Air-gun that shoots salt to discourage woodpeckers destroying my house

[blint]

Is there an air-powered pistol or rifle that can shoot a load of fine table salt or coarse salt about 25 feet fairly accurately? The Bug-A-Salt doesn't have the range or power needed.

I need to discourage some woodpeckers without damaging my house with a pellet or a paint-ball. The last two summers the house has been attacked by carpenter bees. Twenty years with no carpenter bees and then suddenly they show up. Then woodpeckers arrive looking for the bee larvae inside the wood. These woodpeckers are causing thousands of dollars of damage to the cedar siding and trim. The wood was treated with penetrating oil, so it cannot be painted to prevent the bees from chewing on it, as the paint wouldn't adhere to the surface.

 

[ThomasT]

Hello blint,

Hang an Owl decoy out by the area where the Woodpeckers are coming and that should cure the problem. Owls are a Bird-of-Prey and most all other birds fear them.

Good luck and have a great day,

ThomasT

 

[pnwairgunner]

What a great excuse to buy a nice quality air-soft rifle! Good quality ones are capable of pretty impressive accuracy and would be a very good less-than-lethal deterrent for all kinds of pests. 
Another alternative that’s admittedly non airgun related are these motion activated sprinklers. I have two of them and they work fantastically to keep critters from unwanted areas. 

(About $30 cheaper on amazon)

 

[Michigander]

We hung 6 ft strips of silver ribbon where they were pecking at the trim. No problems since, although it doesn't exactly add to the appearance of our house. You should be able to use an oil base or "hybrid" paint over linseed treated wood. Test and if adhesion is poor, prime with Stix.

 

[Mr.Brocock]

https://www.bugasalt.com/pages/shop-collections#shreder

this will help

 

[Matt247365]

Have you tried traps for the bees?

They work great and easy to make!

https://www.google.com/search?q=diy+carpenter+bee+trap&tbm=isch&ved=2ahUKEwjmgsPnpYD4AhWDFFkFHZdzD4AQ2-cCegQIABAA&oq=diy+carpenter+bee+trap&gs_lcp=CgNpbWcQAzIECAAQQzIFCAAQgAQyBggAEB4QCDIECAAQGDIECAAQGDIECAAQGDIECAAQGDIECAAQGDoECCMQJzoGCAAQHhAHOggIABAeEAcQBToICAAQHhAIEAdQhxFY_RZg6RdoAHAAeACAAU2IAd0CkgEBNZgBAKABAaoBC2d3cy13aXotaW1nwAEB&sclient=img&ei=dRaRYqb0F4Op5NoPl-e9gAg&bih=899&biw=1920#imgrc=XWx14P_F5dYznM

 

[KWK]

 Penetrating oil stain? If it's cured and sanded first paint will stick. Everything should be caulked .

Don't use oil paints if you can avoid it. They fade and turn chalky. Also peeling and checking is a big issue with .oil paint. Doesn't last. That's 19th and 20th century paint. Use acrylic paint and primer for the best adhesion and color and sheen retention. ALWAYS SAND FIRST! Even if only lightly. Proper power washing can be effective as well. I said proper power washing! Most people do it wrong.

I painted houses for 25years although I don't do exterior work anymore. 

Carpenter bees alone are very destructive.

 

[hawkeye69]

Good luck, woodpeckers don't get discouraged easily. Here in Arizona Gila woodpeckers even go through hard stucco and once they get a spot started they keep returning to enlarge it. They made a hole in my neighbors garage about 6 inches around.

 

[Cannonball]

I would contact your local wildlife resources agency and see what they advise you to do. You might have to eliminate them and would legally need their permission to do so since they are a protected species. I know in some instances they issue permits giving you right to protect your property.

 

[elh0102]

I think the short answer is no. But, a few pellet holes are a lot easier to repair than the bird damage, I'd just kill'em. But, their buddies will be back. I've watched a neighbor replace the same area of cedar siding three times, but the birds come back. Things like silver ribbon, owl decoys, rubber snakes, all work to various degrees, but they are not consistently effective. Unfortunately, the only thing I know that is, would be different siding. I've gotten away from wood in every place I can, but if it's your primary wall covering, obviously very expensive. If you find the answer, please post it, you're not alone with this problem.

 

[Scouty]

Attachment for certain types of airguns:

http://bugblaster.net/

 

[woogie_man]

Depending on your area and the species of woodpecker you may or may not be able to kill it.

These birds are creatures of habit and will continue coming back to the same trees unless you can break that cycle. Find all the holes that they are using/making and use some simple tin foil and cover the area.

There are a ton of different ideas that you can use, give them all a try and see what works in your area.

 

[IMADMAN]

You ever see the battery powered gun that shoots bio degradable gel balls? They're pretty cool. Powered with a lipo battery. I believe semi or full auto? 

 

[Jasonmc]

Been there..and feel for you. I too had cedar siding the woodpeckers loved... no carpenter bee problem. Those freaking birds bore holes rip out insulation and build nest. I finally had vinyl siding that looked like cedar installed.. but I cant say it happened but I hear a 177 co2 rifle shooting wadcutters worked out very well for a bird or two that's causing thousands in home damages...

 

[Ripper]

I have Big pilated woodpeckers along with other types around my house and they never mess with anything except for some tree stumps which is fine with me. But if I were to have that problem I would probably take one of my old cheap daisy BB guns and try pouring a small amount of Course salt down the barrel and see how it worked.Maybe shoot a piece of paper at that distance and see what it does.I do have carpenter bees that put holes in my porch only. I’m thinking about just taking some wood putty and filling the holes up.

 

[Greasemagnet1]

I had an awful time with carpenter bees and woodpeckers. I would spray brake cleaner in the bees holes to kill the bees and larve, let it dry for a short time, then plug the hole with a 3/8" wood dowel and glue, trim the dowel flush then paint. I was sceptical about carpenter bee traps but they do work very well. I think the existing holes attract woodpeckers, because after patching and painting the holes that basically solved the problem for me. Good luck, I know it can be very frustrating to deal with that.

 

[Deleted member 38071]

Woodpeckers are going after bugs behind the shingles/ trim. Carpenter bees like less than dry lumber. I'd check for leaks along your rakes and behind your gutters. 

 

[qball]

Depends on your situation I would recommend the simple SSS rule, shoot, shovel and shutup. Great reason to get a 3 FPE 1701P with a small moderator, heck a lot cheaper and more fun too!



Fortunately I haven’t had to do that yet, friend of mine had to borrow my 1701……a hole in stucco 30 feet up in the air won’t be cheap to repair. Neighbor of mine had one of the exposed wood beams covered with 50+ acorns stuffed into holes the damn bird drilled. 

 

[177er]

The easiest to do is to get a slingshot and chalk sticks.
This way, you won't harm the birds and easily scare them off.
A small piece of the chalk stick at 50-75 fps in a slingshot covers 10 meters easily.

Even hitting them won't kill or injure them.

 

[ScottEnglish]

Epoxy an acorn onto a common rat trap. You will be catching woodpeckers all day long.