Solar-Powered Bird Sweeper
By Benjamen Johnson
Bird-B-Gone’s solar powered bird repeller has to be one of the strangest products I’ve seen, and I’ve seen my share. It’s reminiscent of a stereotypical nerd’s beanie. The repeller uses a continuously rotating “propeller” to sweep birds away from just about any flat or angled surface and keep them from shitting all over the place.
Two adjustable arms mounted to a rotor cone extend to cover up to a five-foot diameter area. The solar panels charge 3 AAA batteries so the brushless motor will rotate at a continuous 30 RPM during the day, night, or cloudy weather.
There’s a video demonstrating the repeller over on YouTube, but unfortunately it doesn’t show what happens when a bird tries to land. It’d be pretty funny seeing the birds interacting with the repeller, but what I’d personally like to see is what happens to it when it gets hit by lightning.
Expect to pay anywhere between $70 and $100 depending on where you purchase the solar-powered bird repeller.
Via Amazon [What’s This?]
Street Pricing [Google]
Solar Bird Repeller [Bird-B-Gone]
Solar Bird Repeller [YouTube]
December 2nd, 2009 at 11:47 am
So what this $70 item does, is keep birds off of this $70 item?
December 2nd, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Maybe one could make this into a hat, so the birds wouldn’t land on your head.
If you hooked it into a TV for an antenna, would the picture rotate in a circle?
December 2nd, 2009 at 1:16 pm
I think this one would be more cost effective, greater protection radius, too.
http://hackedgadgets.com/2009/11/26/scarecrow-by-contech-motion-activated-sprinkler/
December 2nd, 2009 at 1:16 pm
I’m betting the pigeons are smart enough to aim their “gifts” at the solar panel.
My design would involve really large capacitors, a “burst” mode and a perch right in front of the sharpened blades.
December 2nd, 2009 at 1:43 pm
@Frank I think it tries to kick birds off of ledges, but you bring up a good point. What keeps the birds from landing on the blades? I’m assuming it has low RPM since it is solar…
December 2nd, 2009 at 1:43 pm
The little birds I’ve got would have a blast riding this thing like a merry go round.
December 2nd, 2009 at 3:09 pm
I will stay with my bird-repellant: my good old shotgun.
December 2nd, 2009 at 4:17 pm
I could see one of these on a boat that is kept in a marina. My father and i have done lots of things to keep birds off of his boat. One of the best ways was to take 10inch long strands of tinsle and tie it on the rigging.
ShopMonger
December 2nd, 2009 at 4:35 pm
I’ve seen similar items on Billboards. It’s designed primarily for Pigeons. A few Pigeons can produce a lot of shit.
December 2nd, 2009 at 8:30 pm
The pigeons will ride it like a merry go round.But Bob’s idea is better.Try a live Falcon.
December 3rd, 2009 at 8:58 am
Apparently none of the previous posters have *&%#$! flickers to wake them up with banging on the chimney. This thing may be a brilliant solution if it’s built well.
December 3rd, 2009 at 10:44 am
Hmmm… that’s still more expensive than this pellet gun.
December 3rd, 2009 at 4:08 pm
I don’t appreciate the cursing at all… I’m going to stop looking at toolmonger now
December 3rd, 2009 at 5:47 pm
blabla: I’m sure your loss will be keenly felt by everyone around. Enjoy your self-imposed exile from the entire Internet, where there is occasional language stronger than “poop”, and don’t let the door hit you in the ass (oops!) on the way out.
cl
December 7th, 2009 at 9:49 am
It’s only cursing if it’s not used in an appropriate context.
Hate to tell you, but birds shit.
December 8th, 2009 at 1:31 am
[...] Birds, who needs them? This Solar Bird Repeller will make sure they stay gone. Designed for installation in favoured bird roosts either horizontally or at an angle, the solar cell powers a pair of rotating arms that spin at 30 rpm covering a diameter of 5′. It also comes with 3 AA rechargeable batteries so extended dark periods won’t allow the birds to move back in. US$77.16 from Amazon [Via Toolmonger] [...]