# How to get rid of woodpecker?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 18, 2001, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274 "2001-10-18T19:24:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![DarkScooterPie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b3f665/32.png) [@DarkScooterPie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarkScooterPie)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274/1 "2001-10-18T19:24:49Z")

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A woodpecker has decided to share my home recently and pecked several holes in my exterior walls. He finally settled in one of the holes as a home.

How do I humanly get the bird to stop making more holes in my house and go away?

Thanks in advance.

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**Author:** ![Kaotic\_Newtral](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@Kaotic\_Newtral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kaotic_Newtral)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274/2 "2001-10-18T19:51:30Z")

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Woodpeckers don’t like owls at all(for good reason). My neighbor had the same problem and used a fake owl to ward off the annoying birds. I’ve also heard of fake snakes being deployed around the problem areas.

-Kaotic

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**Author:** ![AWB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bb73d2/32.png) [@AWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AWB)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274/3 "2001-10-18T20:07:01Z")

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Aluminum siding? 😃

The owl decoy sounds like an idea solution.

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**Author:** ![TheeGrumpy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/779978/32.png) [@TheeGrumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheeGrumpy)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274/4 "2001-10-18T20:09:05Z")

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Think about baseball?

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274/5 "2001-10-18T20:16:38Z")

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Here’s a good site on [prevention of woodpecker damage.](http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/natres/06516.html)

Among the methods they suggest are rapidly covering any holes made with aluminum or wire cloth, hawk mobiles or other visual deterrents, and loud noises.

If you do a web search using woodpecker, damage, and prevention you’ll get lots of hits.

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**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274/6 "2001-10-18T20:21:52Z")

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A great thread, guys, as a woodpecker just started systematically destroying my house last weekend. He broke a 1 by 6 piece of ornamental siding completely off, and has bored 3 holes!

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**Author:** ![Oreo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c57346/32.png) [@Oreo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oreo)\
**Post date:** [October 18, 2001, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-get-rid-of-woodpecker/88274/7 "2001-10-18T20:22:50Z")

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You might get your house checked for termites. I had a woodpecker drilling the wall right outside my bedroom for months to get at the termites. Got rid of the termites, got rid of the annoying pounding every morning.