How do I stop a bird from builiding a nest in my roof tiles?

[Rick Lee]

Short of killing it, I don't know how to discourage this guy anymore. I've pulled the nest down three times this week and even hit the bird twice with rocks. This guy will not give up and I don't want his nest there. I'm about a day away from setting a glue trap on his perch. He's there every time I come out to check and his nest is restarted a few hours after I pull it all down with a broom. I can't shoot him in this neighborhood. The smallest caliber I have is a .22 and that'd still be a crime in such a residential place. A BB gun might work. I don't think anything short of killing him is gonna work, which I'd like to avoid. But I'd much rather avoid the damage this guy is inflicting on my roof tiles and flashing. What to do?

[varmint]

is he going for the exact same spot?

if so you can rig up an aerosol can of motion sensor activated cat repellant.



http://www.upco.com/ssscat-automatic-cat-repellent

[Moses]

How is a bird going to ruin your roof? They've been nesting in roof tiles for centuries. Leave the bird alone and enjoy!

[Rick Lee]

Hmmm. That looks interesting. But it would take a week or so to get it and I'd need to buy a bigger ladder to get up there. Are birds as trainable as cats? I was thinking of using the can of Raid, which sprays pretty far.

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by Moses

How is a bird going to ruin your roof? They've been nesting in roof tiles for centuries. Leave the bird alone and enjoy!

He's already lifted one of the roof tiles and I just noticed more damage where the vinyl flashing has been torn. There is some chicken wire covering up the spaces that lead into the garage. But this guy is damaging the roof and I don't want to lose my deposit when I move out.

[Heel n Toe]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

this guy is damaging the roof and I don't want to lose my deposit when I move out.

You're renting?

If so, it sounds like a problem for the owner/landlord to me.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Is it a Spanish clay-tile roof setup? Birds love those. If so, they do make clay caps that are SUPPOSED to be put in the ends of the open "tubes" created - you'd be stunned at how often they're omitted, left out or "VE'd" out by cheap owners (which of course ends up costing them a fortune later when birds get in there).

Get a cat. You can borrow one of mine for a week if you want. It'd probably take Linus (the big one) about 15 minutes to take care of the problem. He's quite the hunter.

[JavaBrewer]

Water hose. Wash the entire nest and materials away daily. It shouldn't take too long for the bird to give up and try somewhere else.

In the past we allowed birds to nest under our eves so the kids could see the process. Unfortunately every process included the baby birds getting eaten by crows. No more nests at this house.

[cgarr]

Buy a M&K muffler

[vash]

Originally Posted by Heel n Toe

You're renting?

If so, it sounds like a problem for the owner/landlord to me.

same here. tell the owner. i couldnt imagine you being liable for damage caused my nature's fury. like getting dinged for a roof leak.

me, i would bb-gun it. i am a stone cold killer

[Rick Lee]

I need to get a bb gun anyway. I will call the prop. mgr., but they are not real responsive. I expect, at best, my call will be noted somewhere, so we can refer back to it if there's perm. damage as a result.

[daepp]

I have the clay tile caps, but sparrows still enter at will. They still leave small gaps - I think the birds actually prefer them.

[Radioactive]

I got one of those plastic owls from lowes.

Hung it from the eve.

I didn't think it would work but sure enough the birds circled for about a half hour then never came back.

[legion]

I had a similar problem years ago, except that the birds had actually picked a hole in my roof to get through to the eave to build their nest. I fixed the hole and they picked their way through again.

The problem did not go away until the birds were dead.

[BeyGon]

Put a plastic snake up there.

[Tobra]

Clean out the nest and spray some pepper spray in the area, burns there little feet, does not hurt them much. It is oily and will persist a little while.

You can also make a little nicotine concoction that will discourage them. Get some used cigarette butts, soak in hot water, with a little dish soap and vegetable oil. This is a bit toxic, liable to make them sick or dead, works good as an insect spray also.

[Rick Lee]

I wonder if I can find a cheap Airsoft gun. I shot some of them in China recently and they seem to be a lot less critter-lethal than bb's. They just shoot rubber pellets, but not as fast as bb's. Still, it might not look good if a neighbor sees me doing it and there's no way to do it from concealment.

[Eric Coffey]

For some reason, there are large pigeon and dove populations here in the desert. A common remedy is to set up bird spikes in strategic areas on the roof. The fake animals (snakes, owls) seem to only work for a day or two.

You should be able to find the spikes at Home Depot/Lowes, etc.

[einreb]

Originally Posted by cgarr

Buy a M&K muffler

I like the cut of your jib.

[teenerted1]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

I need to get a bb gun anyway. I will call the prop. mgr., but they are not real responsive. I expect, at best, my call will be noted somewhere, so we can refer back to it if there's perm. damage as a result.

why call when they might loose the message.

pick up pen and paper and write them of the notice that there is a pest damaging their property. then leave it up to the property owner to pay for the pest removal. if you take the time to make it important enough to document they might just take you more seriously. make a copy for your records so if they dispute your claims when you move out they wont have this as a reason not to refund your deposit. paper trail is better than a phone message that will be deleted the moment they listen to it.

if you are spotted by a neighbor harassing wildlife you could be in for a world of hurt from the authorities. maybe you neighbor have a solution your you. it could be your turn on the block for this culprit

phone calls get a slow response from my landlord. but the second i put an issue in writing i usually get a good response.