Doing routine maintenance on your roof is an important step in ensuring that any possible damage is detected early on. Types of damage can include punctures, rotting caused by debris, as well as pooling water. Although these are very common forms of roof damage, there is another form that is very popular but otherwise not discussed as much. It is the damage caused by birds to your home’s roof. Birds can nest in or on your roof, and in the process cause damage to it. In this article, we discuss common forms of damage that nesting birds can impose on your roof.
What Are The Types of Bird Damage?
1. Damage Caused by Acidic Bird Droppings
The acidic droppings from birds can wreak havoc on HVAC equipment, asphalt roofing materials, and other components of your roofing system. Some algae and moss can also thrive due to the deposits of bird droppings if you don’t remove the droppings early enough. Discovering bird droppings on your roof can be difficult sometimes, so it’s a good idea to employ a professional to aid in the discovery of possible bird droppings and nesting.
2. Clogged Airflow
Birds’ nests are normally made of naturally flammable materials. These include twigs, grasses, and barks of trees. If such materials are near HVAC equipment or within the air vents, they can be a significant fire hazard. Also, such materials can reduce the quality of air in your space or interfere with ventilation.
How To Know If There’re Birds on Your Roof
Can you hear birds’ sounds close to your house? If so, then the chances are that they have a nest on your roof, in your attic, or maybe even in the chimney. There are many species of birds, and the species affects the kind of damage they can cause to your roof.
Starlings, sparrows, and swifts will always target the chimneys. To be sure that there are birds on your roof, you can check the eaves of your house from the yard. Look for signs of animals nesting, as they will likely make nests outside as well.
Also, check the loft to see if there’re any nests up there. Once you find the nests, try to come up with the best ways to remove them without harming the birds.
How Do You Prevent Birds Nesting?
The only best way to prevent the birds from damaging your roof is by dealing with active nests. There are periods when birds leave their nests for some months before coming back. That is when you should remove the nests and repair the damaged parts of the roof.
It would help if you replaced missing and loose shingles, as well as repair cracked roofs. In case of any gaps in flashing, try to repair them as soon as you can. Birds love to use defects and cracks in roofing material to start a nest. Find any holes around the roof and seal them firmly.
If the birds come back and they don’t find ideal spots to settle in your roof, they’ll look elsewhere. The reason you should wait until the birds are gone is to prevent hurting them in the process of maintaining your roof.
Conclusion
Birds can cause serious damage to your roof. You should find their nests and wait for when they have hatched their eggs and moved on to repair the damages and remove the nests to ensure they do not return. Employing a reputable roof repair company to remove the nest and repair any damage can ensure that you avoid damaging your roof further. The good thing about birds is that they’re always noisy. Therefore, it won’t be hard to know when you have them living on or under your roof.
