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06-17-2013, 12:12 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eastlake, Ohio
Posts: 463
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Birds Building Nests in Slide Toppers
We have been finding birds building nests in our slide toppers while our slides are in during the week. You see we camp mostly on weekends and every Friday when we bring out the slides there is a nest that has to be cleared.
Is there anyway to prevent this? I was thinking of the pool noodles made of styrofoam to put in there but I would need to install after the slide out have gone in and then take them out when we put the slides out.
Not sure if there is anything else we can do besides just cleaning the nest out every weekend.
Any other ideas??
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2014 Wildwood 300BH
2014 Ford Explorer XLT
2011 Ford F350 FX4
Eastlake, OH
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06-17-2013, 12:38 PM
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#2
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Always Learning
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Four Corners, FL
Posts: 21,891
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How are the birds getting inside the camper to make nests?
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Officially a SOB with a 2022 Jayco Precept 36C
Checkout my site for RVing tips, tricks, and info | Was a Fulltime Family for 5 years, now we're part-timing on long trips
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06-17-2013, 12:43 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2013
Location: St. Charles, MO
Posts: 213
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toss some mothballs under the toppers. Probably about two times will educate this years crop.
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06-17-2013, 05:14 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eastlake, Ohio
Posts: 463
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I'll try the mothballs. They are building nests on top of the slide out in between the topper and slide roof.
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2014 Wildwood 300BH
2014 Ford Explorer XLT
2011 Ford F350 FX4
Eastlake, OH
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06-23-2013, 07:11 PM
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#5
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eastlake, Ohio
Posts: 463
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Well I put about 20 moth balls initially under toppers and had to remove about half as the smell in the trailer was bad. Noticed today that once the slides are in the moth balls are between the side rubber molding and outside lip of top slide. Not sure the moth balls are going to do anything. The birds are building nests between the small opening when the slide is in and the topper bracket fastened to the outside slide. Think I will have to keep going up on top and removing nests weekly. Ugh!!
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2014 Wildwood 300BH
2014 Ford Explorer XLT
2011 Ford F350 FX4
Eastlake, OH
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06-23-2013, 07:18 PM
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#6
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Carknocker Family
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Arkansas
Posts: 690
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BB gun.....
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Nights camped 2015...20
Nights camped 2016...20
Nights camped 2017...24
2017 Ram 2500
2014 Salem 32BHDS
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06-23-2013, 07:34 PM
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#7
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Denver, CO
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: Denver, CO
Posts: 2,102
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they may be endangered species and you will have to leave the camper where it is until nesting season is over.
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2017 Fuse 23T
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06-24-2013, 10:03 AM
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#8
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Lake County, Illinois
Posts: 301
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Timtation
toss some mothballs under the toppers. Probably about two times will educate this years crop.
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Have you actually tried this? Most passerines (typical perching birds) have very little sense of smell. The Avian Sense of Smell
Joel
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2011 Silverado 2500HD Duramax, 4x4, crew cab, long bed
Palomino Puma 253-FBS, 27' 5th wheel
1994 19' Class B on Chevy chassis
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06-24-2013, 11:34 AM
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#9
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eastlake, Ohio
Posts: 463
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Not sure what type of bird is building the nests but I know we have "kill deer birds" as they have laid there eggs on some of the gravel and won't leave until they hatch. we were even chased by the bird as we came near the nest. Being my camground is a preserve I'm not sure how well it will go over once they see me with a bb gun. I do like the thought. Nothing is being damaged its just becomming annoying after 4 weeks of this.
Arrive at Camground.
Bringe out slides.
Get ladder from shed
Remove nest from slide
Put ladder back in shed.
I've simplified it a bit by now keeping ladder under trailer so now I can get the nests out a little more effeciently. Oh well..
__________________
2014 Wildwood 300BH
2014 Ford Explorer XLT
2011 Ford F350 FX4
Eastlake, OH
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06-24-2013, 12:44 PM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Lake County, Illinois
Posts: 301
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The Killdeer is a protected species, so shooting them (either in a preserve or anyplace else) is a violation of federal law unless you have a permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
It also would not solve your problem. The Killdeer are not nesting in your slide topper. It must be something else. Killdeer are almost exclusively ground nesters, although they have occasionally been known to nest on gravel roofs.
If I had to guess, I would think that the most likely culprit would be House Wrens. Check out the songs House Wren, Sounds, All About Birds - Cornell Lab of Ornithology and see if you are hearing that.
What do the nests look like? What are they made of? Can you post a photo of a nest?
Joel
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2011 Silverado 2500HD Duramax, 4x4, crew cab, long bed
Palomino Puma 253-FBS, 27' 5th wheel
1994 19' Class B on Chevy chassis
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06-24-2013, 01:33 PM
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#11
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2013
Location: St. Charles, MO
Posts: 213
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GHO, now that you remind me I knew that most birds don't have much sense of smell. No I have not tried that for birds but for other varmints which why it came to mind quickly.
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06-24-2013, 02:12 PM
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#12
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Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2011
Posts: 253
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Had some build a nest in mine about a month ago. Opened the slide and the eggs broke. Quite the smelly mess! Clorox clean up and tossed the nest and they haven't been back since.
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07-02-2013, 11:20 AM
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#13
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eastlake, Ohio
Posts: 463
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Will have to come up with something that I can install on the slide ends that covers the opening when closed yet allows for the slide topper to roll up and roll out. Did some searching and didn't find anything. Not sure what else to do besides just keep taking the nests out.
__________________
2014 Wildwood 300BH
2014 Ford Explorer XLT
2011 Ford F350 FX4
Eastlake, OH
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07-17-2013, 08:43 PM
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#14
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Junior Member
Join Date: Jul 2012
Posts: 25
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You might try a little rubber or plastic snake or alligator attached to your tt slide. Sometimes the birds will think its a predator laying in wait and they will leave. Might be worth a try.
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07-17-2013, 09:23 PM
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#15
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Site Team
Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 4,499
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Maybe a predator on the top of the ladder?
I have the same problem with nesting in my pin. A rubber snake seems to have stopped that. Hope i remember to remove the snake when i sell the trailer. :-)
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2018 Forester 3011 DS
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07-19-2013, 06:05 AM
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#16
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Eastlake, Ohio
Posts: 463
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The past 2 weeks I haven't encountered any nests so maybe the nest issue is over.
__________________
2014 Wildwood 300BH
2014 Ford Explorer XLT
2011 Ford F350 FX4
Eastlake, OH
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07-19-2013, 08:03 AM
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#17
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Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: In our CC.
Posts: 646
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If the birds are damaging the rig, then you must weigh the cost of repairs against the cost of the fine if you shoot them - and get caught. There's also the fun factor to consider.
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2014 Cedar Creek, 36CKTS
2013 GMC 2500 Denali
Duramax/Allison
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