Help Save My Car from Regular **** Bombings!

[Huntn]

I've got a substantially large tree, I believe to be a mulberry tree in my front yard that overhangs the driveway. Every Spring when it fruits, birds hang out in this tree eating the fruit, apparantly every night, because in the morning on a regular basis my car is covered with bird droppings, fruit bird droppings, that almost act like cement getting it off. And I'm convinced they specifically like to camp over and use my my car for target practise!

Anyway looking for a solution and wondering if anyone has experience with an electronic ultrasound device for the purpose of repelling birds from a tree, 30-40' tall? I've seen the price range online from $30-500, and while I think the $500 one would be overkill, my impression is that the $30 likely would not be adequate. The situation is that I'd have this mounted on the side of my house, probably 10-15'off the ground, trying to repel birds from a 30' tree 20' from the house. It's only the part of the tree directly ober the driveway I need to cover, but I'm thinking I'd have to get it pointed up to do the job. But possibly prohibitive is that if I want to cover an area 30x20x30' I calculator this to be 18000 cubic feet.

The second question, how obtrusive are these type devices? I was hoping for something only the animals could hear. I don't want to run amuck with the neighborhood association, who would not go for an annoying sound generating, strobe light emitting device on the front of my house. The key is that it would have to be unintrusive to the neighbors. If you have experience, looking forward to some advice.

Regarding neighbors and a home association, this is what will kill this idea:
purchased this product to scare away deer, rabbits and other pests from a garden. The product is well built and suited for outdoor use. There are different frequency settings that correlate to different animals. However, for some people all of the frequencies are audible to the human ear and for some can sound like nails on a chalkboard.

 

[Gav2k]

The sonic range to stop birds will set dogs off too. You'd be better off covering your car with either a pop up car port or a throw over cover.

 

[Huntn]

The sonic range to stop birds will set dogs off too. You'd be better off covering your car with either a pop up car port of a throw over cover.

That's one of the questions, how directional and what range would a device like this have? I'm willing to have a neighborhood of barking dogs if I can make those birds go away. (No not really )

 

[DeltaMac]

Mulberries?
If you prevent birds from having a "fruit-hopping/dropping" session in your tree - you will still have ripe berries falling on your car. Maybe not dive-bombing, but simply dropping on your car as they ripen, or become over-ripe. Seems like you would lose either way!
I also think that a cover of some kind is your best hope.

 

[mobilehaathi]

Indeed, if you get rid of the birds, you'll simply have tons of 'unprocessed' berries pelting your car. I suppose a shelter or cover (or alternate parking location) is a better solution.

 

[Huntn]

Mulberries?
If you prevent birds from having a "fruit-hopping/dropping" session in your tree - you will still have ripe berries falling on your car. Maybe not dive-bombing, but simply dropping on your car as they ripen, or become over-ripe. Seems like you would lose either way!
I also think that a cover of some kind is your best hope.

Hmm, you are right to a degree, but they (the undugested berries) are not as messy as the droppings by a factor of about 500%, no exaggeration, as they are minus the bird excretions and significant splat factor. Covers of the structural kind also require home association approval and I don't think they are allowed. And I don't see pulling off a poop encrusted fabric car cover every day. As is, I'm parking behind my wife's car on the other side of the driveway. :-/

Indeed, if you get rid of the birds, you'll simply have tons of 'unprocessed' berries pelting your car. I suppose a shelter or cover (or alternate parking location) is a better solution.

Not completely right. The birds eat a bunch and then produce extra foul and juicy mulberry concentrate bombs directed onto my car. What berries falls naturally at the end of their ripeness is relatively dried up and not as messy.

 

[hallux]

Set up a sprinkler overnight to keep the droppings from solidifying? Maybe set it up on a timer to run 10 minutes every hour so it's not a total waste of water?

 

[Apple fanboy]

I've got a substantially large tree, I believe to be a mulberry tree in my front yard that overhangs the driveway. Every Spring when it fruits, birds hang out in this tree eating the fruit, apparantly every night, because in the morning on a regular basis my car is covered with bird droppings, fruit bird droppings, that almost act like cement getting it off. And I'm convinced they specifically like to camp over and use my my car for target practise!

