When choosing an electronic unit for bird control or for controlling other nuisance animals and wildlife, the list of possible devices can be confusing. Not knowing which product to use can result in wasting your time and money. This article will give you the basics about the different types of electronic pest repellers, how they work and which pests are controlled by each.
First, some basics on electronic repellers. There are two basic types of electronic pest repellers, those that are audible (can be heard) to humans and those that are not always audible.
An audible unit is designed to emit sounds that humans and domestic animals can hear. These sounds are used to frighten or confuse your targeted pest. Audible units are what we call sonic pest repellers.
An inaudible unit is designed to be silent to humans and animals. These units are known as ultrasonic pest repellers.
There are numerous products on the market (both sonic and ultrasonic) that are very inexpensive. These are easily found on sale at flea markets, hardware stores and are often advertised on late night television. Magazines are another area where these cheap units are offered to the uninitiated.
Professionals and others who are involved with the removal or prevention of unwanted birds and animals have found that only professional units give the high quality results demanded for the job.

By breaking down electronic repellers into different sections, choosing the correct device for your pest control job will be made simple. Remember that the devices mentioned are usually used to keep casinos, museums, court houses, marinas, restaurants, warehouses, airports and other such complexes free and clear of unwanted animal and bird problems, many homeowners have found that these professional units work wonders on their personal property.

Professional Ultrasonic Pest Repellers Professional Sonic Pest Repellers

Bird Control Animal Control

Professional Ultrasonic Pest Repellers

Ultrasonic pest control devices have evolved over the years. As customers give their feedback (both positive and negative) on certain units as they are used in the field, manufacturers such as Bird-X collect such information. This information is then combined with new technology and basic design changes to suit the needs of their customers.

Ultrasonic Technology Explained Ultrasonic Repellers

Many people do not know what to expect from an ultrasonic pest control device. Simply put, the ultrasonic "beams" travel from the unit's speakers in a manner that can be compared to beams of light. These beams travel in a straight line, they do not bend corners and they do not penetrate walls. As you can see, this limits the use of ultrasonic repellers to wide open spaces. The recent introduction of speaker extensions for the QB-4 and Ultrason X units has been a vast improvement, giving the units used better coverage and the ability to overcome beams, columns, walls and other solid objects that might interfere with the ultrasonic technology.
Ultrasonic units must be placed at a height that prevents the ultrasonic waves from affecting humans, domestic animals or non-target or friendly animals. If, for instance, the unit is placed on a kitchen countertop, everyone in the room would be affected by the unit. Adverse affects can include headaches, irritability, inability to concentrate or slight nausea. When placed properly (above and away from humans and pets) these effects usually make targeted pests fell unwelcome and encourage them to leave the targeted area. These effects cause no harm to the targeted animals but they do make the animal want to desert the territory.
There are three major ultrasonic units to choose from:
Quad Blaster (QB-4)    Ultrason X    BroadBand Pro (BB Pro)
The basic ultrasonic unit is still in use today. The Quad Blaster (QB-4) is a one piece unit that contains electronics, optional switches and speakers. There are four speakers, one placed on each side of the boxed unit. Individual extension speakers are available for this unit. The QB-4 operates on a single frequency and is an outdoor only pest repeller.
When the QB-4 was initially introduced its suggested uses included repelling birds, bats, rats, mice or any animal that had invaded an attic, crawl space or other indoor area. Experience and field tests have proven that birds are affected by ultrasonic to a certain extent but not well enough to keep unwanted pigeons, sparrows and other nuisance birds away from the targeted area for good. Most of our customers who purchase the QB-4 use the unit to repel bats, rats, mice, squirrels or other small animals from attics and crawl spaces in their homes or buildings. Those who choose to use the QB-4 to repel birds have better results when they combine ultrasonic with two or more visual or physical scare devices. Bird Spikes, Irri-Tape, Prowler Owls and Terror Eyes are examples of physical and visual scare devices. A sound device such as Bird Expeller Pro will also enhance an ultrasonic unit, if you already own an ultrasonic repeller. If you do not own an ultrasonic repeller but are considering a combination of sonic and ultrasonic frequencies, use the BroadBand Pro (BB Pro).
For more precise specifications and ordering information, go to the QB-4, Quad Blaster page.
The next improvement on ultrasonic technology came in the form of the Ultrason X. Many customers wanted to use an ultrasonic pest repeller outdoors. Bird-X responded by the development and introduction of the Ultrason X unit which has other new features. It is an outdoor or indoor unit but the Ultrason X has three different frequencies to choose from, as opposed to the single frequency utilized in the QB-4. The improved control panel and 100 foot long speaker cables also aid in making the Ultrason X a huge improvement over the original QB-4.
The Ultrason X works great on nuisance animals but has only slight effects on birds. If you need more versatility use the BroadBand Pro (BB Pro), a unit that allows you to use ultrasonic and sonic frequencies in combinations that can work in many different situations for many different target animal pests.
The Broad Band Pro does use ultrasonic beams to discourage birds and animals but will be discussed in detail in the Sonic Pest Repellers section. This is because the unit uses many different types of sounds (both audible and inaudible) to repel nuisance wildlife.

