Maybe someone out there in BP land can help ... my house (1860) has a skunk
problem!  I live very near a nature preserve, but in the heart of a older
suburban neighborhood, where there is still a lot of wildlife -- raccoons,
possums (possi? poffumf?), deer, groundhogs, ... and skunks. Sometimes, my
resident skunks are replaced by raccoons or groundhogs (?), which are a little
less smelly, but still rather rank.

Although during the other 3 seasons it's not as bad, in just-spring the skunks
are living it up under my front porch in the middle of the night. And while
they may be having a good time, the odor is pumped through the house by the
hot air ducts and nearly drives us to thermal tents in the back yard! One
time, one of them chose this spot for his final resting place, driving us out
for about 2 weeks! (When we finally figured out what had happened, we had to
rip apart the porch floorboards to access the deceased...)

We have tried trapping them for release in the preserve, bricking up a small
crawl space where they have nested (since 1860?), and blocking the opening
between the ground and lattice panel, but mechanical solutions haven't worked
so far. Does anyone know a "foolproof" way to prevent these animals from
setting up housekeeping?  Is there a better mechanical way to keep them out?
Is there some sort of device that emits ultrasonic beeps or some such that we
can set up inside the basement that would drive them away? Help!

Mary (out of air freshener) Krugman
Montclair, NJ