Squirrels hate both the feeling and sight of aluminum foil. The shiny glare from the foil is usually enough to scare off any squirrels, but if any brave squirrels do approach your plants, don't worry! When the squirrel steps on the aluminum foil, it feels slippery and makes some sound.
A layer of aluminum foil is all the squirrel repellent you need on potted plants. For whatever reason, they don't like the stuff.
Most recommend using foil when growing tomatoes in pots: putting it over the pot, then poking holes for the seedling and for water. The only theory given was that squirrels don't like reflective surfaces, which is true, although most of the time the shiny object needs to be moving to achieve optimum scare factor.
Try sprinkling cayenne pepper, ground chili peppers, or pepper flakes around your plants when they are ready to bloom. Peppers have “capsaicin” which squirrels hate, so it's a natural squirrel deterrent. Or, make a pepper spray; you can mix dried pepper with apple cider vinegar.
Scents like white pepper, black pepper, and garlic are naturally unpleasant to a squirrel. The same goes for sweet smells such as peppermint. Try spraying your plants and flowers with water and then sprinkling on pepper or peppermint oil to deter squirrels.
Dryer sheets are often used to make clothes smell fresh and clean. They also work great for repelling squirrels! The strong scent of dryer sheets will keep squirrels away. You can place them around your property or add them to a bag and hang them in areas where squirrels are active.
They're said to dislike the scent of coffee grounds and peppermint, or you could make up your own recipe with vinegar, garlic and onions or peppermint oil to spray in the garden. Chilli flakes and pepper might put them off, so try a sprinkling of these – it's often used to keep squirrels off bird feeders.
Bait and Trap. If you're dealing with a squirrel infestation inside your attic, basement, or crawl spaces, one of the easiest ways to get rid of them is to use baiting and trapping methods. Most squirrel traps allow you to catch and release the squirrels, but there are also spring traps that will kill them.
Yes, Irish Spring soap can help to keep squirrels away. The scent of the soap is unpleasant for the animals and will prevent them from entering your home or yard. You can use either a liquid soap solution or shave bars of Irish Spring and sprinkle it around areas that squirrels are known to frequent.
One of their most feared predators is the common fox. While you don't have to get a pet fox to keep squirrels out of your yard, you can create the illusion of a fox nearby. Fox urine can be purchased at almost any hunting and fishing supply store and is an excellent squirrel deterrent.
For reasons known only to squirrels, they have a preference for aluminum. Perhaps it tastes good, but more likely because it's a softer metal and allows them to get a good chew. They gnaw on electrical boxes, the arms of aluminum lawn chairs, garden lights and, as you have unfortunately discovered, aluminum fences.
Many people use products such as Vaseline, WB-40, axle grease or another greasy or oily products, with the idea that this provides a slippery barrier that the squirrel can't get past. At least initially, the animal slides down the pole while trying.
Use natural deterrents: Since the goal is to disgust squirrels and not kill or poison them, you should use natural deterrents. This can include clove oil, cinnamon oil, peppermint oil or cayenne pepper applications.
When the squirrel steps on the aluminum foil, it feels slippery and makes some sound. That's usually enough to scare them off. It's best to use aluminum foil as a squirrel deterrent in a small area. Lay down a layer of foil beneath your plants until it covers the majority of the soil in that particular bed.
Aluminum foil reflects up to 96% of the radiant heat.
Aluminum is ideal as an extremely cost-effective and easy-to-shape, adaptable material for the insulation of walls and roofs. Aluminum foil is the ideal partner for composite insulations and is durable thanks to a protective coating.
Scare them away.
Rodent-chasing dogs and motion-activated noisemakers, such as garden spinners, pinwheels, and aluminum pie tins, all make good squirrel deterrents. In addition, if you're watering your lawn anyway, consider using a motion-detecting sprinkler to increase the scare factor.
To protect your pet, use statues and silhouette cutouts of natural predators to scare squirrels away from your home. Fake owls, foxes and hawks may deter squirrels from venturing too close to your property. You may also use motion sensor floor lights to deter squirrels from your property at night.
As for preventing the squirrels from entering your home, consider creating a mixture of 1 teaspoon of Lysol and 3 ounces of Epsom salts, diluted in a quart of water. Place the mixture in a spray bottle and apply it to wood shingles or door frames.
Coffee grounds will keep squirrels away from your garden because they do not like the smell. Simply sprinkle some fresh grounds on the soil surrounding your plants every two weeks. You can also try spraying your plants with a hot pepper spray for the same effect.
The Farnam Just One Bite II offers a convenient way to target a rodent problem with packets that minimize your handling of the poison. The active ingredient is bromadiolone, a second-generation anticoagulant.
One solution is to put vinegar into a spray bottle and spray on the areas squirrels most commonly visit. Another option is to soak rags or cloths in the vinegar of your choosing and place them throughout your garden.
Squirrel bait poison is made from chemicals called rodenticides. It kills everything from rats and squirrels to woodchucks. These chemicals are toxic for pets, children, and other small animals, so be sure that you keep poison for squirrels out of reach of children.
Hot pepper spray is also a great solution to your squirrel problem. You can make yours by mixing one bottle of tabasco or hot peppers with about a gallon of water. This creates an efficient spray for dealing with squirrels around the basement, attic, crawlspace, and your entire odors.
If used for preventative reasons, they may work well to keep rats and mice away. Most of the all-natural or DIY methods used to prevent mice are said to work because rats are repulsed by their smell. This is especially true for dryer sheets—while these smell wonderful to us, they are abhorred by rats and mice.
While squirrels don't appear to dislike one brand more than the other, we like to think the additives in the hairsprays of the '80s are probably a bit more effective! Squirrels don't like the stickiness hairspray leaves behind, so be sure to recoat the pumpkins every few days or after rain.