Bird Proofing Your Boat for the Winter

Time to bird proof your boat for the heavy winter months ahead. Fail to do so and you can expect the usual avalanche of bird droppings on your canvas covers, biminis, antennas, windows and all over your decks.

Without effective bird control, large birds like geese, ducks, cormorants and gulls will perch, roost and nest on and around your vessel. Come spring and summer, you’ll be stuck with major cleanup chores. Dried bird droppings are very hard to remove.  And they can cause your antenna gear to seize up and your canvas to tear up. It won’t be easy or cheap to bring your boat to ship-shape condition. You’ll wish you had installed some bird deterrents to keep the pesky birds away. The time to act is now. And what to use are the many effective and humane bird deterrents currently available to boat owners.

Here’s a sampling of what today’s bird control experts recommend:

Wind-Powered Bird Spiders

These devices really work in keeping birds, large and small, off your vessel. Easy to set up wherever birds have become a problem, Bird Spiders’ flailing arms whip wildly in the breeze to swoosh away birds. No more gulls, pigeons or cormorants perching on your deck or roof. Bird spiders come in 2-, 4-, 6- and 8-foot diameter arm lengths to create ever wider circles of protection. The best bird spiders are made in the USA and feature a glue-on base for easy mounting. These will also have a U.V.-protected polycarbonate base for lasting durability in punishing weather. A removable sand bag base lets you position a spider on virtually any surface. Additional mounting bases allow you place spiders on masts and radar units.

The Repeller 360

Similar to Bird Spiders, the Repeller 360 was specifically designed to keep large birds like gulls, cormorants and raptors from perching and roosting on the flat areas on and around your boat. The device features big, reflective “predator eyes” that intimidate birds and prevent them from landing. Since it too is wind powered, the Repeller 360 is easy to set up and requires no electrical power. It rotates continuously, sweeping the area clear of birds and covering a 6-foot diameter.

Stainless Steel Bird Spikes

The ultimate anti-perching, anti-roosting pest bird deterrent, Bird Spikes will deny pest birds access to any lofty area on and around your boat. The most durable bird spikes are made in the USA and guaranteed for 10 years. They’re made of stainless steel embedded in a U.V.-protected polycarbonate base. The spiked strips come in 1”, 3”, 5” and 8” widths and have a 1.5”  base for convenient mounting on narrow ledges and other “tight” areas. The spikes to look for will already come with a glue trough and pre-drilled mounting holes for fast, easy installation. Plastic bird spikes can be equally effective and come in a variety of colors.

Finally, an Easy Way to Keep Birds off Your Boat and Boat Dock

There are still plenty of weeks left to enjoy your boat. Excursions and boat parties seem to ramp up as the summer ends. If you’re planning a party or holiday excursion with friends and family, the last thing you want to worry about are pest birds—like gulls, crows and pigeons—dumping all over your dock and boat.

You know form past experience that cleaning up bird droppings and rotting fish parts can be a real nuisance. You’ve also learned that if you lay out any kind of food on a boat, you’ll draw uninvited guests. Unless you’ve implemented some bird control on your boat or dock, gulls will dive in and pick food plates clean--in a matter of seconds. Besides the loss of food, birds carry any of 60 known diseases, so you certainly don’t want that in your food or anywhere near you boat.

If you’ve tried other bird deterrent methods with no success, and if you’re tired of scrubbing off bird droppings from bow to stern, it’s time to use what the professional bird control experts recommend. It’s time to invest in some serious, humane and proven effective pest bird deterrents.

One new device is rapidly gaining popularity among boat owners. It’s called the Repeller 360°. This nifty little device spins in the wind (no external power is required) to prevent large birds such as gulls, pigeons and crows from landing on boat dock and docked boat. The device sweeps around in a 6-foot diameter circle and keeps birds from landing and roosting near it. Two "sails" mounted at both ends of a Repeller 360°’s stainless steel arms feature reflective bird predator eyes. When the arms spin in the wind, birds won’t go near the perceived threat.

The Repeller 360° is quality constructed and made in the USA. Its stainless steel arms are securely attached to a UV-protected polycarbonate base. Installation is a snap. Just place the Repeller 360° over the center pin and press down to hold the unit in place. Insert the locking pin at the side for a secure hold. Unfold the arms so the sails are positioned opposite of each other. Adhere the stickers to each sail. And that’s it. You can also get various mounting options, including removable boat bases available through Bird-B-Gone. The unit is easy to store away for later use.

The best place to mount a Repeller 360° is on the flat areas of your boat or canvas covers. Its day and night sweeping action will act like a sentry to keep gulls away. On the dock, you should place a few on dock pillars or posts and let the wind do the rest.

Your boat or dock will now be protected from pest gulls, crows, pigeons and other birds. Sure beats standing on your dock or boat 24/7 with a hose or air horn.