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How Can I Keep Birds Off My Patio

Strategies To Keep Birds Away

Keep birds off the deck railing

In this article, I discuss three main strategies you can employ to keep birds off patio furniture:

  • Use scare tactics to scare away the birds
  • Make the birds uncomfortable so they don’t return
  • Remove bird attractions from your home
  • First, I’d like to share my experience in dealing with invasive starlings. As I’m sharing my story and making recommendations based on my personal experience in keeping birds off patio furniture, this article is more conversational.

    There are three main strategies for keeping birds away from your furniture.

    Diy Ways To Keep Birds Away

    Apr 17, 2020 | DIY, DIY Wildlife Prevention, Wildlife |


    Some birds are beautiful and fun to watch while others can be downright annoying and destructive. While birds arent typically considered a nuisance pest, they can become a problem when their nests obstruct important areas in your house, their droppings carry transmittable diseases, or they get into your attic or chimney.

    Understanding what nuisance birds are attracted to is the first step in helping to prevent them. Pest birds such as crows, pigeons, sparrows, robins, and starlings are attracted to food sources they can find around your home . Woodpeckers are also a common nuisance bird and will drill into your trees in search of carpenter ants, beetles, and other wood-boring insects.

    Birds can be attracted to pet food which is often left outside all day for them to feast on. Birds also require water to survive and will use your fountain, water feature, or any other standing water on your property as a birdbath.

    While professional bird control is always an option, there are some bird prevention tips you can use at home to help keep birds away. Here are 5 of our favorite DIY bird repellent methods.

    1.; Modify Their Habitats

    2. Aluminum Foil

    3. Fishing Wire

    4. Baking Soda

    5. Predator Decoys

    Fake It With A Snake Or Owl

    Keep birds away from your deck, pool, or garden by putting a rubber snake or plastic owl nearby . As they fly overhead, theyll see the fake predator and wont land near it. Move the fake around at least once a day so they think its real.


    For more helpful outdoor tips from all over the internet, check out our Gardening and Yard Tips boardnewsletter and !

    Image courtesy of;Shutterstock.

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    Remove Any Materials That Can Be Used As A Nest

    One reason why birds keep flocking on your porch is the presence of materials they use for nest building. Remove dried leaves, twigs, and anything that can be possibly used as a building block of a nesting place. The birds may not intentionally plan to poo on your porch, but it happened otherwise. Try keeping your porch clean of the dried leaves and see if it will have a difference.

    Another thing you should check is if your yard tree branches extend near your houses structure. If yes, chances are this is the reason why the birds keep hanging out on your porch and leaving some unsightly souvenirs. Trim these parts and let the direct light shine into your porch if possible. This will remove the dropping smell after some days as ways to get rid of birds on the porch.


    If theres already a nest on your porch, try calling a wildlife remover to expertly relocate the birds.

    Know Your Outdoor Environment

    Getting Rid of Crows

    Before you start making all sorts of changes to the landscape, know what you have to work with. Spend some time sitting in the yard at different times of day and take notice of the light, the views and the existing elements. This will help guide everything from your furniture arrangements to your plantings. these are just some of the things to consider?

    • Is the property sun-filled or quite shady?
    • Does the yard slope precipitously or is it level?
    • Which direction does the yard face?
    • Is the soil sandy or heavy with clay, either of which can affect drainage?
    • Do you have a lot of trees that drop various pods, seeds, blooms or fruits, which will make the upkeep of any water feature more labor-intensive?
    • Is the land so rocky that digging anything deeper than a hole for an annual plant is next to impossible?
    • Do you have a view that you want to showcase?

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    Which Colors Attract Birds

    It depends on the bird! When a food source appeals to a species of bird, they are drawn to the color of the food source.

    If youre having trouble with a specific species of bird, look around to see if any of the following colors are on display. Hummingbirds are attracted to the colors red, yellow, orange, and pink. Orioles are attracted to orange.


    Goldfinches and warblers are attracted to yellow. Bluebirds and jays are attracted to blue .

    Additionally, neutral colors like gray and brown can attract ground feeding birds like doves and other ground feeding birds.

    Remove Bird Baths & Fountains

    The following few tips are less to do with scaring birds away, and more to do with making your yard, deck, and pool less appealing to birds in the first place. If you have a birdbath or fountain in your yard, thats essentially an open invitation for birds to visit the area.

    Birds adore water sources that they can not only drink from but bathe in as well.

