There are a lot of bird control companies in Sydney. Some are specialists. Some are general pest companies that also handle birds. Some are tradies who’ve done a few netting jobs and put it on their website. The difference between them, in terms of what you actually get, is enormous.
We see the evidence of this regularly. A client calls us after another company installed netting that sagged and left gaps within a season. Or spikes that detached from a Colorbond surface after one summer. Or a company that removed a nest from under the solar panels and left within an hour, without proofing the access point, so the birds rebuilt within a week.
We’re going to lay out the seven questions that tell you, before you spend any money, whether a bird control company will actually solve your problem. Some of these questions put pressure on the company. That’s the point. A company that handles them confidently is worth hiring. A company that gets vague is telling you something important.
Question 1: Do you identify the species before quoting?
This is the first and most important question. In NSW, all native bird species are protected under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016. Indian mynas and feral pigeons- the two most common pest birds in Sydney- are not protected. But welcome swallows, noisy miners, magpies, corellas, and dozens of other birds that commonly nest on Sydney properties are fully protected. Disturbing their nests, eggs, or chicks without a licence is an offence.
A professional bird control company identifies the species before recommending any action. If a company is willing to quote you for nest removal without first confirming what species you’re dealing with, that’s a red flag. Either they’re going to act illegally, or they’re going to get it wrong and you’ll deal with the consequences.
What a good answer sounds like: “We always identify the species before we recommend any treatment. Our technicians are trained in NSW bird identification, and if we’re not certain, we won’t act until we’ve confirmed.”
Question 2: Do you offer a workmanship warranty?
This is the simplest proxy for how confident a company is in their own work. Professional bird exclusion installations- properly specified netting, correctly mounted spikes, quality mesh on solar panels- should perform for years. A company that stands behind their work offers a workmanship warranty.
The warranty should be specific: what does it cover, for how long, and what triggers it? A 12-month workmanship warranty is a reasonable baseline for residential work. Commercial installations with ongoing maintenance programs typically have different warranty structures.
Be wary of companies that quote an installation without any warranty. Bird proofing that fails within six months isn’t just an inconvenience- it’s proof that the installation wasn’t right to begin with.
Question 3: Do you do a site inspection before quoting?
No professional bird control job should be quoted without a site inspection. The reason is straightforward: bird problems are specific to the property. The bird species, the access points, the surface types, the surrounding environment, the operational constraints- all of these affect the right solution. A quote without an inspection is a guess.
There are companies in Sydney who will provide a quote via phone or email based on a description and a few photos. Some of these quotes will be significantly cheaper than competitors who inspect first. That gap in price often reflects a gap in specificity- the cheaper quote is for a standardised solution that may or may not fit your actual situation.
Ask specifically: “Is the site inspection free, and does the technician who quotes us do the assessment themselves, or is it passed to a separate team?” A company where the same person assesses and installs is usually better coordinated.
Question 4: Are you a bird specialist, or a general pest company?
This question matters more than it might seem. General pest companies handle cockroaches, rodents, ants, termites, and- in many cases- birds as a secondary service. The technician who arrives may have done dozens of bird jobs, or may have done very few. The product range may be comprehensive, or it may be limited to what’s easiest to carry alongside the pest spray equipment.
Specialist bird control companies, by contrast, focus exclusively on bird management. The technicians are specifically trained in species identification, NSW wildlife law, and the range of exclusion and deterrence options available. The product range is typically broader and more specifically tailored to bird behaviour.
Neither option is automatically wrong- some general pest companies have experienced bird control teams. But the question surfaces important information about how the company approaches the work and whether they’ve invested specifically in bird control expertise.
Question 5: What materials do you use, and are they appropriate for my roof or surface type?
This is where the technical quality of the company becomes visible. Professional bird exclusion uses stainless steel spikes (not galvanised, not plastic), UV-stabilised mesh (not garden netting), and installation methods appropriate to the surface type- whether that’s a tile roof, a Colorbond installation, a heritage sandstone facade, or a strata building with body corporate requirements.
