Woodpecker Prevention and Repellents
Woodpeckers are very lovely creatures, but like everything else in life, they have both positives and negatives. Make no mistake, they actually have a lot of advantages. Woodpeckers are extremely useful for the environment as they rid wooden surfaces of termites and any other parasites.
However, on the other hand, woodpeckers can equally be disastrous and menacing. First, the noise they make as they tap and peck on wooden surfaces can drive homeowners crazy and they often leave surfaces with holes and gaps, disfiguring the entire wooden surface, causing significant financial damage.
Now, at this point, it is worth noting that killing woodpeckers is not a wise decision. In many areas, the act is banned and attracts hefty consequences. However, there are certain measures you can take to rid yourself of these menacing woodpeckers without killing them.
This article will give you a list of the best woodpecker repellents and how and why they should be used.
Also, there are certain devices that can scare these woodpeckers away and leave your wooden surfaces safe and sound. It doesn’t matter if you’re on a budget, the woodpecker repellents in this article are cost-effective and very helpful in repelling woodpeckers.
However, to fully understand how to repel and prevent these woodpeckers, it’s important to first understand what actually attracts them in the first place. Here are some reasons for that effect:
Why Woodpeckers Invade?
There are many theories and myths surrounding why woodpeckers do what they do. One of the theories is that they peck on buildings because they are starving or because the building is dilapidated and in need of reconstruction.
However, woodpeckers may also peck at new buildings so, to an extent, it is actually uncertain why these birds are so attracted to some buildings.
They do not necessarily peck on only wood as their name suggests, but are also known to target other building materials like mounting foam because of its remarkable resemblance to old bark and moss.
Now that there is some basic knowledge as to why these woodpeckers attack certain surfaces, let us go to how they can be stopped, prevented and deterred.
Here is a list of useful strategies and devices that can prevent woodpeckers from destroying your wooden surfaces.
Install Physical Barriers
This is one of the most effective ways to rid you of a woodpecker invasion. Installing physical barriers to keep the birds out may admittedly take some time and relative skill, but its effectiveness is unparalleled.
An example of physical barriers to use in this context can be spikes or even nets.
For spikes, it is advisable to get metal spikes, there are plastic spikes, but a metal spike is best to deter woodpeckers.
Nets are also very useful in keeping woodpeckers away. It is very important to get good quality and synthetic nets to protect and shelter your wooden surfaces, the woodpeckers may try, but they will not be able to do any damage.
Adopt Some Scare Devices
Using scare devices is usually a favorite among those who have woodpecker problems. Like any other bird, or any other animal for that matter, woodpeckers assess their environment to make sure it is free of danger before they perch. If you could use something to scare these birds away, your environment would be protected.
Terror eyes for instance are a great scare device to repel woodpeckers. They are like scary masks, all you have to do is to place one or two around your environment and voila! No woodpecker. Try it. It’s a classic!
Use Electronic Repellents
It is important to choose the right electronic repellent when deterring woodpeckers.
Here is one of the best to use:
Bird B Gone Chase Super Sonic Deterrent
This device mimics the cry of a woodpecker’s predators and keeps woodpeckers out.
The great thing about the device is that it can actually be programmed to suit certain types of species, but generally, the device can mimic predatory cries to scare away up to 22 species of woodpeckers. Pretty impressive, isn’t it?
Chemical Repellents
Using chemical repellents is also one of the most common ways to prevent a woodpecker invasion. You could apply it on whatever surface the bird usually perches on.
You could either use gel or spray repellents. Here is one of the best to use that will be sure to produce results:
Bird-X Bird-Proof Gel Repellent- GEL REPELLENT
Bird-X Bird Stop Liquid Deterrent – SPRAY REPELLENT
Depending on which you decide to go with, both repellents will be sure to get the job done.
At the end of the day, it is always advisable to seek the professional opinion of an expert to get the best types of repellents and use them accordingly.
Again, at this point, it is also worth noting that under no circumstance should you opt to kill these birds. To the extent that these repellent devices and strategies work, it is wise to use them to get the job done.
Also as earlier mentioned, woodpeckers tend to visit and peck at dilapidated buildings and surfaces, to this extent, you can decide to do some repairs and find that it is actually a great repelling technique to rid yourself of these woodpeckers.
Throughout the whole world, there are up to 200 species of woodpeckers and out of those, roughly 23 can be found in the United States. If your building or surfaces are being attacked by woodpeckers, adopt one of the strategies mentioned above. They are sure to produce positive results.