Birds, like all of us, look to make their homes in warm comfortable places, particularly when raising their young. Unfortunately, one of the spots that seems most suitable to them is our dryer vents: they’re warm, they’re dry, they protect from predators and they even provide bits of fluff for nesting materials. Unfortunately, they’re narrow, and young birds can fall in and be unable to fly out. Even adults can get stuck in the narrow areas. And if you’re a bird lover (and who isn’t?) you may feel you can’t use your dryer (or your bathroom fan, or your kitchen vent) until the birds are out. So what to do?
Confirm The Birds Are Nesting There
You may suspect you have birds in the dryer vent, but you’re not sure. Noises will be your biggest clue: listen inside your home or near the outdoor vent for scratching or scuttling sounds that could indicate a bird is stuck. You may also hear a young bird chirping for its parents. Sounds made by birds from pipes located inside walls are likely to be muffled, while those made from exhaust vents can usually be heard clearly. If a bird has already died in the vent, you may smell a decomposition smell. Also, a few minutes of watching should let you know if there are birds nesting in your vent: the parents will come and go frequently while searching for nesting materials or food to feed their young.
First, Prevent the Birds from Getting In
If you’ve already got birds in your vents, this may not be a helpful tip. But for prevention in the future, block birds from nesting in vents by sealing the exits with specially designed vent covers that open to let air out and close when they’re not in use. Important tip: if birds do find their way into these open/close vents, they must be removed immediately to prevent the obstruction of air flow and the risk of heat build-up and fires.
Call the Professionals
To ensure that the birds are removed humanely and completely from your dryer vents, call a professional wildlife removal company. Vents are seldom easily accessible, so a “do it yourself” approach might cause more damage than good. Since 1993, we have humanely removed and excluded unwanted animals (including birds from dryer vents) from both residential and commercial properties throughout New Haven County and beyond.
Anderson Wildlife will not only remove the birds or other unwanted wildlife from your home, we’ll also then fix the problem to ensure it doesn’t happen again.
Contact us via our website, or call us toll-free at 877-966-2287.
