Birds peck foam under the windowsill

determine the distance from the window to the edge of the wall ( d1 and d2 ).
To make it more convenient to install, the window sill is not cut close to the walls of the opening, but slightly narrower : 20-30 mm less than the width of the opening at the window line and 10-20 mm less at the front edge of the opening. The main thing here is not to make it too narrow, so that later, when installed, the slopes (plastic or plaster) could rest with their lower edge against the window sill, and not against the gap between the window sill and the opening.

Protection from birds - tits, thrushes

In 2012, we built a house from SIP panels.
These panels are a block of foam plastic with sheets of OSB boards glued to it on both sides. When joining such panels, timber and polyurethane foam are used. In addition, foam was used when installing windows. The finishing of the facade has not yet been done, so the foam remains sealed. And in the very first winter there was an attack in the form of tits, which began to peck foam from the cracks. It was unclear how to deal with them. There are a lot of cats in the area, but they cannot jump up after the tits. They tried to knock on the wall from the room to scare away the birds. It worked, but they simply flew to another wall and continued their pecking business. Then they started looking for a way to fight birds on the Internet. We found a lot of them, of all of them the following one interested me the most. One gardener put a silhouette of an owl on a pole. According to him, birds are very afraid of this predator. They know that the owl is a nocturnal bird, but they believe that it is “cheaper” to stay away from it.

We decided to try this method. We found and downloaded a drawing of an owl on the Internet so that we could cut out a silhouette using its template. It turned out that there was no pendulum saw at hand. Then this drawing was simply printed on a printer on an A4 sheet. And they stapled it to the wall of the house at the second floor level. We evaluated the idea and came to the conclusion that it was all useless.

A few days later we noticed that tits were flying around the house, but they didn’t seem to be pecking at the walls. We watched for a few more days - they definitely weren’t biting. Maybe it wasn't an owl, it was just a coincidence. Moreover, they wrote on the Internet that birds quickly get used to the silhouettes of predators. In general, the tits no longer pecked foam during the first winter.

The next year, in the summer, the drawing was torn off by the wind, but in the summer the tits seemed to have a lot to worry about. But by autumn they became more active again.

Then a gardener friend told me that thrushes were rampant in his garden plot and pecking at the berries. He placed a figure of a crow near the beds and there have been no blackbirds for a week.

Then we decided to try with the figure of an owl. We took two of them - with regular and polar colors.

The figures have a round hole for mounting. The diameter of the hole coincides with the diameter of the round handle for shovels. The owl figures were mounted on cuttings and placed on both sides of the house - on the fence and near the wall.

We began to observe and saw that tits were not at all afraid of owl figures. They sit nearby (7 meters) on tree branches and fly right next to the owls’ beaks. We thought that it was all pointless and went to study other methods of fighting birds. But after a few days we noticed that the tits did not peck at the foam. They fly past houses, sometimes sit on the walls, look warily at the figures of owls and fly away.

We still don’t understand whether it was a coincidence or whether the shapes and patterns of owls really scare away tits. But they did not remove the figures. Moreover, they are quite beautiful.

Installing a window sill and foaming the gaps

The window sill, ready for installation, should have approximately the same shape as the one shown in the following figure (highlighted in yellow):

As you can see, on the sides the window sill has so-called “ears” with which it rests against the wall. The width of the ears should correspond to the width of the paneling of future slopes; more precisely, the ears should be slightly larger than the paneling (usually 50 mm is enough). The eared edge of the sill (the leading edge) is the overhanging part that protrudes from the wall.

This part should not be too wide (30-50 mm is enough), and most importantly, it should not cover the heating radiator by more than half, so as not to impede the flow of warm air coming from the radiator to the window.

For a panel house, the optimal width is usually a window sill of 250 mm (sometimes 300 mm), but if you bought it with a margin in width (more precisely, in depth), then the excess part can be cut off from the back side - meaning the edge, with which the window sill joins the window.

It is advisable to mark the cutting line so that it passes a little (5-10 mm) behind one of the vertical stiffening ribs located inside the window sill (see in the figure: the green dotted line is the correct cutting line, the red dotted line is incorrect).