Anyway looking for a solution and wondering if anyone has experience with an electronic ultrasound device for the purpose of repelling birds from a tree, 30-40' tall? I've seen the price range online from $30-500, and while I think the $500 one would be overkill, my impression is that the $30 likely would not be adequate. The situation is that I'd have this mounted on the side of my house, probably 10-15'off the ground, trying to repel birds from a 30' tree 20' from the house. It's only the part of the tree directly ober the driveway I need to cover, but I'm thinking I'd have to get it pointed up to do the job. But possibly prohibitive is that if I want to cover an area 30x20x30' I calculator this to be 18000 cubic feet.

The second question, how obtrusive are these type devices? I was hoping for something only the animals could hear. I don't want to run amuck with the neighborhood association, who would not go for an annoying sound generating, strobe light emitting device on the front of my house. The key is that it would have to be unintrusive to the neighbors. If you have experience, looking forward to some advice.

Regarding neighbors and a home association, this is what will kill this idea:
purchased this product to scare away deer, rabbits and other pests from a garden. The product is well built and suited for outdoor use. There are different frequency settings that correlate to different animals. However, for some people all of the frequencies are audible to the human ear and for some can sound like nails on a chalkboard.

Put that newly aquired power washer to good use. It will get rid of the bird droppings and the birds if you aim it at them!
Or just pick the fruit before it's ready.

 

[annk]

Cut down the tree and plant a tree in its place that doesn't bear berries? Or just have a tree trimmer deal with the branches that extend over your parking place?

I'm not someone whose first impulse is to remove Mother Nature, but it does seem like the elephant in the room here.

 

[chown33]

Cut down the tree and plant a tree in its place that doesn't bear berries? Or just have a tree trimmer deal with the branches that extend over your parking place?

I'm not someone whose first impulse is to remove Mother Nature, but it does seem like the elephant in the room here.

Thank god the elephant isn't in the mulberry tree.

 

[Macky-Mac]

move to a place with a garage for your car!

 

[Apple fanboy]

move to a place with a garage for your car!

I did that 13 years ago. Quickly filled the garage up with other things.

 

[AlliFlowers]

I have a similar problem, only the tree is not at home - it's over my parking spot at school. Certain times of year my car looks like I've driven through an avian war zone.

 

[ucfgrad93]

Clean out your garage and park your car inside of it.

 

[mobilehaathi]

Hmm, you are right to a degree, but they (the undugested berries) are not as messy as the droppings by a factor of about 500%, no exaggeration, as they are minus the bird excretions and significant splat factor. Covers of the structural kind also require home association approval and I don't think they are allowed. And I don't see pulling off a poop encrusted fabric car cover every day. As is, I'm parking behind my wife's car on the other side of the driveway. :-/



Not completely right. The birds eat a bunch and then produce extra foul and juicy mulberry concentrate bombs directed onto my car. What berries falls naturally at the end of their ripeness is relatively dried up and not as messy.

Sure, I get it. The birds make a much bigger mess. I just remember having a mulberry tree hanging over our driveway as a kid...it was pretty messy!

 

[D.T.]

High quality car cover. There are products that are designed to be highly stain (i.e., _poop_) resistant, and are easily washed. It (obv.) adds some additional time to coming and going, but outside of removing the tree, having some covered parking, I don't know.

Have you looked into a modular car port?

 

[heehee]

I never tried myself but a friend of mine did, a scarecrow owl.

 

[Huntn]

Put that newly aquired power washer to good use. It will get rid of the bird droppings and the birds if you aim it at them!
Or just pick the fruit before it's ready.

Option A is more likely.

 

[0388631]

Pick the near-ripe to ripe fruit and consume it? I love fresh and dried mulberries.

 

[Huntn]

High quality car cover. There are products that are designed to be highly stain (i.e., _poop_) resistant, and are easily washed. It (obv.) adds some additional time to coming and going, but outside of removing the tree, having some covered parking, I don't know.

Have you looked into a modular car port?

Against association rules.

I never tried myself but a friend of mine did, a scarecrow owl.

I wonder how well those work long term as in hey does that owl ever move and if every bird will flee from the sight of an owl?

