What is eating my plastic gas tanks???

I've noticed over the past year, what looks like chew-marks on my lawnmower plastic gas tank, around the cap area. I didn't think much of it, maybe I scraped it with one of my saws or shovels. Strange... Forget about it...
But today I noticed something else: I have been splitting wood with my log splitter, over the past couple of months, skipping the days when its been raining. It rained the past couple of days, so I just cover the engine with a upside-down lawn cart, and wait out the rain. I had a chance to get out and continue splitting wood today. I took the lawn cart off the engine and started it right up. I noticed a strong smell of gas and checked the engine. Gas was squirting out the top of the gas tank! I shutdown the engine, and examined the gas tank further. It appeared something chewed holes right thru the tank and thru the cap! This must have been done over the past 2 days, since I wasn't using the log splitter!
What would do this? We have all kinds of varmits around here; Red Squirrel, Grey Squirrel, Chipmonks, Field Mice, Grey Mice, the occassional Rat, Rabbits, GroundHogs, etc....
The log splitter has been sitting in the same place for 10 years now, and never had this problem.
I gooped up the holes with Red RTV. Hopefully that'll hold, and keep the gas from squirting out.

rocky

the flying squirrel

they have chewed through 2 of mine also

You named a number of likely candidates and of course you won;t know for sure unless you see it...
It could also be a Porcupine...Prickly and stealthy around these parts but also known to "chew" odd items.
One of those "game cameras' from Cabela's could be fun...


Bob

Big teeth.
Squirrel
Chipmunk

Richard S. wrote:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bv87T1CQF8E

Hahaha.... I remember that scene well. I didn't go quit that far, I stuck a rat trap on top of the tank, in case it returns.

Man DVC, you do have all kinds of varmints! I've heard of electric cable insulation being chewed on as well as other plastic/rubber but never gas tanks!

Here's pics of what the grown-up version of your plastic-eater does.

What's interesting it is ONLY eats gas tanks - no other plastic on the machines. Mabye it's getting high on fumes?

djackman wrote:What's interesting it is ONLY eats gas tanks - no other plastic on the machines.

YEP!! Just the gas tanks were chewed on. I went over all the pipes and other plastic pieces. Nothing else was touched.

Your last picture is amazing. You can actually see how big the critter's mouth is as it chews around that tank.

Mabye it's getting high on fumes?

Damn Drug addict Varmits! Give em an overdose of

Rig up a pressure sensitive switch, remote it to your cell phone triggering device, call Dave and get some C4.....wait for the boom! I had red squirrels eating my gas tanks also. I have gray squirrels also, and chippies, but the reds were trying to incite me with their brazen attacks. PLEASE don't use the 50 caliber on these little guys, a 20 gauge would scare less neighbors. I did my 'death sentences' with two cats. They 'team up' on the unsuspecting candidate and it's over in a few seconds.....and a warm meal too!
....now for a Cougar/Mt Lion for the damned coy dogs. 3 AM yipping is August activity, must have been am early litter of the pests.

whistlenut wrote:Rig up a pressure sensitive switch, remote it to your cell phone triggering device, call Dave and get some C4.....wait for the boom!

Naaaa, I'll mix the C4 with the RTV and plug the holes with that! Let the critters try to knaw thru the tank again.

Yeah, we never used to have any Red squirrels around here. Then about 3 years ago, I saw the first one. This year, they are all over the place, and they are scolding us when we go out on the deck or take a walk thru the woods! They seem to be pushing the grey squirrels out. Time to get a couple cats? Not yet. Our dog happens to be a GREAT mouser! He can smell em on the tractor, he dissappears under the tractor WHILE its MOVING and comes back out with a mouse in his mouth! He can hear then thru 6 inches of snow, and JUMP and dive into it, and come up with a mouthfull of snow and mouse. I gotta get him to sniff out the Red squirrels now.

A little anti freeze in a bowl of milk should take care of your problem in short order.

Bill S

DVC500 at last wrote:Time to get a couple cats? Not yet. Our dog happens to be a GREAT mouser!

Good point, this is the first time in 30+ years there hasn't been a cat at the house where these are stored.

BillMarti wrote:A little anti freeze in a bowl of milk should take care of your problem in short order.

Bill S

Negatory on that one Bill - we wouldn't want to accidently kill someone's dog or cat would we??

Cyber36 wrote: Negatory on that one Bill - we wouldn't want to accidently kill someone's dog or cat would we??

Yeah, I ruled that one out cuz of our dog and chickens. I DID set a rat trap on top of the log splitter last nite. Didn't get the varmit, though.