Bird poop is visually unappealing on skylights, and over time, it can even start to wear the skylights down. Luckily, there are ways to keep birds away from your skylights. Take a look at these ideas:

1. Trim your trees.

If you've got big branches hanging over your skylights, that gives birds a great place to perch before they poop on your skylights. Cure them of this habit by getting rid of overhanging tree branches. In addition to reducing poop on your skylights, this can also eliminate the chances of a tree branch falling on your roof in a storm.

2. Install bird spikes.

Bird spikes are strips of plastic spikes that you can fit around the edges of your skylight. They aren't designed to hurt birds, but they make the area inhospitable to them. As a result, birds won't be tempted to roost or perch near your skylights, helping to keep them clean.

3. Deter birds with sonar repellents.

There are sound-based bird repellents you can buy or even make your own. The store-bought ones typically feature sounds of bird predators played at intervals. In general, the sounds may play for a minute followed by a few minutes of silence.

If you don't want to buy one, consider recording bird predator sounds from a nature video and then playing them loudly as needed whenever you see birds near your skylight.

4. Hang a fake owl.

Fake predators also help to deter birds. You buy plastic owls and place them on your skylight. Alternatively, you can place toy snakes on your roof -- many birds are scared of them. If you're feeling crafty, consider making an old school scarecrow and popping him on your roof to frighten birds.

5. Use the light.

Birds get disoriented if light is bouncing around in their field of vision, and in general, they won't approach areas that have lots of wild lights. If you utilise light in the right ways, you can deter the birds from hanging out near your skylight.

To create a little item that will bounce light off of it, acquire some old CDs or DVDs. Tie a small piece of yarn through their centre holes. Then, attach the yarn to the eaves of your roof. They will turn in the wind, bounce off light and deter the birds. If you need special protection around the skylights, consider putting up little metallic windmills on your roof, such as the plastic ones people place in their gardens for decoration.

For more ideas on protecting your skylights from birds, talk with a skylight manufacturer, such as Skydome Skylights System Pty Ltd.