Bird Control for Parking Garages

A parking garage is a covered structure with open sides, which is close to ideal for pigeons. The deck above keeps the weather off, the beams, pipes and light fittings give continuous ledges to sit on, and the open bays mean there is nothing to keep birds out. What lands on the beams ends up on the cars underneath, and that is usually what brings the complaint.

The work in a garage divides into three: close the openings birds come in through, take away the ledges they sit on, and treat the structure so the ones already using it move on. Below are the Flock Free products that suit each, grouped by method.

Repellent on the Structure

Flock Free Bird Repellent works as a visual, scent and taste deterrent and dries clear. The Bird Repellent Kit lists parking structures among its applications, and the concentrates list parking lots. Treat the beams, ledges and columns birds are already using rather than the whole deck, and reapply through the season rather than once. For use around children and pets. Use as directed.

Taking Away the Beams, Pipes and Ledges

Every horizontal run in a garage is a perch: downstand beams, sprinkler and conduit pipework, sign tops, and the ledge over each bay. Spikes handle the runs you can fix into. Surface Pro Tack handles the ones you cannot — it is a liquid applied to the surface itself, rated for indoor and outdoor use, and it leaves nothing protruding to catch a wing mirror or a hose.

Ledges Where Spikes Will Not Fit

Shock tape is a flat strip that sits on the surface rather than standing off it, so it works on the narrow ledges and cable trays where a spike strip is too wide. It is watertight and rated for interior and exterior installation, and a garage almost always has mains power nearby, which makes the 110V charger the practical choice.

Treating the Air Across a Deck

Where birds are moving through the structure rather than sitting on one ledge, a hazer treats the volume instead of the surface. The Tweet Zilla runs quietly and puts out a light haze, and Flock Free lists it for populated areas; the L Frame Mount fixes it to a column or a metal rack where there is no wall to use.

Netting the Open Bays

Netting is the only method that physically keeps birds out of a bay, and it is the one that holds. Garages are concrete and structural steel, so the anchors matter more than the net — Sidewinder Concrete anchors are rated for concrete and masonry, and the J-Hook bracket carries the perimeter cable where you cannot drill the face of a beam.

Where To Start

If birds are getting into the bays, start with netting — it is the only method that removes the problem rather than moving it. If they are already inside and sitting on the structure, start with spikes and Surface Pro Tack on the beams over the parking bays, since that is what puts droppings on cars. Repellent and a hazer work alongside either, and are the usual follow-up once the surfaces are dealt with.

Prices shown as listed at the time of publication.

Related Bird Control Resources

A parking garage shares most of its problems with other covered structures — see bird control for covered areas, rooftops for the top deck, and gutters and railings for the edge details. Garages are most often a problem with pigeons, starlings, sparrows and seagulls. You can also browse the full Bird Control range.