Simple solution to 'irritate' rats and keep them out of your home

Added bonus - your home will smell lovely

As we brace for cooler weather, rodents often seek refuge indoors, in search of food and warmth, but there's a simple trick to stop them. It's much easier to prevent these pests than to deal with an infestation, as rats and mice breed rapidly.

Mel Lockcuff, the founder of Adventures of Mel, encountered severe rodent issues in her home but discovered an effective natural deterrent. In an online video, Mel said: "There were lots of little crevices, and they could get in the tiniest of holes, it seems like so and they would get in our cabinets, they would get in and just wreak havoc."

She added: "So we finally got fed up, and I started looking at remedies, and that's when I discovered peppermint oil."

Peppermint oil is an excellent rodent repellent due to its intense odor which overwhelms rodents' sensitive noses. Mel said: "Peppermint oil is a great deterrent, and I have read that what it does is it actually masks their pheromone trails so that other mice aren't attracted to that area."

She continued: "And then I've also read that it irritates their nasal passages. They don't like it. And it actually it worked. It worked for us in a couple of different old, really old houses that we lived in," reports the Express.

Peppermint oil is not only great for masking natural food odours in your home, making it harder for rodents to sniff out food and reducing their motivation to explore and nest, but it's also easy to use. All you need is a packet of cotton balls and a bottle of pure peppermint oil, which can be purchased from pharmacies and health food stores.

Mel said: "You can put probably at least five to six drops on a cotton ball, and then put those cotton balls in different areas where you think the mice might be coming in, or where you're finding evidence of mice."

She recommends placing them around cabinets, baseboards, outside entrances like garage doors, and under sinks as rodents often enter homes through gaps around plumbing pipes. It's also important to place them near windows, doors or any place you suspect the rodents are using to enter your home.

Another effective way to use peppermint oil is to mix it with water and spray it around your home as a homemade solution.

Mel shared her unique approach to deterring rodents, saying: "Another thing I did, I took it one step further, and I used a spray bottle, and I mixed up water with lots of peppermint oil, you want to make sure that it's potent enough so that it will smell, so it'll smell strong enough to deter them."

She continued, "A lot of people recommend a one-to-one mixture. I didn't go that strong. That was way too strong because it will fill your house with minty fresh smell. You could use, like 25 drops for eight ounces, or you could use two teaspoons of peppermint oil for eight ounces for maybe a cup of water...

"Just make sure that when you spray it, you can smell it really well. It's really strong, and you'll have to keep replenishing your cotton balls and your spray every couple of weeks. Just to keep it strong."

She advises that this homemade solution can be sprayed anywhere in the home and even in the garden or around your shed, but it should be reapplied whenever it rains or once a week. Peppermint oil is touted as one of the most natural and inexpensive methods to prevent mice or rats from becoming an issue during the colder months, allowing you to enjoy staying warm in your home without the worry of rodents.