What happens if a bird flies into the window

If a bird flies into the window, be prepared for life changes. According to popular belief, the bird is a symbol of good or sad news. It all depends on what kind of feathered guest came to you.

February 18, 2017

The content of the article:

A bird flew into the window: a bad omen

Crows, magpies and jackdaws carry bad news. A sparrow or tit flying into a house through a window portends death. According to signs, the cuckoo signifies a fire. A dove holding something in its beak means family scandals, divorce or trouble.

According to popular wisdom, trouble cannot be avoided if a bird hits the glass, breaks and falls. By knocking on the window, feathered guests warn of unexpected expenses. It’s bad if a sparrow or crow knocks - it means spending money on treatment or repairs.

A bird flew into the window: a good omen

A favorable sign is a visit from a nightingale or dove. The nightingale symbolizes financial success. To prevent it from turning away from you, thank the bird - feed it, and then throw in 3 handfuls of wheat grain.

The dove is a symbol of love. If he flew into your window, it means that someone will soon get married, will meet his destiny, or family relationships will improve in the house.

Please note that, according to popular belief, the dove carries both good and bad news.

The swallow warns against transactions and promises financial success and good luck. It also portends an imminent wedding, prosperity and joy in the family. She tells summer residents about a rich harvest this year.

It’s good if the birds have marked you - expect good changes. This could be climbing the career ladder, improving wealth, or receiving an inheritance. Excrement on the windowsill - wait for guests to arrive.

What to do if a bird flies into the window

Remember: you can also expect trouble from birds with which good beliefs are associated. For example, if they fly in through a window and fly out through a door. Therefore, when visiting a feathered guest, do the following:

Close all the doors, open one window wide.
Don't kick the bird out, it should fly away on its own.
If the bird is in no hurry to leave the house, feed it.
You are allowed to carefully pick up the bird and release it out the window. The main thing is not to damage her wings. Afterwards, you can say the following words: “Fly in peace, take away the trouble” - and throw the cereal.

Go to church. Say a prayer and light some candles. Ask for help and protection from higher powers.

Which bird repeller is best?

After reading the rating of the 10 best bird repellers, all that remains is to choose the model you need. Our team cannot give definite recommendations, since the choice is individual for everyone. However, we will highlight the most effective models from the TOP:

EcoSniper LS-987BF – affordable, compact, has a motion detector, and efficiently consumes battery power;
Grad-A16 – about 40 sounds built into memory, affects birds and rodents, protects an area of up to 10,000 m2;
Sititek “Owl” is an imitation of a night predator, has a durable body and wear-resistant paint, the head sways even in light winds, which guarantees the effectiveness of scaring;
Bird Gard Pro is universal, designed for servicing large objects, has precise settings (sound type, pause time between signals).

Any of the listed models reliably protects the area, has high-quality assembly, and is safe for people and pets. What to choose is up to you.

Sealant for windows STIZ. Selection, application, result

Window installation today in almost all cases is carried out using polyurethane foam. The foam seam (junction assembly) along the window contour must be protected with precipitation-resistant, vapor-permeable material on the outside and vapor barrier material on the inside. For this purpose I used STIZ window sealant. Why the choice fell on the sealant, how to apply it and the final result are further in the article.

Options and choice of method for protecting the foam seam when installing windows.

Externally it is usually used:

pre-compressed sealing tape (PSUL);
specialized sealants;
tile adhesive or other cementitious composition;
leave the foam without additional processing.

From the inside, they mainly use:

vapor barrier tapes;
specialized sealants;
leave the foam without additional processing.

The main disadvantages of the above methods.

The PSUL may cover the junction unevenly if the window opening is not level and the installation gap varies in length. Birds can also peck it out, and low-quality material can begin to crumble over the years.

If the window opening is uneven, it may be impossible to properly glue the vapor barrier tape from the inside without first leveling it.

When the ambient temperature changes, the window will change slightly in volume. It will also experience vibrations when opening/closing and from wind loads. In this case, tile adhesive or other cementitious compounds will crack.

On the outside, the polyurethane foam is destroyed under the influence of ultraviolet radiation, which is present in sunlight. From the inside, the foam can be affected by steam, which tends to escape, especially in the cold season. Therefore, leaving it completely unprotected is unacceptable.

