How To Get Rid Of Birds Pooping On Patio

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To get rid of birds pooping on patio or deck, repel them with shiny, moving things. Hang mirrors, old CDs, metallic streamers, or metal windchimes. As they blow in the wind, birds will feel apprehensive. Also, make your yard less welcoming by not leaving out food or water.

Are you tired of cleaning bird droppings off your patio or deck? Are you wondering how to keep birds away? Fortunately, there are many methods to choose from.

In this article, I'll explain how to get rid of birds pooping on patio or deck.

Contents

1 Change Your Yard
- 1.1 You'll Need:
- 1.2 Steps:
2 Deter Birds With Shiny Things
- 2.1 Mirrors
- 2.2 Pinwheels
- 2.3 Reflective Bird Diverters
- 2.4 Old CDs
- 2.5 Metallic Streamers
- 2.6 Metal Windchimes
3 Use A Decoy
4 Use Garden Balls
5 Scare Birds With Sounds
6 Repel Birds With Smells
- 6.1 Peppermint Puffs
  - 6.1.1 You'll Need:
  - 6.1.2 Steps:
- 6.2 Chili Pepper Spray
  - 6.2.1 You'll Need:
  - 6.2.2 Steps:
7 Use Bird Spikes
8 Put Up An Awning Or Umbrella
9 Give Birds A Shock
- 9.1 You'll Need:
- 9.2 Steps:
10 A Warning About Netting
11 FAQs
- 11.1 What Home Remedy Keeps Birds Away?
- 11.2 What Smell Do Birds Hate?
12 That's How To Get Rid Of Birds Pooping On Patio

Change Your Yard

Before putting up deterrents, try removing the things that attract birds to your yard.

You'll Need:

A garbage bag
An electric hedge trimmer or pruning shears

Steps:

Follow these steps in order to make your yard less attractive to birds:

Don't Leave Food Outside
A bird feeder can attract all sorts of birds to your yard. Unfortunately, patio poopers may be among them. See if removing your bird feeder(s) solves the problem. Likewise, don't leave food on your patio table. Your unfinished pizza crust may be a pigeon's delicacy.
Remove All Water Sources
A birdbath, fountain, or any container of water invites birds to take sips or dips. Remove them from your yard so birds will drink and bathe elsewhere.
Prune Nearby Shrubs And Trees
Birds may perch, hide, and nest in shrubs and trees near your patio. Trimming them back may make your patio area less welcoming. Just be careful not to disturb or harm existing nests, including those of squirrels.

Deter Birds With Shiny Things

According to Plasticine House, birds are deterred by shiny, moving objects. SFGate recommends hanging shiny things "at regular intervals," probably so birds won't get used to them.

Here are a few examples of objects you could use:

Mirrors

Not only are mirrors shiny — Plasticine House reasons that upon confusing their reflections with other birds, birds will assume there's little or no food left in the area. Additionally, as the mirrors move in the wind, they flash unpleasantly bright beams of light.

You can get cheap little mirrors at dollar and craft stores. Hang them from your roof, awning, or nearby trees.

Pinwheels

Cheap plastic pinwheels can intimidate birds with their shininess, rotating motion, and noise. The shinier the better, so get metallic-looking pinwheels if you can. Secure them to something nearby, such as a deck railing or an awning post.

Reflective Bird Diverters

Reflective bird diverters are reflective tags with eyes painted on them. Birds may confuse them with predators and flee the area. Hang them from your porch awning, nearby trees, or wherever you see fit.

Old CDs

If you have any old CDs lying around, hang them up near your porch. As they spin and sway in the wind, they may deter birds with their motion and short bursts of reflected light.

Metallic Streamers

Metallic streamers will move, even when there's only a slight breeze, so they may keep birds away from your patio.

Metal Windchimes

Not only do metal windchimes shine and move in the wind, but their sounds may intimidate birds.

Use A Decoy

You may be able to scare birds by leaving a fake predator decoy, such as a plastic owl, on or near your patio or deck. Northwest Exterminating says to move decoys every few days so birds won't get used to them.

Use Garden Balls

There are large, colorful balls you can hang from your roof, awning, or nearby trees. Birds may avoid them, confusing them with eyes.

Scare Birds With Sounds

Transistor radio — Image credit: publicdomainpictures.net

There are many No products found designed to scare birds. Some emit high-pitched noises we can't hear but birds can. Others sound like predators or distressed birds. Many of these systems are motion-activated so they only make sounds when animals or people are nearby.

Repel Birds With Smells

According to Wild Bird World, birds hate the smells of essential oils, garlic, cayenne pepper, chili pepper, and vinegar. They've shared some ways you can apply these scents:

Peppermint Puffs

Because birds have weak respiratory systems, Wild Bird World cautions against using concentrated peppermint oil:

Instead, they recommend diluting it with this recipe:

You'll Need:

¼ cup water
¼ cup vinegar
7 drops peppermint oil
7 drops lemon oil
Enough cotton balls to absorb this mixture

Steps:

Mix The Liquids.
Mix the water, vinegar, peppermint oil, and lemon oil together.
Soak The Cotton Balls.
Leave the cotton balls in the above mixture until they're soaked.
Place Them Outside.
Place the cotton balls wherever bird poop is a problem.
Repeat This Method Regularly.
The scent of the cotton balls will gradually fade. Repeat the above steps to keep birds off porch or patio.

Chili Pepper Spray

On its own, chili pepper may not repel birds. It may be more effective in a spray solution with vinegar.

