How to stop bats and birds from entering your fireplace chimney
Have you ever spent your evening with all the doors and windows open as you try to coax a bat or bird out of your house? Then you know bats and birds are common pests that can find their way into your home through the fireplace chimney. Birds and bats eat mosquitos and are great to see flitting around your yard, but they are lousy house guests. So lets see how do I keep bats from coming down my chimney?
Bats can carry diseases, so there are dangers of bats in chimney, and you can’t safely smoke out bats in chimney. You may be wondering how to tell if bats in chimney. Bats in chimney sound like a quiet squeaky bike wheel, and they make a scuffling and scratchy noise as they climb. Bat removal from chimney cost stat at $120 for the service call and it usually cost another $100 for the relocation of the animal. So it is best to keep them from entering and claiming your chimney for their home.
Birds can make a mess and damage your chimney and home. Birds can make obnoxious noise and bring in flammable nesting material that plugs the chimney. Also their droppings smell very bad. You cannot burn or smoke out birds either. But, if you have bats and birds in your chimney, there are a few things you can do to get rid of them and prevent them from coming back.
Listed below are 4 steps to stop bats and birds from entering your fireplace chimney:
1. Seal up any entry points. The first step is to seal up any entry points that bats or birds could use to get into your chimney. This includes any cracks or holes in the seam between where the brick chimney meets the homes wood or vinyl exterior. Inspect the crown and the flashing of the chimney and see if there are cracks they are getting through.
2. Install a chimney cap with a screen. Some chimneys have not cap at all, some have a cover with no screen, some have a screen with no cap. The best cap is one that is galvanized or stainless steel, and has a cover and a screen. A cap like this will last a long time, and prevents bats and birds from getting in, while still allowing smoke to escape. You can get a cheaper powder coated or painted sheet steel chimney cap, but they rust our fast and won’t last long.
3. Use a Flueblocker of Chimney Balloon. If you don’t want to mess with a cap at the roof, Don’t rely on just your metal damper to keep out bats or birds. They can get through a metal damper without even slowing down. Metal dampers are loose and warped, so a bird or bat can slip right past a damper. You will need a tight seal from a Chimney Balloon or wool Flueblocker to stop a bat or bird.
Bird in fireplace chimney flue
4. Call a professional. If you have a serious problem with bats or birds getting in repeatedly or nesting in your home, you may need to call a professional. A wildlife removal company will be able to safely and humanely remove the pests from your home, and troubleshoot the areas that may be letting them in. Sometimes the chimney is not the only location they gain entry.
Getting help stop bats and birds from entering your fireplace chimney
It is always beneficial to seek an expert to help stop bats and birds from entering your fireplace chimney. Contact us today to get advice on how to stop bats and birds from entering your fireplace chimney. Or read more about removing bats from your Chimney on AboutFlames.com.