    If you have a birdbath or fountain, you might want to think about removing it or at least relocating it to a far end of your property where bird droppings wont bother you as much. If you take away their bathing station, theyll be on the lookout for somewhere better to hang around.


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    What Attracts Birds In The First Place

    The secret to bird control is to know what attracts them, then remove those things or prevent them from getting to them. After that, put out a bird deterrent, or three, or four. The more deterrents and repellents you can put out, the fewer birds youll see in your garden, perching on your windowsills, or on your property at all.

    Pest birds include robins, house sparrows, starlings, crows, and other species of birds. Food sources they’re attracted to are insects, earthworms, seeds, rotten fruit, corn, and vegetables of all kinds.;

    Woodpeckers are known for drilling into mature coniferous trees as well as mixed-hardwood forests where dead trees can be found, in hopes of finding carpenter ants, beetles, and wood-boring insects.

    Read more:These are the top 5 best woodpecker deterrents


    A lot of people forget that pet food is enormously attractive to many types of birds. If youre in the habit of feeding your pet outside, youre also ringing the dinner bell for the birds too.

    If you live near the coast or large bodies of water like the Great Lakes, seagulls of various kinds will be swooping down for fish and fruits as well as stealing food from other birds. This is one bird species that is very aggressive and noisy.

    In addition to food sources, large birds and smaller birds alike are also attracted to water. If you have a water feature in your yard because you enjoy the sound of it, rest assured, the birds like it too. Theyll adopt it as a birdbath and drinking fountain.

    Remove Bird Fountains And Baths

    How to Keep Birds Off My Back Porch

    Although this will not exactly scare birds away, it will make your yard less appealing to them, to begin with.; When you have a fountain or birdbath, it is an open invitation for the birds to visit your yard.

    Instead of removing them completely, relocate them away from your deck so there is less bird poop on your deck.; It is their bathing and drinking source so you should not remove it altogether.; Just move it away from the deck.


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    Be A Little Whimsical

    The purpose of an outdoor design is to create a space that fun and relaxing and not too serious. No matter what type of backyard style you have, its important to add an unexpected, fun element. This can be anything from artful edging for a garden bed, a mural on the garden shed, statuary, or upcycled art. Even an unusual bench, chair or other seating element can add some fun to a space.;

    Types Of Birds That Cause Problems

    Any bird can potentially be problematic if they decide to take over the wrong spot, or show up in large numbers. But the main offenders tend to be pigeons, starlings, blackbirds, grackles, and house sparrows. This tends to be because these birds in particular have adapted to urban environments, and can congregate in large numbers and live in close proximity to humans.

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    What Can I Do To Keep Them From Nesting On My Porch

    All the above measures keep birds from hanging out on your deck railings and will hopefully translate to keeping them from building nests. But, if youve had nests in the past or want to prevent nests in the future, youll need to take more preventative action. Remember, for many birdslike songbirdsits illegal to destroy active nests. Once theyve made their home, you cant touch it So proactive prevention is key!

    1 Remove potential nesting sites

    If there are any holes or crevices, patch them up or stuff them so no birds can enter. No matter how big or small they are, get them all covered. It doesnt take much space for a bird to build a nest or weasel their way in. There are copper mesh balls specifically made to stuff holes for the purpose of blocking out birds.

    2 Bird Spikes

    Bird spikes are a great way to keep birds from building nests where you dont want them. They are also known as an anti-roosting spike or roost modification. They are essentially strips of spikes that are several inches wide and many feet long that prevent a bird from landing or nesting. Theres many different styles, some that are low profile and others that are a bit more intense. You can modify the length to fit whatever youre putting them on, whether its deck railing or the top of light fixtures.;

    3 Bird netting

    And Remember

    12 Hacks To Stop Birds From Pestering Your Porch. . Retrieved 2020, from ;

    Install Appropriate Bird Spikes

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    Bird spikes are very effective if you want to keep birds away from your porch lights. Put the bird spikes on top of your light fixtures. Birds will never come to rest on them again, but be careful about what kind of birds youre trying to avoid. For example, if the bird spikes are intended for larger birds, smaller birds will keep coming and the spikes will not stop them. Make sure you purchase spikes of the appropriate size and function. Make sure that the website or store youre buying from is offering a spike size that will actually meet your specific need.

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    Ideas To Keep Birds Away

    If youre looking for a magic bullet that will keep birds away from your house and garden forever, youre going to be sorely disappointed. There is no such thing no matter what your neighbor has told you.

