Birds often make their way into parking garages, flying around, nesting, and disturbing customers. Bird droppings contain uric acid, which causes damage to car paint, and bird nests can be host to parasites and disease. Birds can also get territorial, dive bombing customers if they are nesting or a customer steps too close.
So, what are the possible bird control methods for parking garages?
The first thing to take into consideration when addressing a bird problem is the reason the birds are there. In general, if you have a bird infestation, there are two main reasons the birds are there: food and nesting grounds. These are the first things to address.
The first thing to get rid of is bird food sources. In a parking garage, food sources are usually going to be open trash containers or food located directly outside the garage. Cover up any dumpsters or open trash containers to stop birds from eating from them. Make sure any food strewn on the ground is picked up soon after. If there is a food source located outside the garage that birds are eating from, make sure to address that as well.
The next step to addressing your bird problem is blocking off bird nesting grounds. This is best accomplished with bird netting or a ledge exclusion device like AviAngle.
Bird netting can block off crevices and rafters that birds like pigeons would otherwise nest in. At AviAway, we perform many jobs installing bird netting in the rafters of buildings like parking garages. These are common places for birds to nest and can be blocked off entirely with netting. Netting can also be installed to block off other structures that birds might nest under, such as underneath HVAC units.
Bird netting is usually the best choice for excluding birds for parking garages.
A slope exclusion device like AviAngle or Bird Slope is another choice if birds are nesting on ledges in the parking garage. What these devices do is convert a horizontal surface like a ledge into a diagonal surface that blocks birds from nesting on the ledge. The plastic slope forms an angle with the wall behind it. Birds cannot nest or perch on the diagonal surface and thus have to find somewhere else to go.
These methods work if birds have not already nested. If birds are already nesting in the parking garage structure, we highly recommend calling in a bird control company to take a look at the situation and gauge what your options are. What you can do when birds are already nesting is dependent on the species, how severe the bird problem is, and the constraints of your building architecture.
We do not recommend moving nests yourself if birds are already nesting. Bird nests can be host to disease and parasites and the birds may get territorial. You also may be breaking the law, depending on the species of the bird.
Besides removing bird food sources and blocking off bird nesting grounds, you can also install bird deterrents to deter birds from flying around your parking garage. These methods will not stop birds if they have already nested, but if the birds have not already nested, the following methods work to deter them.
The first option is bird spikes. Bird spikes are commonly available at hardware stores and bird control retailers online. Spikes go on ledges or other areas that birds tend to perch and block off the ledge so birds cannot perch. These can be installed inside parking garages on ledges to prevent birds from perching. Bird spikes can be installed yourself.
For a parking garage, however, a slope modification device like AviAngle or Bird Slope is generally superior to bird spikes if you are looking for something to block birds from ledges.
Bird-Out Aromatic Repellent is another bird control option for parking garages. This device lets out a vapor whose scent drives birds away. It is harmless for humans and birds, but birds do not like the smell. The chemical involved in this spray is called methyl anthranilate, the grape flavoring agent in Kool Aid and some candies.
The Bird-Out Aromatic Repellent can be placed in sections of the parking garage where birds tend to congregate. The smell will drive birds away if the bird problem is not too heavy and the birds have not already nested.
Summary: The best way to implement bird control for parking lots is to remove bird food sources and block off bird nesting grounds. Cover up or remove trash to block off food sources and install bird netting or slope modification to block bird nesting grounds.
If birds have already nested, we recommend calling in a bird control company to take a look at your situation and advise you on what your next best steps are.
AviAway offers free bird control consultations and is able to walk you through how to solve your bird problem. Click here or call 844-247-3373 to set up a free bird control consultation and get help on your bird problem today.