Having studied the issue, I made certain conclusions for myself and settled on using a specialized window sealant for the following reasons:

the sealant tightly and efficiently closes the seam, taking into account all the irregularities;
it is resistant to deformation;
if necessary, it can be painted in any color;
it has a wide range of operating and application temperatures;
over time, the sealant does not collapse or crumble;
creates an aesthetic appearance of the window when applied carefully.

The main disadvantage of using sealant is that you need to spend more time applying it and waiting for it to dry before further finishing.

There are different manufacturers of specialized acrylic window sealants. Before use, please read the specific manufacturer's instructions.

Various window sealants

I will consider the process of working with STIZ sealants from SAZI Group, since I used the products of this manufacturer.

Important: STIZ brand sealants contain red inclusions - these are identifying marks that are added at production. They are needed in order to look at the finished seam to make sure that it was really STIZ sealant that was used, and not any other. After drying, these marks are practically invisible.

Important: you need to take into account that different sealants are used for the inner and outer layers. Outside – STIZ A (vapor permeable), inside – STIZ B (vapor barrier). There is also STEEZ D, which is applied to the wall itself. But I didn’t use it, I simply primed the opening before installing the window.

Sealants can be in buckets of different sizes, tubes or file bags for guns (for thinner application).

STIZ window sealant: application process.

Preparing to apply sealant.

So, the windows are installed without any finishing. It is advisable to seal them with film to protect them from sealant. Although I was able to remove even the frozen sealant from the glass and plastic frame without much difficulty.

The first step is to trim the foam.

If, after trimming, deep “depressions” of more than 6 millimeters appear, they need to be filled with foam and then the excess should be trimmed again.

Next, I additionally dusted and primed those areas of the window opening where the sealant will be applied.

I also degreased the areas of the frame where the sealant would come into contact with it.

Then, on the outside of the window, I applied masking tape to the window frame and to the wall to create boundaries and to get a neat, even seam. Inside, the factory protective film served as a restriction on the window frame. There was no need to glue anything to the inside of the wall, since everything would then be covered by the slopes and the window sill.

When applying, it is necessary that the width of the contact strip of the sealant with the surfaces of the wall and window block is at least 3 millimeters on each side. The layer thickness should ideally be between 3.5 and 5.5 millimeters. Detailed application instructions and technical recommendations are available on the manufacturer’s website.

In some places, on the window side, I slightly deepened the seam using a wire brush. This was done in order to maintain the width of the contact, but minimize it on the front side.

Applying sealant.

The consistency of STIZ sealant resembles very thick sour cream.

Using a spatula, pressing slightly, I applied sealant to the mounting foam along the entire contour, including the window sill areas and wooden frames from old windows. You can apply it with a brush, but it turned out to be more convenient with a spatula.

Next, I passed the brush along the entire length, lightly moistening it with water to make the seam neater. But you need to keep in mind that the manufacturer strongly does not recommend diluting the sealant with water.

After applying the sealant, you must immediately remove the masking tape before it hardens.

The result is smooth, neat contours. Small irregularities can be carefully trimmed with a sharp knife.

Active methods: effects on the senses

So, if neither scarecrows nor passive protection give 100% results due to the characteristics of your area, where birds on the roof of a house are a pressing problem, proceed to active action. Let's put it this way: birds have been living with people for a long time. They have adapted to humans and even city noise does not bother them, and therefore sometimes the listed methods are not enough. Then “heavy artillery” comes into play in the form of special installations, the operation of which requires electricity. Abroad, for example, it is popular to conduct a small current through the roof. It doesn't kill birds, but it doesn't create a pleasant feeling for them. True, such work requires certain qualifications and is not always safe:

Therefore, if a little noise from the eyes of predators is not enough, then you should trust modern technology. When choosing a bird repeller for the roof for your home, focus on indicators such as:

range of action, which will depend on your territory;
scope of use (whether you choose a model for an industrial complex or your small suburban area);
way of eating. For example, all acoustic and ultrasonic models must be plugged into an outlet.

Let's look at their types and popular models.