    What you can do to get rid of birds, however, is adopt a layered defense strategy composed of at least three or more of the following ideas:

    • Habitat Modification
    • Bird Traps
    • Shooting

    Which three you ultimately decide to use is up to you. Were going to look at each one separately and discuss the pros and cons as we go along. Some of them will have some sub-categories and well point them out along the way.

    Why You May Want To Keep Birds Away

    The most common reasons why you may be trying to deter birds from your property are;

    • They are pooping all over your furniture and property
    • They are very noisy, sometimes at very early hours
    • They are nesting in problematic areas on your house, potentially causing damage
    • They are eating all the fruit/vegetables from your trees and garden

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    Choosing The Best Bird Spikes For Your Property

    As you can probably imagine, bird spikes come in a variety of different shapes and sizes. You will want to do some observing to see what kinds of birds are perching on your property before you purchase the bird spikes, simply so that you can get a good idea of what you are going to need.

    Typically, you are going to want to choose the narrowest set of spikes for the majority of birds that land on your property. The narrower the spikes, the less space there is for the birds to perch and nest there.

    Before you purchase the spikes, you will want to measure out all the areas where you are going to be putting them. After all, you will want to make sure that you are purchasing the right amount of bird spikes.

    You can always break the bottom of the spikes if you dont have enough room for some of them, although it is going to be best for you to get as close to the amount of space as possible.

    Next, you are going to want to search for a glue that will work well for your situation. Generally, you are going to want to aim for clear epoxy glue as this can stand up to a number of weather conditions that your porch endures.

    To administer the glue, you are going to want to find a caulk gun as well. Both of these items can be found at just about any hardware store and are pretty universal.

    On the other hand, if you dont want such a permanent method of attaching bird spikes to your property, you can consider screwing the bird spikes to your porch, patio, or deck if you are able to.

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    This article contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase after clicking a link, we get a small commission at no cost to you.

    featured photo: katie_mccolgan | CC 2.0

    There are many reasons why you may want to keep birds away rather than attract them. In this article we wont talk about what happens at the bird feeder, but what happens around it. Your front steps, pool, deck, balcony, gazebothese are all areas that you may not be thrilled to have excess bird activity.

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    Spray Some Citrusy Repellent

    Birds hate citrusy fragrances and spraying it on your porch will be an effortless move to annoy them. You make your doorway smell good and you drive away the pesky birds. A double win for you. You can opt for lemon juice diluted in water or purchase a formula specific for repelling birds. But for a natural and non-toxic method, Ill choose the lemon option especially if there are protected birds visiting your porch.

    Just squeeze a lemon and add a little water. Spray it like an air fresher and you have guaranteed ways to get rid of birds on the porch. You can also place slices of lemon on your porch to make the smell stronger. It will also help in fighting off the smell of bird droppings left on your porch after cleaning.

    Remove Attractants From Your Porch

    This point is somewhat a summary of all the discussed ideas above. Birds are attracted to your porch for some reasons and its your task to identify it and get rid of it fast. If you keep feeding the birds, youre fueling your problem. Stop this habit and send the birds away with humane methods that wont kill or harm them.

    Before performing the ways to get rid of birds on the porch, remember that some birds like woodpeckers are protected by federal law. You will be fined due to a wrongful death of a bird on your property. Just the right hacks and a little patience will stop the fowls from throwing a feat on your porch. The droppings will soon be over and your doorway will be quiet and free of poop.

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    Tips For Keeping Birds Off Your Porch Lights

    Who knew our feathered friends can be such a nuisance? I have several bird feeders in my yard off the deck strategically placed so I can watch them enjoying their feast I provide for them.; Whats bothersome is the mess they leave behind like bird poo. Not only is it unsightly, it is hard to clean off my deck, porch, vehiclessigh. A small price to pay in my personal opinion.; But what do you do if you have a bird who is building a nest in your porch light? This is definitely not ideal to your fixture, although, birds dig the fact your porch light provides warmth for their eggs and there is plenty support to support her nest. With fling feathers, twigs and bird droppings, it can be quite the mess on your porch. The following tips from our experts here at;Summit;and;Doityourself.com;will help deter and move the birds along to build their nests elsewhere.

    Block Spaces That Are Ideal For Nesting

    Reusing old CD

    Openings and holes in walls, ceiling rafters, gutters and other tight, cozy spaces are ideal real-estate for nesting birds. You can block off rafters and other perching areas using bird nesting. Small openings in your wall or other areas can be stuffed with copper scouring pads, which will stay in place and wont splinter or rust.

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