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How to cover this gap so birds don't get under my roof

purbeast0

purbeast0

No Lifer
The past few days I have noticed some pink stuff in my yard. Then I saw a little bit more and more and I realized it was insulation. And I know there was this gap in the corner of my roof and am pretty sure it's birds trying to clear out some space under my roof to make a nest. So I'm looking to cover up this gap so they can't get in there.

I looked and there is no nest yet so they haven't made a home there. I do see them going in/out of there sometimes though but there isn't anything there yet. We actually found a dead bird on our patio and I'm wondering if it had anything to do with ingesting insulation.

Anyways, here is the gap. It's largest against the house there and it gradually gets smaller and smaller until it's gone. I think the gutter is only being held up on the side by the wall there due to the downspout and the fascia behind the gutter near there looks to have rotted away. I guess ideally I would want to have that replaced however I am not messing with that now and just want to figure out how to cover this gap.

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Here is a closeup pic of that corner, and in the other pic taken right next to it you can see the insulation there.

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I was thinking of getting maybe some gutter guards or some kind of screen material and just nailing it in place over that gap. Does anyone have any suggestions if that is a good idea or some other suggestions?

Thanks.
 
Sgt. York said:
It looks like the fascia is falling off. Fix that and the bird problem goes away.
Click to expand...
As I said in the OP, it has rotted away towards the end and it looks like it's mainly being held up at that end by the downspout. But it's being held up very sturdy which is kind of confusing.

That is something I will get taken care of at another time but not something I am going to do myself right now, so looking for temp fix mean while.
 
Yeah. Looks like you'll need to pull the gutter and the fascia to see what the situation is. Something is (literally) rotten.

It's the 1st floor and weather is getting better. Just fix it correctly yourself. Stuff like that is usually butchered by a "handyman".
 
NutBucket said:
Yeah. Looks like you'll need to pull the gutter and the fascia to see what the situation is. Something is (literally) rotten.

It's the 1st floor and weather is getting better. Just fix it correctly yourself. Stuff like that is usually butchered by a "handyman".
Click to expand...
As mentioned, I already know that and am looking for a temp fix until I do the proper fix.
 
Non expanding foam, quick and dirty fix.
I'd be pretty worried about what's going on there. It looks line rot behind the facia in one of those pics. My hunch is that birds are the least of your problems.
 
Bats, rats and squirrels. My next door neighbor had those. Lots of fun cleaning up that mess.

Esp when the bats, rats shit and die in the attic due to him trying to get rid of them by locking them inside the attic. Imagine what the house smelled like with all those dead bodies rotting.

In other words before you seal it up make sure you know what is up there.
 
Sgt. York said:
Get some 1/4 inch wire mesh, cut to fit and staple or nail.
Click to expand...
Okay thanks I will grab some of this tomorrow:

www.homedepot.com

Everbilt 1/4 in. Mesh x 2 ft. x 5 ft. 23-Gauge Galvanized Steel Hardware Cloth 308231EB - The Home Depot

EVERBILT 1/4 in. x 2 ft. x 5 ft. 23-Gauge Galvanized Steel Hardware Cloth is the ideal fencing for temporary enclosures. Everbilt hardware cloth mesh fence rolls are versatile, with a wide variety of applications. Use these welded wire mesh products as gutter guards, chicken coops, screen doors...
www.homedepot.com

I have some wire cutters I use for my electrical wire and arcade wire so I'm assuming I can just use that to cut it to the perfect size and then use my air compressor stapler or get some nails to nail it in place.
 
purbeast0 said:
Okay thanks I will grab some of this tomorrow:

www.homedepot.com

Everbilt 1/4 in. Mesh x 2 ft. x 5 ft. 23-Gauge Galvanized Steel Hardware Cloth 308231EB - The Home Depot

EVERBILT 1/4 in. x 2 ft. x 5 ft. 23-Gauge Galvanized Steel Hardware Cloth is the ideal fencing for temporary enclosures. Everbilt hardware cloth mesh fence rolls are versatile, with a wide variety of applications. Use these welded wire mesh products as gutter guards, chicken coops, screen doors...
www.homedepot.com

I have some wire cutters I use for my electrical wire and arcade wire so I'm assuming I can just use that to cut it to the perfect size and then use my air compressor stapler or get some nails to nail it in place.
Click to expand...


I hope you don't trap any animals in the attic. Because it is going to stink when they die.
 
Yeah, I am no bird expert but I observe their nesting quite a bit on my property and never see them going into areas that enclosed to make nests. It's far more likely to be bats, or other wingless furry creatures.

Here, I once had a bat problem where there was almost no gap at all on the roof underhang, but there was siding and somehow the bats learned that they could ram up against the siding to make it flex to form a temporary gap to get in. I had to stand out at night with a flashlight and wait to see them do it, to figure out what the noise was, lol.
 
And to get rid of the bats you have to allow an exit point with no reentry. And to do this with success you can't do it when they have babies because the babies can't leave and will die in the attic without the parents. Stinky!
 
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mindless1 said:
Yeah, I am no bird expert but I observe their nesting quite a bit on my property and never see them going into areas that enclosed to make nests. It's far more likely to be bats, or other wingless furry creatures.
Click to expand...
So then how would you explain the birds I've seen fly in there and hang out in there?
 
purbeast0 said:
So then how would you explain the birds I've seen fly in there and hang out in there?
Click to expand...
I didn't state it was impossible, just what I've observed and is far more/less likely. Maybe you have termites and the birds are going in to eat, or a bunch of them got together and threw a big psychedelic rave party so they have no idea WTF they're doing. lol.
 
mindless1 said:
I didn't state it was impossible, just what I've observed and is far more/less likely. Maybe you have termites and the birds are going in to eat, or a bunch of them got together and threw a big psychedelic rave party so they have no idea WTF they're doing. lol.
Click to expand...
I think it is far more likely that it's birds than bats or other wingless creatures considering I have seen them.
 
^ Except that most birds can barely if at all smell, besides certain predators like vultures, seagulls, and parrots. In fact since mammals prefer not to eat hot peppers, but birds will (because they don't have taste receptors that sense capsaicin/etc hotness), they are the primary method their seeds spread more than a few feet.

Maybe you are thinking more of squirrels, mice, and larger mammals.
 
Definitely make replacing that rotting fascia board a top priority project. Otherwise the rot will spread into your house and cause substantially more damage. View what you have done so far as a stopgap measure.

BTW most gutter contractors should be able to replace the fascia and rehang the gutters for a reasonable price. You could do it yourself if you are comfortable on a ladder and have a helper. I did some first floor fascia but had to contract out the second floor (all my potential helpers available are useless on ladders)
 
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