Mice smell in my foam! Help!

[random_guy]

So I have a 2002 Tracker Targa that I store in a farm building over the winter. I used dryer sheets and this buzzer box thing and we still had a mouse problem this winter. Luckily, I don’t seem to have any wiring problems and I think I’ve got the main carpeted areas and carpeted compartments cleaned up and reasonably smelling ok. I used some vinegar first and let that dry and it helped a little, then I switched to Arm and Hammer Pet Fresh. So the carpeted areas are pretty ok.

However, there was a bad smell that kept coming from the battery compartment, so I took the top plate off the rear section and they’ve gotten into the foam and chewed it up. I don’t think there’s enough flames removed to functionally cause a problem, so I don’t plan on removing and replacing. I’ve sucked all the stuff out with a shop vac and sprayed and sprayed with the pet stuff but haven’t had much luck with the smell. Any advice?

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,..... Buy a spray bottle of Renuzit, super odor killer, 'n try that,.....

 

[The Force power]

The dryer-sheets is a myth, use cat fur instead

 

[crazy charlie]

BLEACH,!!! your foam is shot as it is . Further damage will be minimal compared to what you have already had done.Bleach WILL solve your problem and will more importantly sanitize your boat which in my opinion is WAAAAY more important.Personally I would find somewhere else to store my boat.The bad outweighs the good here.Charlie

 

[random_guy]

So it doesn't seem like this smell is going anywhere. I'm considering sawing this up, taking it out and just replacing it with sytrofoam sheeting. Seems like people use the pink or blue construction stuff pretty often. What do you think?

 

[Newbie@boats]

I had a mice smell in my bass boat. Luckily I was able to simple green everything and use a car wash brush and wash the hell out of it to get rid of the smell. Seeing how that smell is probably deeply soaked into that foam I would definitely rip it out and replace it. That’s probably going to be the easiest way to do it.

 

[random_guy]

Well, I was thinking that this would be easy to just rip this out and use some of the blue or pink sheet stuff from a home store. But the more I’ve read about this stuff, the more I see that it’s flammable and easily compromised by fuel or oil. In theory, no water, oil, or fuel should ever get into this cavity, but it’s not 100% air tight sealed off either. It’s above the water line under normal circumstances and it’s walled in by aluminum on all sides. It’s up against the hull on the right, the transom on the back, and interior sheet metal walls on the left and to the front. The floor under it is aluminum, so it’s above the bilge area. But the fuel tank fill tube is right there, and if a leak or something ever occurred, it’s in close proximity.

So I’ve seen lots of posts about the two part pour in stuff, but people seem to say it water logs easily. And I don’t know how I would contain the pour. This is a Tracker boat and I’m only about 20 mins from a Bass Pro. Anyone know if they shoot foam in the service department?

I had a mice smell in my bass boat. Luckily I was able to simple green everything and use a car wash brush and wash the hell out of it to get rid of the smell. Seeing how that smell is probably deeply soaked into that foam I would definitely rip it out and replace it. That’s probably going to be the easiest way to do it.

 

[Sleeper-6]

Reading your description, it sounds like once you remove the old foam you will essentially have a box to contain the pour in foam. Under normal conditions, you should not have any issues with the pour in waterlogging. It's the same type of foam the factory used, they just have a nice setup that mixes the two components as its dispensed instead of in a cup like you will have to do. Mix it in small batches until you have an idea of you working time and how much it will expand. Tape and plastic off the area around the compartment in case you spill or over pour. Once it hardens, any excess is easily trimmed away with a hacksaw blade.