Woodpeckers are destroying my barn!!!

[Juiced06GTO]

My new barn has been attacked by pileated woodpeckers! So far I have over a dozen holes straight through the siding. I have tried decoys and hanging flashy things from the soffit, but they just go lower on the siding. Anyone have any other ideas to successfully drive them away?? To replace all the boards is going to be crazy, I've resorted to filling the holes with wood filler for now.

 

[msharley]

Hey Juiced,

Would say your barn is "buggy"!

Get rid of them bugs.........woodpeckers will be leaving...

Later, Mark

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

Why do you think they call them "peckers"?

But seriously, I agree if you get rid of the food they're looking for they'll go elsewhere.

 

[619DioFan]

12 qauqe

 

[racecougar]

Hang a few suet cakes 20'-40' away. Once they find them, start moving the cakes ~10' away every other day. Replace as needed.

I had to do the same a few years ago and found this method to be effective. YMMV.

 

[kelpaso1]

12 qauqe

PPFFTT, like 3 dozen more holes in the siding is better.

 

[Mr. Wonderful]

PPFFTT, like 3 dozen more holes in the siding is better.

.22LR lol. If he's up there its already going to have one hole. On a serious note, woodpeckers are protected species some places. getting caught carries hefty fines or worse.

 

[Copymutt]

Had the same w/ new garage. I got very fortunate, a hawk herd that tap tap diner bell.

 

[sz0k30]

Is your siding T-11? Woodpeckers love that stuff.

 

[mrvm]

Subscribed to hear some solutions short of rubber BB pellets as this wood pecker is busy making holes in the neighbors window trim. My home may be next ;(
Neighbor ain’t a handyman so I suggested filling the holes with some spray foam for now.

 

[Voi]

Google to confirm but I believe Pileated Woodpeckers drum on things to attract mates and establish territory so just getting rid of the food might not be enough.

I had the same problem with Northern Flickers at my old house. It got to be expensive. Putting up suet feeders seemed to help for a short while.

In my new neighborhood we have at least one Flicker that drums on steel gutters. I've talked to a couple of other neighbors and so far none have found any holes in their siding so hopefully it stays that way.

And I believe all Woodpecker and Flicker species are protected in all of the US and Canada.

 

[Walkers]

Ditto on the T-111 siding, it does not have to have bugs, they just peck it to death. I have the holes to prove it. They seem to have quit for the time being.

 

[Firebrick43]

22LR shot shells. We use them in barns to prevent putting holes in the roof. The cat would litteraly drool like a spigot at the sight of a 22 rifle.

Just follow the Three S rule

Shoot
Shovel
Shut up

 

[TractorJeff]

Air Rifle
Shoot
Shovel
Shut Up

 

[mike93lx]

I wouldn't be saying online that I was shooting woodpeckers

 

[Juiced06GTO]

The barn is sided in ship lap pine less than a year old. There is no evidence of bugs in it that I can tell. I'll try hanging food for them away from the barn and see if that works. Crazy thing is I have another small pole barn on the property I know is loaded with bugs and they haven't touched that one!

 

[redmondjp]

Woodpeckers don't necessarily make holes in man-made structures to find bugs, often they are attempting to create a new nesting cavity (seeing your wood-sided structure as one giant tree). Northern Flickers are the usual culprit in my parts.

I use old CDs attached to fishing line, or empty aluminum soda cans hung from the same, attached to the eves with thumbtacks, to keep them away. It looks weird but seems to work. If you select the correct line length, the CDs or cans won't hit the siding during windstorms, but will almost always be moving slightly unless it is dead calm.

 

[marinusdees]

My new barn has been attacked by pileated woodpeckers! So far I have over a dozen holes straight through the siding. I have tried decoys and hanging flashy things from the soffit, but they just go lower on the siding. Anyone have any other ideas to successfully drive them away?? To replace all the boards is going to be crazy, I've resorted to filling the holes with wood filler for now.

Well, I hung up a phony (Ilfe-size) owl. I discovered the owl was not effective if fixed in place, hanging it let it move. Maybe just coincidence, but they quit pecking my building. Owl's been hanging there thirty years.

 

[Juiced06GTO]

I've got 8 CD's hanging from jack chain now. I'm going to go out and add a few more tonight after the kids go to bed and see how it fairs tomorrow. There are 3 more new holes out there from today

 

[i4ni]

The only birds that are not Federally protected are Starlings and English Sparrows.

 

[MongoTA]

If you want no-touchy, try using your phone to play the call of a bird of prey. Every once in a while I'll play a hawk call in my area and the place clears out.

 

[ratdoggy]

I had them and a spray from the garden hose (not blasting them) made them reconsider what they were doing

 

[Voi]

The only birds that are not Federally protected are Starlings and English Sparrows.

I believe there are almost 100 species of feral bird species established in the US. The only one I can think of that has some degree of protection is the Ringneck Pheasant.

If you mean migratory song birds, then the Starling & English Sparrow are by far the most common. But I'm pretty sure there are others.

 

[manwithtools]

If you want no-touchy, try using your phone to play the call of a bird of prey. Every once in a while I'll play a hawk call in my area and the place clears out.

Ha, I used to have a red shouldered hawk pair nested less than 50 feet from a pair of palliated woodpeckers nest, they could have cared less. Have you ever seen or heard a pileated? Their call is spooky, very tropical in many ways. Other birds seem to give them wide clearance.

They like to live in tree trunks they have dug 4" holes that are 2' deep down the trunk. They are some ravenous woodpeckers. If OP really has Pileated, they will destroy a building if they care too.

 

[tarmy]

We were getting trashed by them pests too. Around here people have all kinds of screening, fake owls, pellet/air guns….none is fool proof…until…

talked to a guy and he said to paint my dark house with battens a light color. I figured I would try it…went from dark brown to a light tan…and they vanished! Apparently, they also like vertical battens and board type wood siding…and I was to the point of changing it all out…but the paint solved the problem.

