Birds nesting in roof

Shefwedfan · 20-04-2017 9:40am #1

Ok so I am about to bring out the gun at this stage :P

Moved into new house and noticed last weeks a lot of birds around. Only at weekend did I notice birds starting to crawl under the tiles making nests. From what I can see they are starlings.

Someone said to push up small stones in the spaces. I did this but too many spots on house so they just moved along to another spot. One little f**ker was getting in under a stone I put in.

I was told about little plastic things you nail to the wall plate. I have noticed some of the house is already done in this but I am no roofing expert and when I try and push the tiles back I am afraid I will damage something

Last night got a roll of chicken wire and just rolled it out over the gutter for the main part they had attacked. This morning looked out and one of the little feckers was squeezing his way through one of the holes and up into the roof space.

Looking for idea's. I seen the following but are they any good? http://www.ie.screwfix.com/procter-stop-bird-spikes-pack-of-10.html

What else could I use? Thanks

Edit: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Gutter-Brush-Leaf-Guard/dp/B00OTT0MG0/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1492677802&sr=8-8&keywords=gutter+guard

Would something like that stop them as they can't get into gutter?

BrokenArrows · 20-04-2017 11:00am

Might be worth getting/making a bird repellent spray and spraying down the roof.

You can buy repellent or just make some spicy juice and spray it on the roof with a hand spray.

Spicy red peppers, garlic, vinegar, water. Blend it up and mix it with more water to create enough to spray down the roof. Filter the mixture with a sieve.

They seem to like your house so you need to make the place inhospitable rather than just putting obstacles in the way.

You can make a small batch and test it in a small area that they are currently using. If it works then you can cover the roof.

Shefwedfan · 20-04-2017 11:19am

Small update, I got the chicken wire and doubled it over itself and then pushed it down into the gutter

At the moment a couple of them are banging away trying to move it out of the way

Please note I have made sure there is no nest/egg in there already

Shefwedfan · 05-05-2017 8:07pm

Ok, so 2 nests in house, missed 2 spots. I seen bird flying out last week and when I went to check I could hear the little baby birdies

Spotted another nest yesterday

Feckers are pooing everywhere. Just wondering how long before they head off so I can block up and clean the place

Shefwedfan · 25-01-2018 2:53pm

Ok, it has come back around to this time of year, I have checked the roof and the bird comb's are installed in spots but it looks like the birds or something are still getting past them. Any other options?

listermint · 25-01-2018 2:59pm

Shefwedfan wrote: »

Ok, it has come back around to this time of year, I have checked the roof and the bird comb's are installed in spots but it looks like the birds or something are still getting past them. Any other options?

I think its time to burn the house down ,

But on a more serious note, I had to remove my eaves for extended period of times for EWI installation.

And had read about birds hating the noise and movement of plastic bags, So i literally cable tied some white plastic bags to around the house to small screws i placed in weatherboard. And not a bird to be seen in the eaves, despite me pulling huge amounts of old nests out when pulling eaves,

The birds are around daily but they are not nesting.

Handing out in trees and chimney but not making homes. I think the bags annoy them or the sound or movement but its worked for me.

....... · 25-01-2018 3:20pm

This post has been deleted.

cudsy1 · 20-05-2020 9:05am

bump - interesting thread. birds under my roof tiles above my kitchen it appears. will chirping go on all summer?

Shefwedfan · 20-05-2020 9:29am

cudsy1 wrote: »

bump - interesting thread. birds under my roof tiles above my kitchen it appears. will chirping go on all summer?

Not all summer, I have 7 nests on last count. All hatched so hopefully going to leave nest in next few weeks

tedimc · 20-05-2020 1:39pm

Not sure if this would work for Starlings, but it definitely did for swallows.

My mother was going demented with swallows building nests in the apex of the roof over the front and back doors. They left an awful mess on the car, footpath, etc.

I read somewhere that they don't like string, so I used gorilla tape to stick a line of 'threads' from a turf bag up in the apex (onto the PVC).

They are only about 6 inchs long and seem to have kept them away for the last few years.

Shefwedfan · 20-05-2020 1:46pm

tedimc wrote: »

Not sure if this would work for Starlings, but it definitely did for swallows.