The specific questions:
- Are the spike bases stainless steel or plastic? (Plastic degrades in Australian sun within two to three seasons)
- Is the netting UV-stabilised? (Non-UV netting becomes brittle within eighteen months in Sydney sun)
- Do you use adhesive or mechanical fixings on my surface type? (Adhesive fails on Colorbond due to thermal movement)
- Do you use clip-on systems for solar panel mesh that don’t penetrate the panel frame? (Drilling voids panel warranties)
A company that can answer these questions specifically, with product names and rationale, is demonstrating genuine technical knowledge. Vague answers like “we use the best quality products” are not answers.
Question 6: Do you address the access point, or just the symptom?
One of the most common failures in bird control is treating the visible problem without addressing the underlying access. A nest under the solar panels is the symptom. The access point- the gap between the panel frame and the roof surface- is the cause. Remove the nest without sealing the access and the birds rebuild within days, often in the same visit.
Ask the company: “If you remove the nest, what happens to the access point? What do you do to prevent them returning?” The answer should describe a specific exclusion installation- mesh, proofing, sealed gap, spikes- that physically prevents re-entry. If the answer is “we’ll advise you on deterrents,” that’s not sufficient.
The correct approach is removal followed by immediate physical exclusion. These should happen in the same visit, not as separate jobs at different times.
Question 7: Can you provide documentation for strata, HACCP, or body corporate?
For strata residents, commercial operators, and anyone who needs to demonstrate active pest management to a third party, documentation matters.
Strata residents often need written documentation of the proposed installation scope to obtain body corporate approval. Commercial operators with HACCP or SQF food safety requirements need written records of pest management activities for audit purposes. Landlords dealing with a bird problem in a tenanted property need documentation of the action taken.
A professional company provides written assessment reports, installation records, and where required, maintenance visit reports. If a company can’t confirm in writing what they installed, where, and with what materials, the documentation trail doesn’t exist.
The honest self-assessment question
Here’s the one to ask yourself before you start calling companies: are you looking for the cheapest solution, or the right solution?
These are sometimes the same thing. Often they’re not. The cheapest quote on a bird netting job in Sydney may involve lightweight materials, no warranty, and a call-back in a season. The right quote involves a proper assessment, appropriate materials for your surface type, a warranty, and an installation that actually lasts.
We’ve been called in to redo jobs that other companies installed. In most cases, the original job was less expensive than what we quoted. In most cases, the client ended up spending more in total than if they’d done the right job first.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I check if a bird control company is licensed in NSW?
For general bird exclusion work (installing netting, spikes, and mesh), no specific pest control licence is required beyond standard business registration and public liability insurance. For work involving native protected species- active nest removal, trapping native birds– the company needs a wildlife licence from NSW DCCEEW. Ask specifically whether the work you need requires a wildlife licence, and if so, request their licence details before booking.
Is a free site inspection actually free, or is there a hidden assessment fee?
At The X Bird, site inspections are genuinely free with no obligation. Some companies may call an inspection ‘free’ but build an assessment fee into the quote. The clearest way to confirm is to ask directly: “If I don’t proceed with the quote, is there any charge for the inspection?” A straightforward answer either way is the right answer.
Should I get multiple quotes for bird control work?
Yes, particularly for larger or more complex jobs. Multiple quotes help you understand the range of approaches being recommended and the materials being proposed. If one quote is significantly cheaper than others, ask specifically what the difference in materials or scope is. Often the cheaper quote reflects a simpler installation that may not be appropriate for your specific situation.
What should I do if I had bird control work done that failed?
Contact the company that did the original work first and invoke whatever warranty was provided. If no warranty was given, or the company won’t respond, have the installation assessed by a specialist. We carry out reassessments of failed installations regularly- the outcome tells you what was done wrong and what the correct remediation looks like.
The right question to end on
After all seven questions, the simplest final test is this: does the company seem interested in your specific situation, or are they applying a standard script? A company that asks you questions- about your roof type, the species you’ve seen, how long the problem has been happening, whether you have strata requirements- is one that understands bird control is property-specific.
That’s what a site inspection is for. And it’s why we offer them at no cost.
Seven questions, one call Our team is happy to answer all of the above before you commit to anything. Book a free site visit and you’ll leave with a specific written assessment and quote, not a generic proposal. Book your free site assessment – Booking-form