Having birds nesting in the walls of your house can be an incredibly frustrating and potentially messy situation that no homeowner wants to deal with. These feathered invaders can cause costly damage to your property, leave behind unsanitary droppings that attract other pests, and create a constant racket with their incessant chirping and flapping. While a bird visitor may seem like a harmless nuisance at first, leaving them unchecked to take up residence in the cavities of your home’s walls can quickly lead to more significant structural issues and headaches down the line.
Why Birds Nest in House Walls
Birds are naturally drawn to the warmth, protection and ideal nesting conditions that the hollow spaces within house walls provide, especially during breeding seasons in spring and summer. They actively seek out these cozy crannies as prime real estate to build their nests, lay eggs, and raise their young broods away from predators and the elements. Tiny cracks, holes or openings in your home’s exterior act as open invitations for birds to slip inside and set up housekeeping between your walls. Once they’ve moved in and gotten comfy, these winged squatters can be extremely difficult to evict without professional expertise.
Identifying the Bird Species
Common Bird Species Found in House Walls
Before taking any action to remove pesky birds from the interior of your home’s walls, it’s crucial to first identify exactly what species you’re dealing with. Some of the most common culprits that tend to covertly nest in these enclosed spaces include house sparrows, European starlings, feral pigeons, and even woodpeckers like the noisy northern flicker. Each different bird variety has its own unique set of behaviors, nesting preferences, and skills for infiltrating structures, all of which can impact which removal tactics you’ll need to employ.
Recognizing Bird Sounds and Droppings
Two of the most obvious giveaways that you have a bird infestation occurring within your home are the sounds of chirping, fluttering, or general commotion coming from inside the walls and the visible accumulation of bird droppings around suspected entry holes on the exterior. These telltale audible and visual signs can help you pinpoint exactly where the feathery perpetrators are nesting so you can properly focus your removal efforts on those specific areas. If you hear the high-pitched cheeping of hungry hatchlings, you’ll know there is an active nest with baby birds present.
Humane Methods for Removing Birds
When it comes to evicting your unwanted winged tenants from taking up residence between your walls, there are a variety of humane methods and deterrents you can utilize to encourage them to move elsewhere. The goal should always be to safely and non-lethally remove the birds without doing harm.
Sealing Entry Points
One of the first and most effective steps is to carefully inspect the entire exterior of your home and seal off any potential entry points the birds could be using to access the interior walls. This includes caulking cracks, patching holes with cement or mesh wire, and covering vents or other openings with screens or excluders. Just be sure there are no active nests with eggs or baby birds inside before sealing anything shut, as this could lead to bigger problems down the line.
Using Deterrents
If simply sealing off access isn’t enough to make the stubborn feathery residents immediately vacate, you can try using various humane deterrents to make your home’s walls as uninviting and uncomfortable a place for them to nest as possible.
Visual Deterrents
Visual repellent tactics like hanging bright ribbons, rotating mirrors, deploying garden spinners, or suspending shiny objects that reflect light can create an unsettling environment of constant motion and flickering shadows that makes birds anxious. The erratic visuals can spook and scare away birds.
Auditory Deterrents
Loud and startling sounds like playing recordings of predator calls (hawks, owls) or utilizing ultrasonic sound devices that emit high-frequency, distressing tones can also be very effective at driving birds away from areas where you don’t want them nesting. Just be mindful that some auditory deterrents could potentially bother you or your neighbors as well.
Smell Deterrents
You can also make use of strong smells that birds find unpleasant and offensive like peppermint oil, ammonia, or other chemical repellents. Placing these around suspected nesting areas or entry holes can encourage birds to stay away and seek housing elsewhere that doesn’t reek.
Exclusion and Trapping
In severe cases where deterrents alone aren’t enough to evict persistent and abundant bird populations, physical exclusion and trapping methods may be required but should only be carried out by trained professionals. Exclusion involves sealing off all potential access points after the birds have left the nest, while trapping involves safely capturing the birds in live traps or nets and then relocating them to more suitable environments away from homes. This allows the birds to be removed without being harmed.
