Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
h a l f b a k e r y
Inexact change.

idea: add, search, annotate, link, view, overview, recent, by name, random

meta: news, help, about, links, report a problem

account: browse anonymously, or get an account and write.

user:
pass:
register,


                             

Mouse-Trapping Sofa

Putting messy eating habits to good use.
  (+8, -1)
(+8, -1)
  [vote for,
against]

I know this works because I’ve done it. All you need is an old sofa and a transparent tube with caps on both ends such as the ones used in packaging high-quality kites. You may also need something for bait unless your kids are as messy as mine and there are already plenty of popcorn and cracker crumbs inside the sofa.

Take your sofa and cut a mouse-sized hole in the back (in my case, the mouse thoughtfully made this hole for me). Make sure there’s enough room between the sofa and the wall for the mouse to run behind the couch and into the hole.

During the night listen carefully for activity inside the sofa. When you hear it, sneak in the room, quickly flip the sofa up on its front edge and cover the hole with anything that will keep the rodent from escaping.

Now with your transparent tube ready, maneuver the sofa away from the wall, lower it back down to normal position, and cover the hole with the tube. Then move to the front of the sofa and make some noise. The panicked mouse will escape the sofa through the hole and run right into your tube.

Slip the cap on the tube and viola, one trapped mouse.

bneal27, May 11 2008

[link]






       //listen… flip… maneuver… tube... noise//   

       It would be better if the furniture were designed to perform these functions for you. You’d have a conveniently tubed mouse for breakfast. Invited to breakfast. Whatever.
Amos Kito, May 11 2008
  

       I agree. You need far more automation to push this into the realm of wonderfully halfbaked.
daseva, May 11 2008
  

       Like a lazyboy guillotine. : ]   

       I see your point, but what about the thrill of the hunt? It's just you, your wits and a few crude tools against the beast and his highly evolved senses and instincts.
bneal27, May 12 2008
  

       Yes, you can hone the keen edge of your hunting prowess by personally tracking and trapping your prey in the darkest unknown regions of the davenport. After all, a savage animal hunts me on the way to and from work, so who am I to judge?
Amos Kito, May 12 2008
  

       Oh, [bneal27]! How about with some modif.: install a spring-energized LED lighting inside and one-way mirror? One new bun made of crumbs after being seconded by you...
rotary, May 12 2008
  

       Build a better mouse trap, and the world will beat a path to your door.   

       Ask someone to get a clear tube, wait until the middle fo the night, and move the sofa several times to catch a mouse, and you get a more subdued response.   

       However, a mousetrap that baits itself, and conveniently fits into otherwise wasted space sounds better than what we've got going on so far.
ye_river_xiv, May 12 2008
  

       Great idea bneal27. Git the little bastareds and I'l eat em.
The Kat, May 12 2008
  

       "Slip the cap on the tube and viola"   

       I must have missed the part about musical intruments.   

       There's a mouse in my home that lives out of the cat food bowl. That's a difficult location to trap effectively.   

       I may need a sharper cat. [bneal27], you need a better cat-egory than other: general.
normzone, May 12 2008
  

       I'm quite fond of mice, but still like the idea. Daft +
xenzag, May 12 2008
  

       Thank you [normzone]. In California, we put a moat around the dog food to protect it from ants. Maybe that would work for mice as well.   

       You could also make a nice mousetrap out of a viola. I can't think of a better use for one.
bneal27, May 12 2008
  

       Jesus, you have a mouse in your sofa? Am I the only one alarmed by this? Are we all just resigned to stepping around the itinerent rodents in our houses?   

       Enough I say. I delcare a Jihad on these little feral bastards. Pump your sofa full of corrosive gas. Put a thermite charge in there and incinerate the little fu<ker. I'm talking 11kV electrified plates, sharpened stakes, anvils hung from the ceiling. And when you're done, put his tiny little head on a tiny little pole somewhere out on your fence as an example to all his little vermin friends. Go medi-evil on 'em, with some pliers and a blowtorch.
Custardguts, May 13 2008
  

       I HAD a mouse in my sofa. I trapped him and banished him to the desert. Probably coyote food by now. I have nothing against rodents, but unless they pay rent and use the toilet like everyone else, they aren't allowed here.
bneal27, May 13 2008
  

       <reads Custardguts anno, envisions mouse wearing tiny fedora and leather jacket stealthily entering booby-trapped sofa...>
Canuck, May 13 2008
  
      
[annotate]
  


 

back: main index

business  computer  culture  fashion  food  halfbakery  home  other  product  public  science  sport  vehicle