Professional Sonic Pest Repellers

Sonic repellers use sounds to frighten or confuse birds, deer, raccoons or other animals, thus keeping them out of areas where they might be harmed (such as airports, parking lots, etc.) or where they can inflict damage (by feeding on vegetable, fruit or ornamental plants); unwanted wildlife are also carriers of ticks, fleas and possibly more serious problems such as rabies.
Units that are considered to be sonic pest repellers include the Bird Expeller Pro, Super Bird Expeller Pro, Critter Blaster Pro and Broad Band Pro. Do not let the list of devices confuse you. Each will be explained in more detail which will make your choice of pest repeller easier than you would imagine.

Bird Expeller Pro

The Bird Expeller Pro is a smaller unit that is self contained, that is the electronic workings, switches and speaker are all included in one unit for easy placement. Use the Bird Expeller Pro to frighten birds that are damaging your property or are making a mess with their droppings and nesting materials. The Bird Expeller Pro will easily cover 1/4 acre and can cover up to 1 acre. The 1/4 acre coverage is for repelling existing bird populations. Once the birds are under control, you can usually depend on the sonic unit to repel nuisance birds over an area about 1 acre area. Works best when combined with visual scare devices such as a Prowler Owl and Irri-Tape.
This unit uses natural bird sounds which frightens or confuses targeted bird pests.
For specific details and more in-depth information, go to the Bird Expeller Pro information page.

Super Bird Expeller Pro

The Super Bird Expeller Pro is similar to the Bird Expeller Pro but it has more options to aid in bird control and covers a much larger area. The Super Bird Expeller Pro has a control panel and four separate speakers that connect to the control panel with 100 feet of electrical cords that are included in the package. This sonic unit also uses natural sounding cries of birds as well as a selection of predator sounds.
By combining a couple of bird distress sounds with at least one predator sound, you create an environment that makes targeted pest birds feel unwelcome. These sounds will drive away pest birds and keep them away. Once the birds have been frightened out of the area, you should periodically change the combinations of sounds and frequency at which they can be heard. This will keep the birds from becoming accustomed to the sounds. Birds have proven to adapt to many things that birds in the past would not have tolerated. For instance, if a sports care were to have roared down a country road in the 1700's, every bird within acres of the automobile would have been scared out of their wits. We now know that pigeons, crows, sparrows and other birds have not only become accustomed to the sound of fast and loud automobiles, they are drawn to them! As you travel on an interstate highway, take note of the different birds that sit idly by the road as you roar past their location. You might even see a crow push carrion on to the concrete, in hopes that the next car that drives by will break up the carcass into smaller pieces for easier consumption!
For these reasons, we should constantly tweak or change our bird control devices so that they continue to repel birds - and not become a bird's nesting spot.

Critter Blaster Pro

The Bird Expeller Pro and Super Bird Expeller Pro are units that use natural bird sounds to distress or frighten pest birds such as pigeons, starlings, sparrows, gulls and others. The Critter Blaster Pro works on sounds that are obviously synthetic; to the human ear these sounds are easy to spot as man-made instead of natural.
Professionals have had great success repelling nuisance wildlife, including birds. In those rare instances when a Bird Expeller Pro or Super Pro failed to repel the targeted birds as they should, the Critter Blaster will work.
The Critter Blaster Pro does have one drawback to consider: the synthetic sounds (when used at high volume) can be quite irritating to humans. Take this into consideration when choosing and using this powerful unit.
When the situation calls for more aggressive sounds to scare and chase away birds or animals from a designated area, the sounds can be lessened a bit by varying the volume of the unit, lessening the frequency that sounds are emitted or by combining the aggressive (synthetic) sounds with softer audible sounds and ultrasonic sounds.
This is best achieved by using the Broad Band Pro sonic and ultrasonic repeller.

BroadBand Pro, BB Pro

Thanks to the requests of many customers and the technical know-how of the innovators at Bird-X, many sounds can now be used in rotation or in combinations that not only repel unwanted birds and animals but in such a manner as to satisfy the needs of humans and domestic animals in the area.
The BroadBand Pro is simply a unit that combines the tools of the QB-4, Ultrason X, Super Bird Expeller Pro and the Critter Blaster Pro. With this one unit you can use audible, natural bird sounds with aggressive, synthetic bird sounds, predator sounds and inaudible ultrasonic.
When this super unit was first introduced to the public it was marketed under the brand name Bill Board Pro (BB Pro). Many customers had requested a super expeller that could be used outdoors to repel large bird populations from road signs, marquees, cell phone towers and bill boards - thus the name "Bill Board Pro" was used.
As great as this new pest repeller worked, many people would not try it because they assumed it was designed only for use on bill boards. The unit is now called the BroadBand Pro (Broad Band Pro, BB Pro).
For the sake of simplification, we will refer to the unit as the BB Pro.

Bird Control

The following electronic pest repellers are recommended for controlling pest birds:
Bird Expeller Pro, Super Bird Expeller Pro, Critter Blaster Pro, BroadBand Pro

Animal Control

The following electronic pest repellers are recommended for controlling other animals from large areas:
Critter Blaster Pro, BroadBand Pro (BB Pro)