birds nests in the chimney

[TimW]

Is there a time of year when it's more humane or even more legal to sweep a chimney which has had birds nesting in it which have blocked it? I don't know what the birds are, maybe jackdaws.

Tim w

[Chris Hogg]

Quite possibly jackdaws. Can you see them visiting the chimney pot? If they were visiting recently, but not anymore, they've almost certainly raised their brood which have fledged and flown, and the nest will be empty. If you're concerned, I would leave it another couple of weeks before clearing it out just to make sure they've gone. Be prepared for an awful lot of soot and twigs to come down into the fireplace, because jackdaws tend to return to the same chimney year after year. Whether it's the same ones, or their offspring, or even their offspring's offspring, I don't know, but one of our neighbour's chimneys has had jackdaws nesting in it every year for as long as we've been her, about 17 years.

And when you've cleared it, put a cowl on top to stop them returning next year.

[dennis]

No there aren't. But there are times when they will have left the nest and you can remove it.

[Brian Gaff]

Autumn I'd suggest. Brian

[newshound]

I have jackdaws (in an unused chimney), it is one of my "round tuit" jobs to add a cowl out of season.

IIRC Jackdaws are legally vermin, so you don't *have* to be nice to them.

[Chris Green]

We too have jackdaws in an unused chimney, however ours is blocked off (the downstairs bit has been completely removed, the top sits on RSJs). We rather like them.

Personally I find them amusing, mostly. :-)

[fred]

A warning.

many years ago I was wakened in the living room by my wife shouting from th e door. The room was filling up with a foul yellow smoke.

Transpired rooks had manage to push down the wire basket on the chimney and build a nest on top of it inside the chimney. As the boiler house is inter nal to the house and the builder had neglected to close off all the opening s in the ceiing of the boiler house the fumes migrated in between the two f loors.

As the smoke was oily it made a helluva mess to the living room decoration and the upstairs bedroom carpets.

I discovered the evidence of the nest in th fire box and luckily retained t hem for use by the insurance assesor.

All the holes in the boiler house ceiling have now been blocked off and tha t chimney now has a pointed basket on it instead of the original roundeed type

[Muddymike]

No need for a cowl, just fit a mesh bird guard.

Mike

[Tim Lamb]

Hmm.. won't stop the Pigeons crapping undigested cherry seeds down your chimney to roll across the carpet:-(