Rodents in the garage: protect wiring and the air filter

As it gets colder, mice look for warmth, and a parked bike is a ready-made burrow. Chewed insulation or a nest in the air filter costs far more than an hour of prevention.

• Inspect the garage: gaps under the door, holes near pipes and cables, droppings. Seal openings with metal mesh or dense filler with steel wool; ordinary foam doesn't stop rodents.
• Remove food from the garage: sacks of grain, pet food, scraps. Keep everything in tight metal or thick plastic containers.
• Check the bike: air intake, filter housing, seat, side panels. Look for shreds, nesting material and chewed spots on wiring looms.
• Cover the exhaust outlets and the intake opening with something rodents can't get through, like dense fabric or mesh. Remove it before starting the engine.
• Set traps or repellents on the floor along the walls, away from the bike, and check them regularly.
• If wiring insulation is damaged, don't just wrap it with tape. Take electrical repairs to a workshop.