Seagulls and garden netting

[tom52]

I am getting fed up spending 20 mins every time I go to the boat scraping seagull crap of the cockpit seats and sprayhood.

I am considering covering the cockpit with an improvised canopy of plastic garden netting. The kind you use for growing your sweetpeas. I know it will be a pain to rig and un-rig but it cannot be worse than scraping concrete or sticky seagull $hit

My wife is concerned that seagulls might become entangled and I will end up with the messier task of clearing up corpses.
What do you think ?

 

[Porthandbuoy]

Clearing up the seagull corpses will be much more satisfying. Go with the netting.

 

[BAtoo]

Seagull pie.....................

 

[martink]

Have you found anything ( other literally than scraping it off ) that removes the hardened version of seagull droppings - especially where it has fallen on 'non-slip' parts of the decking? I don't know what their diet is but its does set like concrete ...
Martin

 

[trouville]

seagulls love eggs! Just try leaveing on in the cockpit it will be gone and you wont hear the seagull take it!

Netting wont help,there has been other posts about segulls last year.I leave a very real looking rubber snake on the coach roof it keeps them off my boat and any boats either side.

 

[jon]

Netting DOES work, they will not get tangled in it but choose your neighbour's instead. I had some over a Shrimper which they always chose as their favourite until I tried the netting.

 

[trouville]

Then you must rig the netting very well!!!

 

[roger]

Netting boats has become something of a science in our boat club as the moorings are very close to houses where occupants feed the birds and cannot be stopped.
There is a variety of designs for netting mounting and some need a great deal of work to erect and dismantle.
The most important part of the design is to ensure that the netting is clear of any surface the birds can perch on.
The next problem is stowing the netting and any frameworks. The design itself is individual to the boat and its not easy.
For a masted boat its a little easier as you can hang a ridge tent of netting from a line ABOVE the boom to all the guard wires. Swallows perch on our guard wires but I dont think seagulls can.