It only takes seeing the evidence or the blur of a mouse scurrying across the floor for you to declare war. You’ll devote yourself to ridding your home of any evidence of mice.
One method many people try during their rodent battle is to use Irish Spring soap. Some swear by it, and others have had little to no luck. So does Irish Spring soap keep mice away?
Let’s take a closer look.
What Is Irish Spring Soap?
Colgate-Palmolive has made Irish Spring soap since 1970 and is most recognized for its bright green color. Despite its name, you won’t find it on store shelves in Ireland.
Men and women use this soap to stay clean and fresh. However, their target audience in recent years has been men. Their early 2015 marketing campaign stated, “Clean a Man Up Right.”
To many users’ surprise, in February 2022, Colgate-Palmolive redesigned its packaging and adjusted its scent formula. In general, users haven’t been fond of the change, and the company has seen a drastic increase in negative reviews.
Does Irish Spring Soap Keep Mice Away?
Somewhere along the way, someone, who probably owns stock in Irish Spring, started spreading a wive’s tale that the soap was great for keeping mice away. Out of desperation, many people are still loading up their shopping carts to give Irish Spring soap a try at repelling mice from their residences.
Unfortunately, Irish Spring soap typically has a minimal impact on keeping mice away.
Shawn Wood, who runs a large YouTube channel, put Irish Spring soap to the test and documented it for his channel. In his video “Does Irish Spring Soap Repel Rodents? Mouse Mythbusters,” he set out bars of Irish Spring soap in a barn frequented by rats and mice.
The mice didn’t leave the area. They came back night after night, and he has footage of a mouse snacking on the soap bar.
The bottom line is that Irish Spring soap may keep you clean and smelling fresh. But it does nothing to keep mice away. You’re better off spending your money on products designed to help you in your battle with rodents.
Spend some money on mouse traps (catch and release options are available) and place them around where you see evidence that mice have been up to no good. This could be mouse droppings or debris from the rodents chewing on items.
You’ll also want to take the time to find where the mice are getting into your residence and address it. Use caulking or sealant to plug up any holes where you see rodent activity.
What Happens to Mice When They Eat Irish Spring Soap?
While the rumor might be that a mouse ingesting Irish Spring soap would result in certain doom for the rodent, it doesn’t. The University of California, San Diego School of Medicine studied the consequences of long-term exposure to triclosan, one of the primary ingredients in most soaps.
Over six months, they regularly exposed the mice to triclosan. The result was that the mice were more susceptible to liver tumors. When live tumors did occur, they were much larger than those of mice who weren’t exposed to the chemical.
If intentionally exposing the mice to one of the key ingredients wasn’t enough to kill them off, it’s likely not going to do the job in your war with the rodents.
What Animals Eat Irish Spring Soap?
Many people turn to Irish Spring soap to protect their homes and gardens. However, they quickly discover that many animals aren’t picky eaters and that they’ll make a snack or meal out of the soap. Animals like birds, raccoons, opossums, and rats/mice will typically give the soap a try.
Like many of us with our vegetables, they may not be fond of them, but they’ll eat them when there are no other options.
What Smells Keep Mice Away?
While the fresh scent of Ireland may not keep mice away, some scents will likely be a bit more helpful. Mice have an extremely strong sense of smell. They will do whatever they can to avoid smells like cinnamon, vinegar, clove oil, peppermint, ammonia, and cayenne pepper.
However, many of these scents can quickly weaken. You’ll need to replace them regularly to ensure they’re effective at getting the job done.
Is Irish Spring Soap Worth It for Repelling Mice?
While we have no complaints about Irish Spring soap keeping us clean and smelling fresh, Irish Spring gets two thumbs down from us when it comes to repelling mice.
We’ve heard from many others who have turned to it to repel mice and have had little success. Those who have succeeded with it deployed it along with a host of other tactics. It’s safe to say that the other tactics were most likely the cause of their success.
Don’t waste perfectly good Irish Spring soap trying to fend off mice. You’ll probably be disappointed with the results.
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