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Tale of a Jackdaw! Get a birdguard fitted

Tale of a Jackdaw...

As Managing Director of Colt Cowls for the past 15 years I have often advised customers and end-users alike of the importance of installing a birdguard on their chimney. The damage that a bird can do when they come down a chimney and  into your lounge, and the additional cost you incur from a chimney sweep having to clear your chimney of large sticks are just two aspects to consider. Recently however the old expression...do as i advise not as I do came home to roost (boom boom)

Last Thursday I went home for some lunch only to be confronted by a large black bird with a grey hood staring at me...it could only be a Jackdaw! As i walked through the dining room i could see some of the mess Mr Jackdaw had bought down the chimney with him....i could clear that up later...but first I had a big black bird to catch before he destroyed my house. If I am entirely honest, birds scare me...especially big ones! As my heart raced i suddenly realised i had no idea how i was going to trap this big boy. After a while I managed to locate a box which I felt would be big enough not to harm the bird and allow me to take it outside. After a bit more struggling i finally managed to get Mr Jackdaw into the box before releasing him in the garden...praying all the while he would not then simply fly back up to the top of the chimney and repeat the excercise!

I need a birdguard!...oh the irony.

You may well be wondering how a man who runs a company selling hundreds of thousands of birdguards and chimney cowls could possibly be in this position. Well...i only moved into our new house in February, and we have a 9 month old baby. Add to the fact we have just done a load of work on the house, and we have 2 stoves and a fireplace...you can see that perhas it was not the first thing on my agenda when moving...plus...i thought i had the chimneys covered so to speak!

Whats the morale of this story?

Well...birds (especially big ones) are quite scary things and can do quite a bit of damage to your home, not to mention the nests and mess they create in your chimney...so check you have a bird guard. if you dont have one...get one installed by your local chimney sweep ASAP!

Lastly...make sure it is a good quality one, ideally a Colt Chimney Cowl that is built to last...you dont want the birds coming in...I can assure you!

http://www.coltcowls.co.uk/products/chimney-birdguards

James Stedman

Managing Director