My mother was going demented with swallows building nests in the apex of the roof over the front and back doors. They left an awful mess on the car, footpath, etc.

I read somewhere that they don't like string, so I used gorilla tape to stick a line of 'threads' from a turf bag up in the apex (onto the PVC).

They are only about 6 inchs long and seem to have kept them away for the last few years.

Starlings are persistent little ****ers!! so the first year when I seen them. I went to stop in first nest

So I got chicken wire. Put it along the top of gutter from the nest. The little fecker used to fly down into the gutter. The walk in the gutter along till he hopped in to build his nest. Once I seen that I gave him a round of applause and took the wire down. :P

tedimc · 20-05-2020 1:52pm

Maybe worth trying one of the fake birds of prey?

Worth a shot.

Recliner · 20-05-2020 1:56pm

We have a starlings nest in the eave of the garage. Been there years, I actually look forward to the activity, every year. I couldn't imagine trying to block them off, especially now when they possibly have chicks in there who haven't fledged yet.

Shefwedfan · 20-05-2020 2:00pm

tedimc wrote: »

Maybe worth trying one of the fake birds of prey?

Worth a shot.

At this stage they are nested and have babies. It's illegal after they nest to upset them

As mentioned I dont mind them at all, hence why we ended up with 7 this year, I would expect these are babies from last year who have come home

fineso.mom · 20-05-2020 2:13pm

I have them in the hose of the extractor hood, one of the flaps on the little cover that goes on the wall fell off and they made a nest a few inches in. They are quite noisy but I kind of like it. Once the chicks have left I'll fix the opening, but they aren't doing any harm for now.

Stigura · 20-05-2020 5:30pm

Shefwedfan wrote: »

I would expect these are babies from last year who have come home

Forgive the Bird Nerd coming out in me :cool: But I am the undisputed Starling King Of Leitrim

Seriously; I 'breed' and ring starlings on an approaching industrial scale. More nest boxes out than I've had hot dinners. And my empire shall grow!

But, yeah; Young starlings don't return to where they fledged. I've ringed Hundreds here. Never, in all these years found 'one of mine' adopting one of my boxes. Dispersal of young keeps the gene pool clear. Else I'd be putting little rocking chairs on top of my boxes!

Shefwedfan · 20-05-2020 5:58pm

Stigura wrote: »

Forgive the Bird Nerd coming out in me :cool: But I am the undisputed Starling King Of Leitrim Seriously; I 'breed' and ring starlings on an approaching industrial scale. More nest boxes out than I've had hot dinners. And my empire shall grow!

But, yeah; Young starlings don't return to where they fledged. I've ringed Hundreds here. Never, in all these years found 'one of mine' adopting one of my boxes. Dispersal of young keeps the gene pool clear. Else I'd be putting little rocking chairs on top of my boxes!

:P:P
Dont tell my kids that

crossmolinalad · 23-05-2020 12:03pm

tedimc wrote: »

Not sure if this would work for Starlings, but it definitely did for swallows.

My mother was going demented with swallows building nests in the apex of the roof over the front and back doors. They left an awful mess on the car, footpath, etc.

I read somewhere that they don't like string, so I used gorilla tape to stick a line of 'threads' from a turf bag up in the apex (onto the PVC).

They are only about 6 inchs long and seem to have kept them away for the last few years.

Old CD or dvd on a string is enough , they never come back

blindside88 · 03-06-2020 3:57pm

Looking for some advise guys,

Starlings are after getting into the canopy over the front of my house. There’s a nest with a chick in it in the vent of the sitting room wall. I assume this has fallen down from above. There is no way for the chick to get out the front and the mother is feeding it through the front of the vent. I assume this chick will not be able to get out the top. Is there anything I should do? Chick looks a decent size. The noise is very annoying but I don’t want to disturb it if it will be able to get out itself over time. Similarly I don’t want to see it die there. Any help appreciated.

