how to keep mice out of furniture in storage
Kristina Davis

It took me a long time to learn how to keep mice out of furniture in storage, but I was grateful.

The area where I live is packed with different types of rodents, so learning this is just necessary. 

If you’re like me or you just can’t stand mice, then this guide is for you!

I will be giving you complete and comprehensive details on what you can do to be free and safe from these pests!

To keep mice from your furniture inside the storage, ensure that the storage is secured enough and that you don’t store food inside it. Then, wrap your furniture in plastic, and elevate them even while inside the store.

Regularly Maintain Your Storage Space/Area

maintain storage regularly

A proper setup is one of the best preventative measures you can do to ensure that no mice or any other type of rodent will wreak havoc on your storage area.

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Proper maintenance includes regular pest control, regularly checking for any inlets or outlets from the outside environment, and constant cleaning of the storage space.

While these things can ensure the protection of your furniture and other things inside your storage, this wouldn’t be forever.

Pests are a part of our lives and no matter how frequently you do pest control, there’s still the risk of them lurking behind the shadows, endangering the things inside your storage.

How to Keep Mice Out of Furniture in Storage

keeping mice out of storage

Learning how to protect the furniture in storage from mice is not a one-way type of task. In fact, it’s a process that needs consistency to be effective.

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So, here are the things you need to do to ensure that the furniture inside your storage is kept safe, secure, and free from rodents!

Block Mice Holes and Other Entry Points

I consider this the most relevant step of all. If there are no entry points, holes, or any other type of opening, they wouldn’t be able to get through!

Seal all openings (outlets and inlets) by patching them up. I usually use steel wool and caulk to keep the wool in place.

For larger mice holes, though, I normally patch it up with cement for strength and durability.

You can use whatever type of robust and durable material to patch it up, it’ll be up to you.

However, you, of course, need to choose a material that mice and other rodents will find difficult to chew on.

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You don’t want to patch it again and again, right?

NOTE: Apart from steel wools and cement, you can also use metal sheets to cover the holes where mice could go through and enter the storage.

Keep Food Out of the Storage

dont store food at storage

Then, the next thing you need to make sure of is that you never bring or keep food inside the storage.

They’re pests, so they’ll definitely be drawn to food and other things that are consumable.

The solution to this is simple – refrain from keeping or storing food inside the storage.

It could be quite obvious now, but you should avoid eating inside your storage, too!

Mice are sneaky pests that they’ll be able to smell even the smallest and littlest crumbs inside four corners!

This is one of the best and most effective ways of concealing this part of your home!

Wrap or Cover Your Furniture

I don’t know about you, but I usually pack or wrap any furniture I set aside.

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Why? —because it can lengthen its lifespan and gives it maximum protection by not being exposed to air.

Little did I know, it’s also an effective way of keeping mice, squirrels, and rats from gnawing through it.

Whether you’ll store chairs, sofas, cabinets, and even desks, wrapping them in plastic shrink wrap can prolong their condition.

covering furnitures

Let me walk you through the process of how I wrap plastic on my furniture:

  1. Start with the legs of the furniture.
  2. Wrap it moderately tight around each leg.
  3. Then, wrap the body of the furniture.
  4. Lastly, wrap the backrest of the furniture (for chairs).
NOTE: Refrain from wrapping it too tightly because whatever you wrap tightly could be prone to condensation in the long run.

Elevate Your Furniture Inside the Storage

elevate the furniture

In my journey of researching, I also found that elevating your furniture is also helpful and advantageous because obviously, mice rarely jump.

I typically use risers, which is what many consider the most common type of elevation for furniture. They’re sleek and fashionable, and they can complement how you can keep your furniture safe and sound.

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Other than risers, you can also make use of wooden pallets to successfully elevate the items from the ground!

Although, I wouldn’t really recommend always using wooden pallets because of the fact that they’re made of wood and can deteriorate easier and faster.

Lifting them up a few inches from the ground is already useful. This is something you can do, so, don’t worry about the height you’ll be elevating them on.

Add a Scent on Where You Want Them Gone

add a scent

Another hack I learned throughout the years is by adding certain smells and scents that would keep them away.

What I use on a normal day is the smell of vinegar, tea bags, mothballs, and mint toothpaste.

Along with these, experts also recommend considering the following scents and smells to deter mice:

  • Cinnamon
  • Peppermint Oil
  • Cayenne Pepper
  • Clove Oil or Clove 
  • Ammonia
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According to them, these are among the most effective scents that could drive mice away.

What I do is splatter the scent in the corners of the room and I make sure that the smell is scattered all throughout the entire space.

Set Up Mice Traps and Mice Baits

set a mouse traps

Setting up mice baits and mice traps can be an effective solution to how you can keep mice out of the furniture inside your storage.

I find these easy to set up, and they’re overall an effective way to keep these rodents off your radar, too!

I regularly make use of snap traps and humane traps because they’re instant and they’re easy to find.

However, there are other different types of mouse traps and baits such as electronic traps and sticky glue traps.

For the baits, I use food with strychnine as they are pesticides that have been approved in the country for use against rodents.

I found them effective in keeping mice and other types of rodents from certain areas around the house.

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Invest in Better Security and Protection

invest in metal doors

For my last tip, I would suggest investing in your storage room. Paint it, secure it with steel or metal, or improve the security of your storage overall by buffing the walls up.

Tip: Investing in better security for your storage also involves regular pest control and regular buffing and pumping of the quality of your unit.

The security I’m talking about isn’t only for the storage, but for the furniture and things inside the storage as well.

For instance, cover up your leather couches with a slipcover, protect your chairs with plastic wrap and tape, and so on.

These are among the many different things I do to ensure that your furniture inside the storage is kept safe from mice and different types of rodents.

When Should I Inspect My Storage?

checking storage room

You need to regularly inspect your storage to ensure that it is safe and free from the dangers of mice, squirrels, raccoons, or any other type of rodent.

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Personally, I conduct inspections regularly, about once a week.

The inspection process I usually take involves checking for possible cracks and holes, checking mice traces like urine, feces, and teeth marks, and patching up any type of damage on the room or storage area.

As I mentioned above, even if you ace all these, there’s still no guarantee that there will be no mice circling, waiting for the perfect opportunity to gnaw on your furniture.

So, it’s best practice to inspect your storage regularly, ideally about once or twice per week.

Never Worry About Pests Anymore!

To be fully transparent with you, keeping mice from your furniture storage is not easy. It’s a tedious, long-term, and continuous process that you need to develop regularly.

Keep this guide so, that if you ever find yourself wanting to learn how to keep mice out of furniture in storage, you know what to do.