online or we would be happy to supply them to you) then open up the packaging and now you’ve got two choices to make – Drill them to the wall or glue them to the wall.
We always chose the latter. So here’s how we do it.
Open up all of the packaging and pull out the corner covers (designed to go into the screw holes after drilled). Push the corner covers into place, make sure they fit snug and put the whole thing to one side.
Get a stiff brush or wire brush and give the outside of the vent cover a good cleaning, then spray on an adhesion promoter.
Place the Mousemesh over the broken airbrick to make sure it will fit snugly when you’ve applied the adhesive.
Turn the Mousemesh cover onto its face (on something soft) and glue the back of it sparingly, making sure that the glue is thick enough that it will hold the wall securely but not too much that it’ll make a mess everywhere. We use a product called Avifix® to secure our vent covers as it works well even in damp conditions however there is a product from Screwfix called “sticks like sh*t” (true story) which also works very well, you’ll need to apply any of them through a caulking gun though.
Then all that is left is to push the Mousemesh onto the wall ensuring no gaps are left around the air vent, hold in place for a minute or two and voila! Air vent proofed!
Just a tip, on cold days (we hardly EVER get these in the UK I know!) I’d either allow some extra time to hold the cover in place until it cures enough to hold its self permanently, or get some Duct Tape to hold the cover in place.
I hope that you found this helpful, we’re always around for help and advice so please feel free to contact us if needed or if you can’t manage to fit any of the proofing we mention they we’ll always be happy to come and do it for you.
All the best, Dan – Killer Instinct
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