Stigura · 03-06-2020 4:02pm

At possible risk of oversimplification; It sounds like the vent's got to come off, one way or another

Shefwedfan · 03-06-2020 4:02pm

blindside88 wrote: »

Looking for some advise guys,

Starlings are after getting into the canopy over the front of my house. There’s a nest with a chick in it in the vent of the sitting room wall. I assume this has fallen down from above. There is no way for the chick to get out the front and the mother is feeding it through the front of the vent. I assume this chick will not be able to get out the top. Is there anything I should do? Chick looks a decent size. The noise is very annoying but I don’t want to disturb it if it will be able to get out itself over time. Similarly I don’t want to see it die there. Any help appreciated.

I guess the vent has a screenn on it,take it off

blindside88 · 03-06-2020 4:16pm

Shefwedfan wrote: »

I guess the vent has a screenn on it,take it off

I can take the screen off on the inside and take the chick out but the vent on the outside of the house is set into the brickwork so can’t be removed without breaking it out.

I’ve opened the inside vent and can see the chick. Is it best to just remove it and bring it outside and hope the mother sorts it out. The mother is hanging around outside is keeps flying over to the vent to try and feed the chick through it

lydaly · 27-03-2023 10:45am

Hi

We've had trouble with birds nesting in our roof previously, but had some work done on the underfelt which had significant damage so had that all replaced and old nests removed and we thought that would be it but the Starlings are back this year, haven't noticed them in at least the last two years but now they are building a nest going through the gap of the tiles on the roof where the gutter is.

What is the best solution to stop this? I note some saying to use an old cd on a string etc. where would you locate this to get the best results or any other advice?

Cannot take the noise of the previous years and all the damage that was done!

Thanks

Tabnabs · 27-03-2023 11:20am

Had the same problem myself with Sparrows. Wire-wool fixed it. They can't get it out, it's sharp if they try to pick at strands, they gave up and have never been back.

Using gloves, you pull out clumps and stuff it into the gaps in the roof tiles.

10-10-20 · 28-03-2023 9:35am

Do you mean metal scrubbing sponges rather than wire-wool? Wire wool will rust over time in the damp and create all sorts of other issues.

monseiur · 31-03-2023 3:37pm

Decoys of Sparrow Hawks, Magpies, Grey Crows etc. work a treat, the trick is not to not leave them in the same spot for too long. They have to appear and disappear regularly as the real thing would. Once a nesting bird is aware that a predator is about they move on.

Dial Hard · 31-03-2023 3:46pm

If they've already nested then it's too late to do anything about it this year, it's an offence to tamper with the nest.

We had the same issue before and once the chicks had fledged, we hired a cherry-picker (us and next door as they also had visitors), filled the void up with wire and then cemented over the gap (a piece of soffit had fallen off). Just make sure the nest is properly empty before you seal off the space - we inadvertently trapped one of the adults and ended up having to cut a hole in our attic lining to let him out.

SuperBowserWorld · 31-03-2023 4:00pm

Had starlings every spring for years in our old house. They got in though a really awkward to reach part of the roof. Got sick of listening to them every year. Then just got a roofer to clear out the space and block up the holes. He took out bags of nesting material. 😁

El_robbo1980 · 31-03-2023 4:02pm

Galvanised chicken wire or similar with a tight mesh (could try the plastic variety but I reckon they’d pull it apart eventually being the persistent f*%kers they are) Cut into squares and then roll into a cone shape or tight cylinder. Lift the first row tile by tile and nail/tack into the batten. They’ll certainly spend a bit of time going at it but it should hold. Depending on your roof type it’s not advisable to use concrete to block as it’ll prevent air flow. I tried eaves fillers previously both with screws and Tec7 and they got through it. Also tried a “gutter brush” but they actually pulled that about two inches to one side to gain access! Don’t underestimate the amount of damage they can do under there

Larbre34 · 31-03-2023 4:16pm

Starlings are crazy ****ers.

I found one in the main bathroom of our house lately, doors and windows all closed up.

Little bugger had come through the wall cavity ventilation and squeezed himself (I mean really squeezed) through the tiny gap of cut box and tile around the toilet outflow pipe.

Why would he even do that?!

10-10-20 · 01-04-2023 1:39am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120424345#Comment_120424345

When you eventually go get yourself a BER on that house and wonder where the air is disappearing to, you'll eventually think of that one starling's drive to survive and it's ability to survive against the odds by finding that one-and-only gap.

Birds nesting in roof

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