Can a Peppermint Air Freshener Repel Mice?

Short answer: No, not at all. How do I know?

I spent $20+ on two 4-oz. bottles of 100% pure peppermint essential oil. Saturated about 30-35 cotton balls and spread them around inside my 1800-1900 square foot house, especially in the kitchen. Used a whole bottle. The house reeked of peppermint, but it was a good reek. I thought this was going to be great.

During the first five days, I'd occasionally hear a mouse-like sound, or see a furtive movement out of the corner of my eye, but I did not see a mouse. I convinced my self that the noise was my own stomach and that the movement was only a reflection in my glasses. On day six I opened the small kitchen drawer that holds our flatware. New mouse droppings everywhere inside it--including next to the cotton ball I had saturated and put inside this small drawer, which still was giving off potent peppermint odor.

Later that day I saw a mouse come out from behind our clothes dryer where I had tossed two saturated cotton balls. I opened the second bottle of peppermint oil and tossed two more heavily-saturated cotton balls behind the dryer. The next morning I watched a mouse come out from behind the dryer, do an amazing acrobatic act for about 30 seconds, then turn around and go back behind the dryer again. So much for peppermint repelling mice.

I think the people on this site who tell you that 100% peppermint oil works are either: (1) wishful thinkers; (2) people who just spoke too soon; or (3) people who work for companies selling peppermint oil. Even if my second application of peppermint oil had worked for another five days (and I don't think it worked in the first place), $10-worth of peppermint oil every five days comes to about $750 a year. But since it doesn't work anyway, what does that matter?

It's true that the cleanest of houses can still get mice. I live across from a field and they "come over to visit" occasionally, no matter what I do. Here's what I'm doing and have done in my continuing mouse wars, LOL. Outside, I've cleared away brush and anything growing too close to the house & will be planting peppermint and spearmint. Mice hate that. These are invasive, so be careful where/how you plant them.

Inside, I checked for any places they could be getting in and sealed/repaired, adding steel wool to prevent chewing wherever I could.

When deep cleaning a room (I swear by FlyLady) I spray my baseboards & under cabinets, etc with wintergreen essential oil mixed with wintergreen scented rubbing alcohol. If you don't like the wintergreen smell, don't do this.

Peppermint & spearmint should grow indoors in pots. I'm going to try it soon. You can steep a tea from the leaves. I plan to spray that for the scent too. I have these plants all around my vegetable garden, sunk in pots to keep them in control.

Regarding the air freshener, it may or may not work. It just depends on the ingredient that creates the mint fragrance. You may be better off purchasing peppermint and/or spearmint essential oil and a carrier oil and making your own spray.

Do some searches for organic mice control or herbal mice or rodent control and you should come up with some more ideas.

Best of luck to you - hope this helps,
Sylvia

Mice will get inside for any number of reasons..especially in the fall, no matter how spotless you keep your house.
I have read that using Bounce fabric softer sheets will repel them so I am putting some in my cabinets and behind my appliances to test that theory.
You could put the peppermint oil on some cotton balls, put the cotton balls in small lids and stick those in cabinets, under appliances. in crawlspaces, etc. The plus side would also be the nice, clean smell.
Good luck.

The cleanest of houses can get mice inside, especially in very cold or inclement weather. A good strong peppermint gum chicklet would last longer than a spraying of air freshener. It will deteriorate some and that is when you would replace it with another one.

I do keep a clean house (thank you very much) and all foods are put away. We live in a rural area and occasionally one finds its way into the house from the fields. I've read that putting peppermint oil on the baseboards and openings to outside can deter them, and am wondering if just using a strong peppermint air freshener would do the same thing.

The best repellant for mice is to keep a clean house and make sure breads and cereals are in conatiners mice can't chew through.