We at Peach State have had a pigeon problem at Cedartown Airport (4A4) for some time. My wife (a veterinarian and professor specializing in bird research) just came up with a blindingly simple solution that not only solves the problem without having to open a shooting gallery (an alternate solution that was on the table), but puts us in partnership with the pigeons so that their well-being is in our best interest.

It has been our plan at Cedartown to rent two hangars facing each other at the end of a row. This allows us control of the end of a row of hangars for gyro staging, parking and the like. One of the hangars became hopelessly infested with the flying rats some weeks ago. We tried sealing holes with foam and installing chicken wire, but the real problem was empty hangars on the back side of our infested hangar. With nobody in that hangar it became infested first, and they began making it their business to find ways in adjacent space. The hangar adjacent our infested hangar is also a nightmare. The county (who runs the airport) hasn't been any help, but then, they haven't raised rent in years and I prefer not to rock that boat.

So, what is the new plan? MOVE! If we move the contents of the infested hangar to the hangar adjacent to our existing end hangar, now we effectively control the last 4 hangars in the row (with the continued cooperation of the pigeons). Within a week or so of no more crud maintenance by us in the infested hangars, nobody in their right mind would ever rent them. Our airport has plenty of empty hangars, and that row will become the last choice of anyone looking to rent.

My wife figures it will take a few years for the population to overrun that entire hangar row. There are, after all, some tenants in the not-yet-infested end of the row that might give them a bit of a fight. Meanwhile, we end up with double the ramp space for no additional charge!

.

Completely unrelated but what the heck

I have a lot of ants in my yard and they always manage to find some cracks to get in the house ... then they get up on my desk and head for my glass of cranberry-raspberry fruit juice , take a sip and then head back outside again.

Last year I did an experiment , I took a plastic cup with a bit of juice in it and set it outside on the lawn beside the house , now they never come inside , every week or so I put a another teaspoon of juice in the cup

.

Many moons ago I was out at the Aiken airport and noticed dirt movers were digging a retention pond very near the runways.
One of the managers there told me the city was building a business park and something about the EPA and offsetting wet lands and yada yada.

I mentioned to him "Aren't you trying to attract jet traffic?"
He said yes "so what?"
I said look at the egrets between the runways. I asked do you know what those birds will do to a jet engine?

Light Bulb!

The next time I went out there it was like there had never been a dirt mover there.

Too bad there isn't a rent-a-hawk. Chase em with rc planes!

Hold a competition for the Boy Scouts to see using pellet guns who can kill the most pigeons. Set it up with the scout master first and fish and game and the kids can earn a couple of merit badges. Plus they can learn about gyros.

Henry,

That would only work if they would throw in some airplane washes. My Bonanza is cleaner than it has ever been from all the times I've had to wash the bird stuff off. Even one pigeon in the hangar for the night can make an incredible mess.

Jon, speaking as a bird brain (I've been called worse)

Play loud music in the hangars.... really loud, with the doors closed..... obnoctious music like M&M and crap like that..... the birds wont like it either and will choose to go elsewhere..... also, start a straw/wet grass fire in a drum (lots of smoke) in the hangar (with nothing in the hangar) and close the doors.... the birds make the hangar home because they are comfortable there.... make them uncomfortable

Arnie..... get some cinnamon and put it in some bottle caps near where the ants come in.... the ants love the cinnamon, but it kills them.... they will take it back to the nest and the nest will be gone.... it works

More tips from your mate

I am quite serious Jon..... play loud music..... if the birds aren't comfortable, they will not hang around.... its rue about the cinnamon and ants as ewll...

Muz:

Yes, I agree that loud music would work. But now we WANT the birds to mess up those hangars so we can "own" the end of the ramp without having to rent those hangars.

play some rap...

That would get rid of me.

The smoke is very effective too.... you don't need a big drum and the hanger looking like Jakes place..... just a small trash can with enough smoky grass burning to stink out the rooftop/beams area.... I actually got rid of some rats in my house roof with a tin bucket a couple of hot barbeque 'brickettes' and some lawn clippings.... I never heard a rat in the ceiling after that.... they were gone instantly and with the man hole cover on, didn't even smell in the house.

In the hanger you want to keep gyros in, make a fire bucket suspended from the ceiling, if birds turn up, light a fire in it with some grass clippings. Don't light one in the one you don't want anyone to rent and hopefully all the birds will go in that one and no one will want to rent it