My finch enclosure build

[w.l.]

Nice size.
It could hold several pairs, especially if breeding is not a priority, but if you want to keep the live plants, I'd just put in 1 or 2 pairs.
The cordon bleus and firefinches would be my choices as they are small and have thin bills.
These species will also like the dense foliage for building their nest among it.

[InkMinx]

Yes they are my two favourites. Im not going for breeding so males only and I wont be putting nests in, so hopefully they wont think to rip bits of plants for nesting materials.

[Shannylee]

InkMinx, it's beautiful with all of the greenery. I rotate my aviary plants because not only do they get covered in poo but they are chewed to bits in short order too. I have canaries though and they will eat/chew on anything. Can't wait to see the pix once you introduce your birds!!

[GouldianGuy]

I think the fans are a wonderful idea, comfort and safety are important, but always a safety first.

I have ZERO financial interest in this company but they do have an interesting way of aiding ventilation in their acrylic cages:
https://www.customcages.com/accessories/venting.html

Seems like it will work?

[Paul's Amazing Birds]

Have to agree with the tactful advice from W.I. and others.
Nice piece of furniture and nice looking terrarium but not really an appropriate habitat for birds.

In a closed space you're dealing with temperature and fresh air issues
Plant wall will soon become shredded and soiled.
A plant wall needs a lot of water. Where does excess plant water go?
Water feature needs to be cleaned every day or two.
Interior glass will be hard to keep clean and fog free
Lights necessary for plants are to hot for birds feet.
Fans are noisy and enclosure will limit your appreciation of bird songs
How do you access the plant wall to water without letting the birds out?
Same question about water feature and interior glass cleaning.

Even in a much larger aviary birds will fling veggie pieces, bath water and poop just about everywhere. I have a 70" x 55" observation window that needs a good cleaning at least every week.

If you have the excess plant water issue under control, you might consider replacing both side walls with 1/2 inch welded wire painted black and adding two long narrow access doors for plant and water feature maintenance from both ends. A shallow plastic lined planter box planted with turf might be a good water catch basin for the plant wall. Your birds will love this type of "green feeder". Silo type seed feeders also work well and can be filled from the outside without disturbing the birds.


Best of luck with your project.
Paul

[InkMinx]

Hi Paul.

I think the plant wall is going to be a bit of an experiment with this one, if it ends up getting destroyed I will swap them out for artificial ones instead. The wall planted retains quite a lot of water so Im thinking I will need to water them once a week, the pull out drawer underneath is galvanised steel so any run off will collect there, although it was just a small amount after the first watering and I will probably put some sort of wood shavings in the bottom instead of paper so this will absorb any fluid.
The water feature I posted about on a separate post before purchasing, its made up of ceramic bowls that just sit on holders and are lifted off for filling/cleaning, I was thinking to empty and refill daily and fully clean down weekly.
No issue with glass fogging as the fans seem to circulate the air well and it receives no direct sunlight. The temperature probes read a steady 23degrees. The lights are being swapped out for less intrusive T5s on the advice of a hydroponics store the plants I opted for do not have great light requirements as they are mainly grasses and ferns and are non flowering.

The fans are barely audible but actually Im making a point of picking birds that are known for being quiet as its in my living room and my husband has said he doesn't want them to be noisy! Luckily the glass takes a lot of sound out anyway, can't hear the water feature either.

So food adding and bottom cleaning is done by pulling out the bottom drawer. Full cleaning I plan on doing by hanging a blanket over the whole font while sliding the doors open or off entirely to clean weekly, although I may well just let them out for a fly around the living room while I do this anyway. Mesh for front and back are not an option as it sits in an alcove with walls to the side and back.