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Droppings and parasites
House martins droppings can be a problem, especially from a nest over a door or window. The simplest way to overcome this is to fix a shelf about 250 mm wide about two metres below the nest to catch droppings. Use key-hole brackets so you can remove the shelf for cleaning.
House martins have a number of parasites such as feather mites, in most cases harmless to them. These parasites do not affect people, but can be a nuisance if a nest is just above a window.
Parasites can be deterred from leaving the nest with pyrethrum on the outside of the nest: be careful not to get any in the nest hole.