Thanks everyone! I've been stuck at work for a few days and haven't had a chance to respond. To ease any concern (that I may be an unreasonable live & let live extremists), we do have poison in the house and should I ever find Any activity there, the culprits will be killed without hesitation (if the poison doesn't get them first). As for the outside pests, I have a hard time viewing them as pests, flat out, across the board. Like Dawn, I see rodents as just another part of the cycle. Of course, I don't want them growing in numbers near the house either, but within reason I'd rather just catch and relocate like I did the other day. (Don't worry Dawn, I wore gloves and actually held my breath for the bedding removal) I appreciate all animals, and know quite a bit about handling them. I knew rodents carry disease, parasites with disease, etc. What I don't anything about is pathogens. Reading Hantavirus is airborne was news to me. I thought one had to be bitten, or ingest excrement to become infected. I also wanted to know the "shelf life" of the virus since that rat possibly has been making "Hanta-pellets" in my compost or "plague deposits" for that matter. :) I know we have predatory birds, but I haven't seen any snakes yet (although they would be very welcome! I love reptiles!). Getting a cat is not an option at the moment. My 5 bulldogs wouldn't have it, I'm afraid :) But Tree, I'd love to rescue a few once I have an acreage with a barn. I actually did rescue fulltime for a few years, but mainly giant breed dogs. There are a ton of great cats out there too! Since I won't be able to move the compost, I've done the best I can with preventative measures. I filled the space between the house and the bin with a foot of rock, and packed it in around the sides, after filling in any openings/pathways under the bin. Wbonesteel, I completely agree! That is what started the mouse hunt in the first place. My hubby set some boxes out for me and a few pallets two weeks ago, but I hadn't gotten to them yet so I decided to get out there and get them up and away from the house. Once I finished that I tackled the compost bin :) No sense in griping about rodents if you built them a hotel, right? Mia, thanks for the link. And, yes, I have been called crazy many times for all the things I've caught just to identify and learn about. The rat is definitely not the craziest thing I've put in an aquarium so I could Google it lol When I was 9, I brought home a 20lb alligator snapping turtle rigged in a sling made of shoe laces and sticks.. my mom just about lost it! Lol I had no idea that thing could've probably bit through my arm let alone all my fingers! It sure was cool though, plus I learned a ton about turtles that week :) Helen, my next property will have all the compost far far away from the house lol My main compost is actually on the back fence line, but when we arrived here I thought the old banged up flower bed would make a fine little kitchen scrap bin. Clearly, I am very new at gardening/composting :) Oh, and I'm sorry about Puff, losing a pet is terrible. Miraje, I almost hate to admit this because I'm sure almost everyone will think I'm insane or a complete idiot, but.. that picture was taken inside my house! Now remember, I caught this thing in a box so I didn't actually know what it was until I emptied the box into a big aquarium I have. However, that all occurred outside so I knew exactly what I was bringing in, when I carried it into the house :) Here's why.. I wanted to watch it, Identify it, read about it, learn more about rodents, protect it from -5° tempts since I was holding it hostage, take a picture then relocate it. Crazy or not, it's a life, a beautiful fat, healthy rat. The prettiest rat I've ever seen actually. It looks like an obese mouse. I realize that all may sound strange to most, but animals are IT for me. Learning about the creatures around me, in depth, has been and will always be a hobby per se. Just by catching this one rat, I have increased my knowledge on rats, mice, voles, and mole exponentially. Not to mention, all I have learned on pathogens (who knew the CDC website was so interesting?) Oh, and I've learned more about composting! Long story short, I love nature and all that comes with it. I've been catching creatures and learning about them since I could outcrawl a sowbug :) Of course, I've grown out of putting any of my new "finds" in my mouth, but other than that not much has changed lol Crazy or not, I caught the little buggers, learned a ton, then let them go miles and miles from my house! :)

THANK YOU for posting this! I have a 7 year old Kenmore H3 pair and our towels have been smelling bad for the past few years. I thought I was just a laundry-idiot and would buy new towels every few months. I ALWAYS leave the door open, use a powder HE detergent and do not use fabric softner. Now our baby's bibs (terry cloth) are starting to smell sour and I have tried everything from bleach runs, to soaking them in baking soda to adding vinegar to the rinse. I have looked under the lip, and haven't seen mold, just what kind of ick you would expect after 7 years of washing our clothes. I am running a HOT Benefect load right now and will soak our towels and bibs in it tomorrow. If that doesn't work, I will have to get a new one with the fancy "clean tub" feature. I can't stand my baby smelling icky.

It does not rub off. I removed all my succulents mixed some fresh soil and I have my plants laying out. I just rubbed every one down with 50/50 alcohol/water solution with cotton balls and did surgery on the unsalvagable bits. The black parts seem to be turning brown and getting "crispy" then some are looking soft and squishy. A couple of my plants appear to have root rot so I cut them and I will let them dry for a week or so. Those plants however don't have any black spots yet. I am still at a loss but at least I can quarantine them easier now. After carefully inspecting every one of my plants I have yet to find a single bug. Here is my project for reference if that helps anyone with a diagnosis!

looks fungal... i hate using fungicides, they really hurt the soil. try neem oil, maybe with soap. or even wipe it down with alcohol or peroxide on a towel ?