Top 3 Bird Netting Tips for Property Managers

As property and facilities managers, you face ongoing challenges with bird intrusion that can impact operations, create health hazards, and damage assets. When searching for effective pest bird control solutions, bird netting represents one of the most apparent and immediate bird exclusion services available. These three essential tips will help you make informed decisions about appropriate professional bird control services to ensure long-term success for your commercial and industrial property.

Tip #1: Know When Bird Netting Makes Financial Sense for Your Facility

Wild Goose Chase recommends bird netting when complete restriction of a particular space is absolutely required. Netting works best for limited surface areas within commercial buildings, warehouses, parking structures, health care facilities, retail spaces, loading docks, and industrial facilities, where netting can be installed as targeted barriers to prevent birds from loafing on, nesting, and accessing the problem area entirely.

Critical cost consideration: Netting becomes cost-prohibitive when attempting to cover expansive surface areas. While netting is traditionally an industry standard solution for vineyards, our customers have found that it is not always the best option. If the goal is to restrict or deter birds from a large area, there are more cost-efficient solutions that can be as effective, if not more effective, than netting. Netting vineyards cost hundreds of dollars per row and requires routine maintenance to ensure longevity of assets. Installing and removing netting is labor-intensive and adds additional hundreds of dollars per day per acre. Andrew Roush, the owner of Petoskey Farms Vineyard and Winery in Petoskey, MI used netting to protect his crop for years – and the results were underwhelming.

“Historically, we used netting to limit loss and damage from birds to our grape crop,” he said. “[But] netting is a big labor expense and the bird pressure was getting progressively worse. [With netting alone], we lost 35-40% of our grape yield and were forced to pick earlier.”

This is why, at Wild Goose Chase, we recommend bird netting primarily when there are contained, critical zones where complete pest bird control restriction justifies the investment, such as loading docks, equipment areas, food service zones, or high-value storage spaces where even minimal bird presence creates unacceptable risks. When reviewing bids for bird netting, it’s important to assess whether the company understands these cost-benefit considerations and can recommend the most efficient approach for your specific facility needs.

Tip #2: Avoid Generic Contractors – Choose Specialized Bird Deterrent Installers

Why this matters: Generic third-party contractors or generalist pest control companies often execute netting installations that may appear professional but fail in practice. Unlike experienced bird control companies, these installers typically focus on aesthetic appeal rather than understanding bird behavior, creating netting systems that birds quickly learn to exploit.

Wild Goose Chase has performed multiple bird netting jobs where we were brought in to fix existing, improperly installed bird netting. These are some red flags of improper bird netting installations property managers should be aware of:

  • Inadequate tension that leaves gaps and sag points where birds can find entry and even land or roost on.
  • Insufficient overlap at seams or around fixtures such as lights, poles, etc., providing direct access routes for birds
  • Netting installed at an improper slope that allows birds to continue to perch on top of nets.

The bottom line: Generic contractors and generalist pest control companies install netting with only the property or aesthetics in mind, without understanding how different species of birds can exploit potential weaknesses in netting installation. This knowledge gap leads to expensive failures that require complete reinstallation.

Tip #3: Match Gap Sizes to Your Specific Bird Species Problem

The most critical factor: The size of openings is what generic contractors or generalist pest control companies consistently misunderstand in bird exclusion services. Effective pest bird control netting requires precise species identification to determine appropriate net or mesh specifications. A netting system designed for pigeons will be completely ineffective against smaller birds like sparrows or starlings. On the other hand, grid systems with wider spacing prove more effective and durable when dealing with large birds like seagulls, terns, and Canada geese.

Why this matters for your budget: Inaccurate species assessment leads to bird control installations that appear comprehensive but allow continued bird infiltration. Birds are remarkably persistent and will exploit any opening that accommodates their body size, making precise mesh selection essential for long-term bird removal effectiveness.

Professional advantage: Wild Goose Chase employs both specialized bird biologists and experienced bird deterrent installers who understand species behavior and effective netting design. Our team evaluates whether netting represents the most cost-efficient solution, and when netting entire areas proves cost-prohibitive, we can recommend other effective deterrence solutions to solve your property’s bird problems. If your property is experiencing bird issues or in need of netting maintenance or re-installation, give us a call to see how we can address your bird problems holistically and cost efficiently.