This is the perfect time of year for this sort of thread; as the weather turns chilly, the rodents will seek the warmth of your house or shop
About this time every year, a packrat will set up housekeeping in my tool shed, usually bringing in leaves from the yard to build a nest, and chewing on anything with wires.
It's become a perennial conflict, since I live on the edge of deep woods near a swamp, and I've become used to the drill. I rely on the huge rat traps made by Victor; just like the little ones, but 4 times larger, and seriously dangerous to your fingers should you set one off. Probably not good to use around pets and young children.
After several instances of having wounded rats drag the oversized trap off, I now attach a small screw eye to the wood base, and run a length of very light chain to an iron weight. This is a variation of the string trick mentioned earlier. Also, the suggestion about adding crumbled Pringles to the peanut butter sounds like a good idea; I'll be trying that this year.
