It’s official: your balcony or terrace has been voted toilet of the year for all the local birds! Result: your patio is covered in pigeon or seagull droppings and garden furniture like the railings are now covered in excrement. And we must admit that birds can sometimes do a lot of damage! For you, grandmother has gathered the best tips based on natural products to clean the droppings in its exterior without risking damaging or polluting your green spaces with chemicals. In addition, all these natural tips will have a very effective effect without requiring the purchase of an expensive high pressure cleaner (Kärcher, etc.). And of course, we will also explain to you how to avoid the return of bird droppings to make your life easier in the future!
How to clean pigeon droppings on your balcony or terrace?
Vinegar: the golden tip for cleaning pigeon droppings
White vinegar (or spirit vinegar) is a acidic and antiseptic product to eliminate stubborn residues as well as bad odors and disinfect bacteria. These two actions allow perfect cleaning of droppings without using harmful bleach or ammonia. To clean droppings, scratch it a little to remove most of the stain. Then rub with a soft cloth soaked in white vinegar diluted in equal parts water. This can also be used on windows or cars soiled by birds. For large surfaces such as the balcony floor (tiles, etc.), mix 250 ml of white vinegar with 1 liter of water and rub this solution on the traces of droppings with a broom. Then rinse with clean water.
Other natural solutions for cleaning bird droppings
Vinegar is not the only solution against these dirt and stains, far from it! Scrape off the droppings, then use one of these cleaning products for soil disinfection:
- A cloth damp with household alcohol or 70° alcohol
- Marseille soap, black soap or dishwashing liquid. Soapy water is perfect for tiles, terracotta or slate
- Glycerin to leave on for 15 minutes before rinsing with hot water or to apply after wetting the stain with vinegar
- Baking soda to rub with a damp sponge or microfiber cloth
- Lemon juice diluted a little in water
- A mixture of Sommières earth and turpentine for a wooden terrace (to apply, let dry and dust)
- A solution based on hot water and soda crystals for concrete terrace
How to prevent the return of droppings so that you no longer have to clean them?
The accumulation of pigeon droppings calls for even more droppings, hence the importance of cleaning them with the right maintenance products and preventing them. However, to prevent them, the solution is to keep pigeons and other birds away. To do this, there is no need to harm them! Keep them away from your exterior with these solutions:
- Keep feeders away from areas where you want to limit bird droppings
- Hanging old CDs or DVDs as a repellent (with the reflected light, you will chase away unwanted birds)
- Otherwise, install aluminum sheets or aluminum plates, always to reflect the light and keep the birds away with the noise
- Install fake owls or crows where birds roost
- Buy an ultrasonic repellent.