Waking up to the sound of the singing birds in your neighborhood is one of the most relaxing and nourishing feelings ever. However, this feeling can suddenly become anguish if the birds nest in your vents. This is why you need to learn how to tell when there are birds in your vents and what you should do about it. This article offers you important things to know about birds in vents.
4 Important Things to Know About Birds in Vents
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1. Common Types of Birds Likely to Nest in Your Vents
First, understand that all bird species can easily nest in your vents. However, the main culprit is the European Starling. This bird is known to enter and nest in bathroom and dryer vents, especially in the cold season.
Birds prefer these vents because they provide them with enough warmth that comes from your bathroom when you take a warm shower and dryers when you dry your laundry. However, birds nesting in your dryer vent can be a serious fire hazard since your dryer produces high air pressure that can easily cause a fire if it comes into contact with flammable materials like pieces of paper, cloth, or dry grass.
Another popular bird that tends to nest in vents is the bluebird. This bird will enter your vents if they’re left open, especially in the cold season. So, you can easily keep bluebirds away from your vents by ensuring that the flaps are on all the time.
A European Starling bird, on the hand, can easily squeeze itself through the flap and enter the vent. That’s why there’s a high probability that the bird in your vent duct is a European Starling.
2. Risks Posed By Birds Nesting in Your Vents
Many homeowners also want to know if the birds in their vents will cause any serious damage. As mentioned above, having birds in your vents poses a serious risk as it can result in the total destruction of your house.
Aside from posing the risk of fire, birds in your bathroom or dryer vents can also damage the ducts and the bathroom fans. A vent duct is made of a foil duct, which is between 3 and 4 inches thick. So, your vent ducts are likely to break open when the nests become too heavy.
Also, the nest can prevent the free flow of air in the vent duct, causing the fan to overwork. Eventually, the fan will break down or burn out. Since the birds will relieve themselves inside the vents, they’ll stain the entire system and cause its core components to deteriorate faster than expected.
Bird droppings contain high levels of acid that will erode your system, rendering it useless. When there are large nests in your vent ducts, your dryer and bathroom systems won’t function optimally, resulting in higher energy consumption in your house because your dryer and heater have to overwork.
When lint builds up in the duct, it becomes a fire hazard. That’s why you shouldn’t allow birds to build nests in your vents. If you suspect there are bird nests in your vents, get rid of them immediately before they cause a fire. Many house fires reported across the world every year are caused by lint buildups in vents.
As birds fly around, they pick up all manner of pathogens that pose serious health risks if they find their way into your house. For instance, they can carry pathogens that cause salmonella. This infection occurs when you eat raw or undercooked poultry meat and eggs.
When the fan blows air into your house through the vent with bird nests, the air may be contaminated with salmonella pathogens, putting your entire family at risk of infection. You can also catch these pathogens when you’re removing the nests from your vents. This is why you should use PPE when cleaning your vents.
Birds also carry pests like mites. So, when they nest in your vents, they increase the risk of pest infestation in your house. Although these mites don’t pose any serious health risks, they can cause severe skin irritation when they bite or crawl on you.
3. Why Birds Might Nest in Your Vents
The European Starling birds, the main culprits, prepare their nests and start laying eggs in spring. Since they usually nest in cavities, they’ll make holes in trees and rocks. But if there are no trees or rocks around, they’ll make do with what is available.
That’s how they end up in your vents. Unfortunately, keeping the flap on won’t stop this bird from getting into your vent because it knows how to get through it. That’s why you should continuously check your vents for bird nests, even if your vent flaps are already installed.
This bird will nest in your vent because it offers it safety and shelter from the elements. Your dryer vents produce heat to keep the bird warm, especially when it’s raining or snowing outside. Since the European Starling is fairly small in size, it can comfortably fit into your vent and survive there for a long time.
Birds might nest in your vents if your house is close to their sources of food and water. Just like other wild animals, birds prefer to nest around their sources of food and water. So, if you always find birds nesting in your vents no matter how hard you try to chase them, check whether there’s a source of food or water nearby.
4. Major Signs of Birds in Your Vents
The first sign of birds nesting in your vents is a dip in the efficiency of your dryer. If you suddenly realize that your dryer is taking longer to dry your regular laundry, or if it’s leaving your laundry damp after every cycle of drying, you need to check its ducts for birds.
But this doesn’t imply that birds are the only cause of an inefficient dryer. The problem could as well be due to machine failure. The only way you can be certain of the cause is a thorough check-up of the system, including the ducts.
When birds build large nests in the vent ducts, they block the flow of air in and out of the dryer, causing it to work harder to get the job done. This means that the dryer will consume more power, causing your monthly electricity bills to shoot up. You can also tell if there are birds in your vents by looking for droppings near the exterior of the vent.
If you suddenly start to notice a significant amount of droppings around your vents, even after you clean the area, you’re likely to find birds in your vents. If the droppings keep reappearing in quick succession, it means that the birds have already nested in the vents and they’ve been there for a while. So, take the necessary action before it’s too late.
You should also look out for dirt and debris near the exit of your vent. Apart from droppings, birds will also litter the area near your vent with other types of debris like twigs, grass, fabric, leaves, and hay. They use these materials to build their nests. So, they’ll naturally be strewn around the area.
How to Prevent Birds from Nesting in Your Vents
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As mentioned above, you should take the sight of birds in your exhaust vent seriously because it can have disastrous results if not fixed immediately. So, if they’ve already nested in the vent, remove the nests and find ways to prevent the birds from coming back. Here are some of the effective ways to keep birds from your vents.
1. Use a Cover
Once you’ve cleared the vent, cover it with a tight flap or any other cover that can’t be penetrated, even by the tiniest birds. You can find plastic vent covers that have small openings that’ll allow enough air to pass and make it hard for birds to find their way into the vent.
2. Remove Food and Water from the Vent
Keeping your grains and water containers near the vent will only encourage birds to nest in your vents. So, remove anything edible and water from the area to keep birds from nesting in your vents.
3. Routine Inspection and Cleaning
How often do you inspect your vents for lint buildup? If you’ve not been checking your vents, you should make it a habit. You also need to form a habit of cleaning your vents and ducts regularly to discourage birds from nesting inside there.
