Pest Control Question: Birds in a Vent

[Locke]

Hey all,

So heres a question for you, I've never really had to deal with pest control before but it appears that some Pigeons (rats with wings) have made a home in a vent on the side of my house.

Its the vent that the Microwave exhausts through.

Heres the kicker: Its about 30 feet in the air and my house is on a hill so its not just a matter of putting a ladder up and evicting them as the grade is fairly steep, if you put a ladder against the house one leg of it is going to be about a foot or more in the air and theres nothing on the side of the house to anchor the ladder to and unlike my distant Cousin 'Super Dave' acts of daring stupidity are not my speciality

I need a service that has a scissor-lift or something that can get the birds out and replace the outdoor vent cover.

Ultimately, a service or someone who has the equipment and experience to do this. So...not me.

This isnt something that I want to do on my own, but I have no idea who to call since the Ghostbusters appear to have placed my number on an ignore list, so recommendations are appreciated.

[Fuzz]

Protected species. You must accommodate them.


Can you take the microwave down and go at it from the inside?

[undercoverbrother]

[Yanda]

An articulated boom lift rental, transportation and service will cost a small fortune. Prob close to $900 just for the rental and delivery of the lift for 24 hours, let alone hiring someone to do the work.

Your best bet is to craft some sort of platform to level the ground and use a large extension ladder, which would prob cost $50


Im not sure how much it would cost to bring in a contractor with a reach truck to do the job.

Cook something putrid in the microwave and the stink will get rid of them.

Then you use trained monkeys to fix the vent.

[photon]

I wonder if duct taping a leaf blower to the open door of the microwave would damage the microwave's exhaust fan...

If you're looking for the softie option, the eggs take 2-3 weeks to hatch, and it takes about a month for them to leave.

However you get someone up there, make sure the vent cover is replaced with one that has some kind of screen or grid or other protection, otherwise they'll likely come back and reuse the same spot.

No idea on the lift, but I agree it would seem that either crafting a little platform or even cutting the sod out and digging a little flat area into the ground (assuming it's grass) would be something a contractor would regularly do for such situations.

I agree though I wouldn't do it myself either, I'm fine with heights but I hate ladders.

[Amethyst]

I have the same issue, except for the hard-to-reach vent. I just don't want to do the gross job. I'm willing to wait until the babies fly away, but once they're gone, I would like to hire someone to clean it out and replace or cover the vent. I just need to know who to call.

The birds really need to find a better home. Last summer when the babies were hopping around in the grass, trying to learn how to fly, my dogs stalked them relentlessly. Fortunately for the birds, my dogs aren't very good hunters.

[MoneyGuy]

Originally Posted by Yanda

An articulated boom lift rental, transportation and service will cost a small fortune. Prob close to $900 just for the rental and delivery of the lift for 24 hours, let alone hiring someone to do the work.

Your best bet is to craft some sort of platform to level the ground and use a large extension ladder, which would prob cost $50


Im not sure how much it would cost to bring in a contractor with a reach truck to do the job.

Be sure to buy some disability insurance from Slava before attempting this.

[photon]

My dad says taking off the microwave would be far easier assuming it's on an exterior wall.

[Fuzz]

Originally Posted by Puxlut

Cook something putrid in the microwave and the stink will get rid of them.

Then you use trained monkeys to fix the vent.

I thought of that, then realized there isn't much you could make stinky enough to get rid of a pigeon.

[photon]

Other pigeons?

[Kybosh]

I did this successfully once before. Take the microwave down, remove the outside vent grill/cover. Stick a leaf blower inside the vent on the inside and blow the suckers out. It's basically like angry birds.

[Slava]

I had some birds nest in a vent a few years ago (and there's a thread here somewhere!), and just waited them out. The eggs hatched, babies and parents took off and then I put a grate/cover over the vent to prevent it from happening again.

[Northendzone]

This post will not help get them out, but, I sealed off my vents with some chicken wire purchased at Home Depot. Just cut the wire bigger than the vent and it is malleable so you can work it to attach it to the vent frame.

Sounds like getting up there will be the hardest part of this project and you may need the high angle unit from CFD

[Locke]

Originally Posted by photon

My dad says taking off the microwave would be far easier assuming it's on an exterior wall.

Originally Posted by Kybosh

I did this successfully once before. Take the microwave down, remove the outside vent grill/cover. Stick a leaf blower inside the vent on the inside and blow the suckers out. It's basically like angry birds.

Okay, but I still cant access the outside casing to replace the broken vent.

Its very much like Angry Birds, it'll just re-set endlessly.

The outside grade is steep and made of interlocking Brick. I have to access the vent from the outside but I cant there.

[Buzzard]

Originally Posted by Locke

Hey all,

So heres a question for you, I've never really had to deal with pest control before but it appears that some Pigeons (rats with wings) have made a home in a vent on the side of my house.

Its the vent that the Microwave exhausts through.

Heres the kicker: Its about 30 feet in the air and my house is on a hill so its not just a matter of putting a ladder up and evicting them as the grade is fairly steep, if you put a ladder against the house one leg of it is going to be about a foot or more in the air and theres nothing on the side of the house to anchor the ladder to and unlike my distant Cousin 'Super Dave' acts of daring stupidity are not my speciality

I need a service that has a scissor-lift or something that can get the birds out and replace the outdoor vent cover.

Ultimately, a service or someone who has the equipment and experience to do this. So...not me.

This isnt something that I want to do on my own, but I have no idea who to call since the Ghostbusters appear to have placed my number on an ignore list, so recommendations are appreciated.

Any pest control outfit should be able to deal with it.

[Hockeyguy15]

Just start reading a taxation textbook to them, they'll either leave or die of boredom.

[puffnstuff]

I have a rope and a climbing harness you can borrow. Rappel down from the roof.

[CarlLester]

So easy:

"The use of hawks and falcons to remove pigeons and gulls is becoming ever more popular in the UK with raptor-specific companies starting to compete with conventional pest control services for business. The use of a raptor as a pigeon removal option is commonly marketed as a ‘green’ and ‘natural’ method of control that is ‘humane’ and ‘in tune with nature’. It should be fully understood that flying a raptor as a method of control is not a non-lethal method of control, nor is it ‘humane’."

http://www.pigeoncontrolresourcecent...s-of-prey.html

[monkeyman]

have you tried buying a falcon and pushing it in through the vent from the inside?
I'm kidding of course, but maybe a decoy or something mounted on a post would deter them from the area?