Bird-Proof Your Roof This September

It hardly seems like five minutes ago the summer began. Now September is upon us, it’s time to start looking towards the autumn months, shorter days and colder weather.

And with these realities comes the reality that swallows, house martins, starlings and sparrows may start to roost in your roof if you don’t do something to prevent it. While we may welcome birds into our gardens and provide food for them throughout the year, we don’t want them nesting under our roof tiles. They can leave mess behind and cause damage too, not to mention making a lot of noise.

If you have nests present in your roof that were used last year, you should know you can only remove them under certain circumstances. If the birds are still using them, you are not allowed to get rid of the nests. However, if they are empty and left over from last year, you can remove them before bird-proofing your roof. This is the time of year to make sure you do this, thereby making it impossible for the birds to return to old nests.

Bird-proofing will ensure no birds can gain access to your roof underneath the roof tiles themselves. Very often, bird-proofing netting can be installed quite quickly and easily. You’ll need a head for heights if you’re going to do this yourself and you live in a house; otherwise, call the experts to install bird-proofing for you. They can also assess the situation and your property, and see whether any other measures may be required.

You may question whether it is worth calling in the experts in this instance. In reality, while most people would think to block up access to the roof space, it isn’t always easy or convenient to do so. Expert bird-proofing skills can ensure it is done properly and in a way that won’t harm the birds should they try to fly into the netting or other deterrent that is used to get the job done.

Finally, it is best to get the work done now so you are prepared for the autumn and winter months. If you neglect to do so, you might end up with problems not just this year, but next year and beyond as well. Prevention is always going to be much better and easier than curing a problem that has already settled in, as you might imagine.