 

[CJDave]

https://www.fs.fed.us/t-d/pubs/pdfpubs/pdf00712847/pdf00712847dpi300.pdf

Look here. Good luck. CJDave.

 

[samsonmarc]

We were getting trashed by them pests too. Around here people have all kinds of screening, fake owls, pellet/air guns….none is fool proof…until…

talked to a guy and he said to paint my dark house with battens a light color. I figured I would try it…went from dark brown to a light tan…and they vanished! Apparently, they also like vertical battens and board type wood siding…and I was to the point of changing it all out…but the paint solved the problem.

also had the same prroblem. would try painting a dark color around hope it also works

 

[Juiced06GTO]

Thanks CJ!!

 

[Max78]

I thought there are laws on the books that allow you to remove by any means even protected species if its causing major damage to property or wealth, or something along those lines. I will see if I can find it, but a good place to looking.

You can reach out to local G&F to see what your state laws are.

Otherwise we had birds here severely damaging our house and I used a slingshot to make them go away.

Nuisance Wildlife

Nuisance Wildlife

www.pgc.pa.gov

 

[mike93lx]

I thought there are laws on the books that allow you to remove by any means even protected species if its causing major damage to property or wealth, or something along those lines. I will see if I can find it, but a good place to looking.

Otherwise we had birds here severely damaging our house and I used a slingshot to make them go away.

Holes in a trim board might be hard to defend. I'd leave that debate up to a lawyer

 

[Max78]

Holes in a trim board might be hard to defend. I'd leave that debate up to a lawyer

I would agree, lots of holes in protective siding allowing the environment to enter the structure and deteriorate from within might be a little easier to defend.

However, reading the link I posted states.

Who’s That Knocking On My House? – Woodpeckers have a nasty habit of picking on certain homeowners by beak-banging on their wood siding and drain spouting. It’s not exactly clear why woodpeckers do this, but most people believe the birds are either advertising their presence or probing for insects. Repeated shooing can convince the bird not to return. If this doesn’t get the job done, consider tacking aluminum foil or tying a shiny helium balloon to the area where damage is occurring. Owl and hawk decoys – even a fake snake – also may convince the bird to stay away. Woodpeckers are protected by state and federal wildlife laws.+

Additional info

Woodpeckers and your home | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

We at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service know that living close to wooded areas and other natural habitats provides great opportunities to observe birds and other wildlife. Sometimes wildlife can get a little too close for comfort. We often get questions about how to deter woodpecker activity on...

www.fws.gov

 

[Kobuk]

Use bird deterrent flash tape. We use this at airports when we have a problem area with birds.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/slredirect/picassoRedirect.html/ref=pa_sp_atf_aps_sr_pg1_1?ie=UTF8&adId=A03167171LLM3NS9LUXI4&url=%2FScare-Tape-Reflective-Deterrent-Birds-Pigeons%2Fdp%2FB08XYZTBV9%2Fref%3Dsr_1_1_sspa%3Fdchild%3D1%26keywords%3Dbird%2Bdeterant%2Btape%26qid%3D1635995467%26sr%3D8-1-spons%26psc%3D1&qualifier=1635995467&id=2143791421751316&widgetName=sp_atf

 

[Blind1]

You need a Cooper’s hawk.

 

[i4ni]

I believe there are almost 100 species of feral bird species established in the US. The only one I can think of that has some degree of protection is the Ringneck Pheasant.

If you mean migratory song birds, then the Starling & English Sparrow are by far the most common. But I'm pretty sure there are others.

Sorry but I just looked it up and ferel pigeons are not protected either but those are the only 3.

 

[Voi]

Sorry but I just looked it up and ferel pigeons are not protected either but those are the only 3.

I'm not sure what you're saying here. That there are only three species of birds found in the US that are not offered Federal Protection under the Migratory Bird Treat Act?

That is clearly not the case. Look up the relevant Federal Register documents.

But to the point of this thread, all Woodpecker and Flicker species are protected. I don't want to muddy things anymore.

 

[yugami]

The only birds that are not Federally protected are Starlings and English Sparrows.

Pidgeons are on that list as well. As well as pheasant. Basically all invasive birds.

 

[floridafarmer]

Here's an option - https://www.icorpfoam.com/woodpecker-hole-repair.html
They are a small company near me that started out selling exclusively to utility companies but for awhile, they had a residential product line that was being sold in ACE hardware stores but I couldn't see it on their web site - you might want to call them.
I used it on my cedar siding where I had a similar problem - the good news is they've lost interest in the cedar but are, for reasons I cannot understand, spent a month or so fixated on the gutters until they gave up.

 

[i4ni]

I'm not sure what you're saying here. That there are only three species of birds found in the US that are not offered Federal Protection under the Migratory Bird Treat Act?

That is clearly not the case. Look up the relevant Federal Register documents.

But to the point of this thread, all Woodpecker and Flicker species are protected. I don't want to muddy things anymore.

What do you want me to do? Tap out? Recant? Okay....I don't remember saying Domestic or Exotic birds were protected but to the millions of people you suggest that I blatantly mislead I apologize. So to all you out there plagued by unruly flocks of ostrich, peacocks or emu's that bust out of the woods and start pecking holes in your shed by all means feel free to deal with them by whatever means you deem necessary because they are not, I repeat "NOT Protected." Whew, feels good to get that off my conscience......

 

[i4ni]

On a more serious note it is rumored that "Tweety Bird" (even though he's a canary) may be in the Federal Witness Protection Program after he turned states evidence against his partner "Rufus the Bulldog" in the disappearance of one "Sylvester the Cat".