Oregon outdoor aviary?

[Maddie]

Hello!
I have a custom-built aviary from KW Wingz that should be here on Wednesday. It's 5'x6'x6' and has a roof and solid wall on one side to keep out wind/rain, etc. I live in Oregon (near Portland) and I've been wracking my brain trying to figure out an effective and aesthetically-pleasing way of keeping my birds warm. I currently keep societies, who have no problems from May-October outside, but I've moved them inside for winter in the past. I'd like to keep them outside year-round from now on, though.

I've considered making a "heat box" or two, which would be a little (2'x2'x1' ?) box that would have a thermostat to keep it regulated and a hole or two for the birds to get in and out. I'd keep perches inside and some food and water, so they wouldn't be forced to go out. Would this work, or would it be too small of a space for too many birds? Would they spend all of their time inside the heat boxes? Would the transition between heat and cold be too drastic and hurt them?

Thanks for any advice you can give me! I've been stressing about this for a while.
-Maddie

[Asym]

You can buy clear pliable plastic from a plastics store and wrap your aviary.. That's what I do. It doesn't get as cold down here as in Portland. My aviary is very large but I just have one heat lamp in a protected area where the birds can hang out if they want. I wrap mine twice , in strips up and down then once all the way around. Part of the roof is open and part is a real roof with shingles. I'm mostly concerned about keeping wind out. I usually wrap Oct to Mar or Apr down here and I keep the heat lamp on all the time except in the super hot summer months.

I would think that a wrap and a couple of heat lamps should keep the temp inside elevated even up there.

[DanteD716]

I'm not sure how cold it gets there but if you can get a few hear lamps like Ali suggested I'm sure they'll be fine. But then again it depends on the weather. I have no idea how it is there but i get tons of snow and below freezing

[Tolly_Paikea]

I'm in Portland too. I know someone who keeps birds out all winter. In the winter he blocks out as much wind as possible and has a couple of heat lamps as well. He also has a 2'x2'x4' wooden box with perches and food/water and a 1'x1' square opening off to one side(he positioned it in such a way that there's no wind getting in), there's also another heatlamp at the far end of the box, there are some vent holes in the box so it does not over heat.

[Maddie]

Tolly_Paikea, does he have his aviary wrapped like Asym suggested, or is the heating enough?

[Tolly_Paikea]

well he's blocked out the wind so it must be wrapped

[Rox]

I use clear plastic in winter to close off the aviary from drafts. You can then add heat lamps for extra warmth. You also get those clear corrugated sheets which work well.

The best approach would be to wait for summer to arrive your side and then introduce them to living outside once the weather has warmed up. I wouldn't recommend moving them outside going into winter.

[isobea]

Hi Maddie, I have a relatively large aviary (compared to yours) that is 16' x 6' x 5'. Even though we live in a very mild climate, I use plexiglass panels in the wintertime to keep the rain and wind out. My aviary has a framework of wooden 2x4s and 4x4s. I had the panels cut to fit the different sections and use little clips (usually used to hang mirrors) on the top and bottom as guides. They stay in place all year long and when the weather turns bad all I have to do is slide the panels in.
I'm not sure if this will be helpful to you as I don't know if your frame is out of metal. But even then I would think you could drill small holes into the frame to attach the clips.
Good luck and keep us updated on what you decide to do.
Iso