You'll Need:

24 dried chili peppers
½ gallon water
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
A large spray bottle
A mixing container
A mixing spoon
A sealable container (optional)

Steps:

Mix The Ingredients.
Combine the chili peppers, water, and apple cider vinegar inside a container.
Let The Mixture Soak.
Let the mixture soak for a few hours. Northwest Exterminating recommends letting it heat up in sunlight or a slow cooker. If you'll be using sunlight, it's best for the mixture to be in a clear glass container.
Shake It.
Before using the mixture, shake or stir it so the ingredients will be evenly concentrated.
Add It To A Spray Bottle.
Pour the mixture into a spray bottle. If you can't get all of it in, store what's leftover in a sealable container and put it in your fridge.
Apply It.Spray the mixture wherever birds have been pooping. Do this regularly, as the mixture fades over time.

Use Bird Spikes

You can buy strips of long, pointy bird spikes to deter birds from landing on your patio or deck. Install them on a railing, your roof, or wherever problem birds have been landing.

Put Up An Awning Or Umbrella

If birds typically poop on your patio or deck while flying, you may just need an awning. If you only need to protect a table and chairs, a simple patio umbrella may do the trick.

Give Birds A Shock

You can buy an electric track system that gives birds a harmless but uncomfortable shock. Bird Barrier provides instructions on how to install their Bird-Shock Flex-Track:

On each track are two braided conductors. One carries electric current from the charger, while the other is the ground. When a bird stands on the conductors, it completes the circuit and receives a shock. Bird Barrier states that the shock is "[h]armless, but memorable."

Bird-Shock Flex Tracks can be installed in almost any configuration: just don't let the positive and negative streams touch each other.

The system comes with four components:

The track
A charger (Can plug into an outlet or be solar-powered)
Lead wire
Connectors

If you are not comfortable installing this system yourself, you can use this form to find a professional installer. Otherwise, keep reading.

You'll Need:

The Bird-Shock Flex Track mentioned above
A pencil
Paper
Bird Barrier Bond glue
Foam pads (For angled surfaces. May come in the bag when you order tracks)
Something to cut tracks with
A wire crimp tool
A Flex-Track digital tester
Warning labels
Bird Barrier's cellular monitor

Steps:

Sketch Out Your Plan.
Use a pencil and paper (or a computer) to sketch out where you'll install and how you'll configure the tracks. How many tracks you should use per edge depends on your situation. Placement and spacing guidelines start at 1:44 in the video above.
Determine Where To Put The Charger.
The closer the charger is to the track, the better. If you use an outlet-powered charger, it should be in a weather-sheltered location in a protected receptacle. Meanwhile, a solar charger should be mounted in a south-facing location where it can receive at least six hours of direct sunlight a day.

Bird Barrier states that "[t]he total linear footage of the track layout MUST NOT exceed the total capacity of the particular charger. This total MUST include any lead wiring." Because of this, a large layout "may require multiple chargers on separate circuits."
Unroll The Track.
Unroll the track on the ledge you'll attach it to.
Attach Foam Pads (For Angled Surfaces).
If your surface is angled so that the track could collect water, apply a foam pad to every 12 inches (30 cm) of the track's underside. This will raise it up slightly, allowing water to seep through.
Apply Glue.
You can apply Bird Barrier Bond glue to the ledge or to the bottom of the track. Bird Barrier recommends the latter. The glue should come out ¼ inch (.64 centimeters) thick. Every foot or two feet, leave a 2 – 3 inch (5 – 8 centimeter) gap for water to seep through. If you've applied foam pads, leave a gap on either side of each pad.
Press The Track On The Glue.
Press the track onto the glue. It should spread out from the center to cover most of the track.
Join Different Tracks.
You can join two tracks with a connector. Instructions on how to use one begin at 4:58.
Use Jumper Cables As Necessary.
You may sometimes need to jump power from one track to another. You can do this with jumper cables, using them to connect one straight Quick Connector to another. To see how, skip to 7:09 in the video above.
Energize The Tracks.
For this step, you'll have to do some wire crimping. Instructions start at 7:27 in the video above.
Test The System.
For this step, you'll need the Flex-Track digital tester. Instructions start at 8:25 in the video above.
Apply Warning Labels.
To prevent people from getting shocked, place warning labels along the tracks.
Monitor The Track (Optional)
Bird Barrier sells a cellular monitor that alerts you to voltage fluctuations or voltage loss via text messages or e-mail. It requires a SIM card and data plan to do this.

A Warning About Netting

I don't recommend nets to keep birds away. Birds can get strangled to death, tangled up, or suffer injuries while struggling to escape. For example, some users of this netting complained that it strangled birds to death.

FAQs

What Home Remedy Keeps Birds Away?

Home remedies such as shiny, moving things keep birds away. They can stop them from nesting on your porch. Examples include mirrors, reflective bird diverters, old CDs, metallic streamers, and metal windchimes.

What Smell Do Birds Hate?

Birds hate the smells of essential oils, garlic, cayenne pepper, chili pepper, or vinegar. You have to apply these scents regularly, as they fade over time. Birds have weak respiratory systems, so be sure to dilute essential oils like peppermint.

That's How To Get Rid Of Birds Pooping On Patio

Now that you know how to get rid of birds pooping on patio, you can quit your constant cleaning and enjoy your outdoor space. In addition to removing food and sources and pruning back nearby shrubs and trees, you an deter birds by:

Hanging up shiny things, such as metal windchimes
Putting up a fake predator
Hanging up garden balls
Scaring them No products found
Repelling them with smells
Installing bird spikes
Installing an awning or outdoor umbrella
Setting up Bird Barrier's Bird-Shock Flex Tracks

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Last update on 2021-11-20 at 04:29 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API