Professional Assistance
When to Hire a Professional
As much as we may want to try handling a bird invasion ourselves, there are many instances when it’s best to call in the experts and hire professional wildlife control services. If you’re dealing with an extremely large-scale infestation, aggressive species like woodpeckers, nests located in difficult or hazardous areas of your home, or if the birds keep returning after your deterrent efforts, don’t hesitate to get the pros involved. Professionals also must be called if there are any active nests with eggs or babies present, as disturbing these requires special permits and training.
Services Offered by Wildlife Control Companies
Reputable wildlife and pest control companies that specialize in bird removal offer a variety of comprehensive services to fully eliminate bird problems from your home. This includes conducting thorough inspections to identify all entry points and nesting areas, humane capture and removal of adult birds, safe extraction of nests and eggs, repairing damage, and excluding and securing all openings to prevent future infestations. They also provide long-term prevention strategies and deterrent solutions. Hiring experts ensures the job is done safely, legally and effectively.
Prevention and Maintenance
Once you’ve successfully removed birds from nesting inside the walls of your home, it’s absolutely critical to take ongoing preventative measures to discourage any new feathery squatters from moving in down the road.
Sealing Potential Entry Points
The first line of defense is to diligently seal any and all potential entry points and access holes around the entire exterior of your home and property using sturdy materials like stainless steel mesh, caulk, sealant, or vent covers. This eliminates easy access into wall cavities and forces birds to look elsewhere for nesting sites.
Regular Inspections
It’s also wise to make routine inspections of your home’s exterior, rooflines, vents, and other areas of your property a regular habit at least once a month during peak nesting seasons. Check for any new openings, nest building activity, or other signs of birds trying to gain entry so you can quickly seal off new access points before they’re exploited.
Deterring Future Infestations
In addition to sealing up access routes, there are several deterrent products and methods you can employ around your home to make conditions as unfavorable for bird nesting as possible. Some effective long-term deterrents include installing bird netting, spikes, tension wire or other physical barriers on surfaces, using predator decoys, distributing chemical bird repellents, or installing ultrasonic deterrent devices. Taking a multi-pronged approach gives you the best prevention.
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Conclusion
Getting stubborn birds out of your house walls can certainly be a challenging ordeal requiring patience and diligence. However, by properly identifying the bird species you’re dealing with, using a variety of harmless deterrent methods, sealing up potential entry points, and knowing when to call in professional wildlife control experts for assistance, it is absolutely possible to humanely rid your home of feathered intruders and prevent costly future infestations.
The key is acting swiftly at the first signs of a bird invasion and not allowing them to become further entrenched within your home’s walls. With some perseverance and the right combination of humane removal tactics, you can reclaim your living space from these feathery squatters. Stay vigilant about maintaining your home’s defenses through regular inspections and deterrents to prevent birds from attempting to nest again. While getting rid of unwanted avian residents can be a hassle, it’s well worth the effort to preserve the structural integrity of your property and have peace of mind.
FAQs
1. Is it legal to remove birds from my house walls?
Yes, it is generally legal for homeowners to remove bird nests and evict birds from residential properties, as long as it is done through humane methods that do not harm the birds. However, it’s important to check local wildlife regulations first, as some species may be protected under certain laws that prohibit disturbing active nests during breeding seasons.
2. What if I can’t find or seal off the entry hole the birds are using?
If you are unable to locate or properly seal up the entry point birds are using to access the interior walls of your home, your best approach is to use deterrent methods like sound and smell repellents to make the area as uninviting as possible. The birds will eventually abandon the nest if the conditions become unfavorable enough.
3. How long does it typically take for birds to leave after starting deterrents?
There is no set timeframe, as it depends on the species and how established the nesting situation is. Some birds may abandon within a few days of consistent deterrent use, while others may stubbornly persist for several weeks. Continuing deterrent efforts and not giving up is important.
4. Can I just wait for baby birds to leave the nest before removing it?
If an active nest with baby birds is present, it is generally recommended to simply let the natural cycle continue until the babies have fledged and left on their own before removing the nest. Disturbing it prematurely requires special permits and risks harming the young birds.
5. Do I need to get the whole nest out or just the adult birds?
Ideally, you want to fully remove and dispose of any nesting materials from inside your walls after evicting or excluding the adult birds. Leaving remnants behind can attract new birds or result in foul odors from decomposing matter. However, extracting the entire nest can be difficult without causing damage, so focus removal efforts on the adult birds first.
