Woodpeckers and other birds seem to be attracted to EIFS houses and buildings for some reason. Repairing the damage caused by these birds is not easy and can be expensive. The problem with repairs is that it is very difficult to patch a small area in the middle of a wall. The only way to repair a bird hole and make it look new again is to re-cover the entire wall the hole is in. Sometimes it is not so bad to cover a small wall, but as you can imagine, on very large walls it would be quite expensive. Another major problem is matching the color of the existing wall. Nine times out of ten, the customer does not have the original color on file, so it must be matched. Color matching stucco is a tedious process due to the fact that the top layer of synthetic stucco contains the paint. You’re not just running to the paint store to match a color. Tea EIFS the manufacturer really matches the color and texture of the stucco. It is almost impossible to match the color exactly. If you could imagine it, it’s like going down to the basement and taking the can of paint you painted your living room with last year and painting a square in the middle of the living room wall. The paint would not match even if it was the exact same paint. Stucco is much harder to match than that because it has been exposed to the elements for years. On projects with extensive bird damage throughout the house, it is recommended that the house be painted after the holes are repaired.
Once all the repairs are completed and the customer is satisfied with the job, what stops the same bird from coming back and drilling holes again? After all, you may have just kicked him out of his house or, even worse, his resting place. Some birds are very territorial and will not give up their spot without a fight. People use a variety of items to keep birds away, from owls to streamers. The best things I have found to keep birds away are reflective streamers and the guys who work around the house. The best digger is the guy from home who works for several days. If the woodpecker finds a new home while the work is being done, that is the best case scenario because the bird will be territorial to its new home. It is important to nip the problem in the bud before it gets out of control. If you shoo the bird away after its first hole, it won’t be as attached to the area as if it had been there for months. Another thing to keep in mind is that every hole the bird makes allows moisture to seep behind the system, which can cause problems over time.