Shooing Woody Woodpecker

To the real estate editor: I sympathize with the woman whose house was riddled by woodpeckers (''Ask a Builder'' column for Oct. 9). Here are some measures that have worked for me the past three years:

* Hang shiny aluminum plates (any size) on strings from the windows.

* ) Hang dry-cleaning plastic bags from the windows so they flap in the breeze.

* Hang suet in a mesh onion bag from a bird feeder all year round. If you use suet, there are rewards when the downy woodpeckers bring their young to feed in the summer.

My present challenge is an old tar-and-gravel roof.

I love your delightful column, both the information and the delicious humor. Mrs. Claire K. Jones Weston, Mass.