Pick the near-ripe to ripe fruit and consume it? I love fresh and dried mulberries.

You are the second to suggest this, tree is too large, ladder won't reach, and would take too much time.

 

[D.T.]

Against association rules.

Ahh. Yet again, I am reminded why I'll +never+ live under the rule of a HOA

 

[Huntn]

Ahh. Yet again, I am reminded why I'll +never+ live under the rule of a HOA

Mostly I support the idea of HOAs- no pink houses, RVs, boats, or junk cars in the driveway, while acknowledging, you don't want overly aggressive organizations. I got a letter once from the association for putting a pile of wood out on a Sat for Monday trash collection. The letter was no big deal as the issue was resolved on Monday.

 

[hallux]

Against association rules.

I rent, so I have similar rules to live by, but since I don't own my place so I can't complain. If I owned a home, I'd have a problem with such restrictive rules that prevent you from even covering your car overnight (when it's DARK OUT so who even cares when they can't see it?).

Ahh. Yet again, I am reminded why I'll +never+ live under the rule of a HOA

Agree. I grew up in a neighborhood, there was no HOA that set up rules and regulations for the appearance of your property and there were very few properties that I would classify as objectionable. Considering it was an 800-house housing development, there were quite a few to pick from with nothing sticking put like a sore thumb.

Mostly I support the idea of HOAs- no pink houses, RVs, boats, or junk cars in the driveway, while acknowledging, you don't want overly aggressive organizations. I got a letter once from the association for putting a pile of wood out on a Sat for Monday trash collection. The letter was no big deal as the issue was resolved on Monday.

See above. In addition - having grown up in a family that used an RV as a vacation "tool", I don't see the problem or complaint with them. The only inconvenience of the presence of the RV was to US as it blocked a significant portion of the driveway once it became a 26' self-contained trailer rather than a pop-up. However, we were "creative" with parking and never blocked the street with cars unless there was company over, unlike one of the neighbors that has an empty driveway an always has a car on the road. Some people see an eyesore, I see someone expressing their FREEDOM to not have to pay exorbitant hotel costs for vacation, in addition to having to eat out every night on said vacation.

 

[Huntn]

I rent, so I have similar rules to live by, but since I don't own my place so I can't complain. If I owned a home, I'd have a problem with such restrictive rules that prevent you from even covering your car overnight (when it's DARK OUT so who even cares when they can't see it?).



Agree. I grew up in a neighborhood, there was no HOA that set up rules and regulations for the appearance of your property and there were very few properties that I would classify as objectionable. Considering it was an 800-house housing development, there were quite a few to pick from with nothing sticking put like a sore thumb.



See above. In addition - having grown up in a family that used an RV as a vacation "tool", I don't see the problem or complaint with them. The only inconvenience of the presence of the RV was to US as it blocked a significant portion of the driveway once it became a 26' self-contained trailer rather than a pop-up. However, we were "creative" with parking and never blocked the street with cars unless there was company over, unlike one of the neighbors that has an empty driveway an always has a car on the road. Some people see an eyesore, I see someone expressing their FREEDOM to not have to pay exorbitant hotel costs for vacation, in addition to having to eat out every night on said vacation.

The issue is when the driveway becomes a collection area for all sorts of items. The purpose of a Home Association is to keep the property values up which will be adversely effected imo if all the driveways are filled with things other than cars. Junker cars, boats permanently parked, and some of those RVs can be huge.

 

[hallux]

The issue is when the driveway becomes a collection area for all sorts of items. The purpose of a Home Association is to keep the property values up which will be adversely effected imo if all the driveways are filled with things other than cars. Junker cars, boats permanently parked, and some of those RVs can be huge.

Oh, trust me, I know how big they can get. The last one my parents had was so big the truck used to pull it couldn't be parked in the driveway in front of the trailer unless it was hooked up (34' trailer, 3/4-ton Ram QC with 6' bed).

Property values are no problem in their neighborhood, a house similar to theirs recently sold for almost $300,000 and my parents' lot is 2x the size, though the other house had some nicer finishes inside. The neighborhood was built in the 60's, so not doing too bad.