Proof Roll

Bird Proofing Your Boat for Winter

With the lazy days of summer coming to a close, the fall and winter months are quickly approaching.  This means people are hanging up the swimming trunks, putting the beach wear away, and storing the boats for the long winter ahead.  Unfortunately, we are not the only ones preparing for the fall and winter months.  Resident pest bird populations prepare for the cold weather by finding a place to roost and what better place than inside the warm confines of a boat in storage.  Not only do these birds cause a potentially expensive mess, they also leave behind disease carrying bacteria that can land an unsuspecting boater in the hospital or worse.  With the economy in the trenches, Americans are doing everything possible to stretch every dollar, and with the amount of money damage pest birds can cause a boater, it seems irresponsible not to bird proof your boats or watercraft.

In order to properly bird proof your boat for winter storage one has to understand the habits and tendencies of nuisance birds both on and off the water.  Birds, like any other organism, require three basic elements for survival; food, shelter, and water.  Since birds are able to travel quite easily, close proximity to food and water are not as important as a safe haven for roosting.  This is where the problems arise with boats in storage.  Once a pest bird has begun nest construction it is very difficult to get rid of them, this is why it is best to solve the problem before it even begins.

One of the most common places to store boats and small watercraft is inside of a storage warehouse or boathouse.  Unfortunately, birds love to nest inside these shelters and their feces and nesting material can destroy the paint jobs on boats, stain the canvas covers, lock up engines, and leave behind disease carrying bacteria.  A common resident to storage warehouses is the barn swallow.  The barn swallow possesses the capability to cause catastrophic damage because of its nesting habits.  Inside of a warehouse it will build a mud nest just about anywhere, including over boats and once in place, it will drop fecal matter and nesting material all around its nesting site because they are just naturally messy nesters.  To prevent this one would want to install bird netting on the ceiling to take away their nesting structure.  Bird netting is a safe, humane, cost efficient and extremely effective way to rid a warehouse of pest birds.  It generally comes in rolls and can easily be attached to most any kind of structure.  However if the hanging net proves too difficult for the average boat owner, one could always call their local pest control company.

When it comes to bird proofing in an outdoor setting the approach is a little bit different.  Since the birds could potentially land directly on the boat, a physical bird deterrent is the best solution.  A product called the bird spider is an excellent choice for the bow, stern, and railing of the boat.  The spider is a centralized plastic base with long wire “arms” that umbrella out from the center 360 degrees around.  This provides 360 degrees of coverage and prevents any pest birds from landing.  They generally come in four different sizes to suit different size needs.  The spider can also be placed on top of canvas covers with the addition of a sandbag base.  This enables the boater to easily remove the spider when the boat is in use.  Another product that acts in a similar fashion is called the Bird Repeller.  With this product, instead of having a number of different stationary arms, it has two adjustable antenna arms that rotate in a circular motion resembling the action of helicopter blades.  This machine runs off of a solar power with two rechargeable batteries included for use during dark times.  Just set it down and let it spin. Bird spikes can also be used on boats to deter pest birds.  More specifically, on the railing, masts, or radar towers.  Bird spikes come in both stainless steel and plastic and an assortment of sizes to suit every different situation.

Visual bird deterrents also work well in bird proofing your boat.  Products such as the Scare Balloons, Flash Tape and Diverters are both easy to use and extremely effective.  The concept behind these products is to create a lot of flash to cause visual discomfort for the birds.  These products can be attached just about anywhere on a boat and with the coast having constant wind; these products give off maximum action making them that much more effective.   Simple, low cost and effective; visual bird deterrents make a great addition to any boat or watercraft bird proofing system.

It is time to stop procrastinating and putting off opportunities to save money and hassle with pest bird damage to your boat.  Bird Proofing your boat or watercraft is easy to do.  Whether it be netting a storage unit, installing a physical deterrent or using a visual deterrent, bird proofing is a simple and cost efficient solution to potentially costly problems.  For further information on how to bird proof your boat contact your local pest control company.

About the Author

Bryan Donoho has been involved in the bird control industry for the last 7 years.

Motorpsycho – The Bomb-Proof Roll And Beyond