Must...build...aviary!!!(help w/ material choice)

subersibo · Post by **subersibo** » Wed Oct 29, 2008 3:29 am

Aargh! After weeks of looking at aviary pics, envying, daydreaming, and contemplating obsessively, I have finally decided that it's now or never! I have to build an aviary!

Anyway, I've been checking out Lowe's and Home Depot for building materials:

First of all, I'm planning to make it 6 x 2.5 x 6. I was thinking about having an acrylic front and a solid plywood back. The sides and top will be wire mesh. (the back and right side will be up against 2 walls.)

I found acrylic sheets (Lexan.I think) measuring 36"x72" at around $43 per sheet at Lowe's. It's the kind which is not so thick that you could bend it a little. If costs get out of hand, I'll just use mesh for the whole thing.

For wood, I was thinking about using 1"x2"x6' select pine or poplar for the frame (those were the least expensive I could find). Is it better to use 3-4" long nails to put the pieces of wood together or would screws be better? I wish there were some way of making it so that no screws or nails would be visible on the front.

I was thinking of using this material for the mesh: http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/sto ... =100384025

I'm just concentrating on the front of the aviary for now since I still can't decide on whether to use acrylic or just mesh. Thoughts anyone?[/b]

Kiko · Post by **Kiko** » Wed Oct 29, 2008 6:51 am

I will be interested to see the other replies, because I am getting ready to build my own flight cage.

Imho, screws are better than nails, because you can tighten them if need be, and take the aviary apart easier when the time comes. Nails can come loose unless you put some glue in as well.

I am using select pine for my flight cage, I think it will be fine. It is not holding any huge weight, and in my case will have a dark stain so the grain doesn't matter. Select maple was over 3x the cost of select pine.

There are a couple of people who used acrylic or glass and put stickers on it until the birds got used to it. I'm not sure how easy it would be to remove stickers from acrylic though!

I asked about using a plastic mesh and was informed that it warps if pulled on, so just to be aware of that when you are putting it on, to make sure it is straight.

debbyloo · Post by **debbyloo** » Wed Oct 29, 2008 8:05 am

I am making a flight cage too - the Martha Stewart canary cage to be exact. I plan to use 1/2" galvanized hexagonal wire mesh. I ordered a sample of it from Louis E. Page, Inc. (they have a website) to be sure the holes were not too big to allow my orange breasted waxbills to slip through. I think it will be fine. The holes are 1/2" in diameter (the spacing on my current cage bars) and a little longer in the other direction, but never more than 1/2" wide. So, since they can't get out between the bars now, I should be fine. I love the look of this material - it almost disappears (like a spiderweb) so should allow for great viewing. Plus, it will be easy to install - flexible, yet sturdy enough to install perches and such from. Check it out.

I thought about the clear acrylic stuff, but figured I would be forever cleaning stuff off of it.

mickp · Post by **mickp** » Wed Oct 29, 2008 7:40 pm

Debby it isnt the adults that you have to worry about, I have had fledgling orange breasts get through 10mm square wire.

screws are definitely better to use than nails. to make the front so that no nails/screws are visible you would need to use different joints in the timber for example dovetails or mortoise & tenon.

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Wed Oct 29, 2008 7:53 pm

subersibo
I think I would use the galv.hardware cloth as its stronger to hold perchs. Also I think it would stay tight with no sagging ,The link was somekind of netting right?
I think the pine would be fine as you will stain or paint I think,screwing it together I think would be best like someone said easier to take apart with out destroing it
The wire can be painted black which will make your birds look better.

Christopher Smith · Post by **Christopher Smith** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 12:20 am

I would strongly recommend that you NOT use the netting if your aviary is outside. It is far from predator proof. Anything on wings, four feet or two can get in too easily. Get the galvanized. It cost more but is worth it.

I would also go with screws for the reason already mentioned.

I could give more advice if I knew what types of birds you were going to keep.

fairestfinches · Post by **fairestfinches** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 12:54 am

We use the same plastic mesh on all of our flights, and prefer it to wire. Birds can get hung up in the wire or cut their feet on it. We had a couple of birds that had gotten toes caught and feet cut using the metal, and decided to try the plastic mesh. I use 2x3 pine for the frame, and wooden screen doors work well for the door. Just remove the screen and replace it with the plastic mesh. You can see a couple of walk in flights on our website to see how we do it.

http://www.fairestfinches.com/page/page/5139167.htm

I built a really nice aviary for Michele several years ago and used plexiglass on the front. It makes viewing the birds very nice. We would have a bird on occasion fly into the plexiglass, and fall rather abrubtly. We never had a bird get hurt, and I think it was because plexiglass does flex unlike glass.

Good luck on your build.

Sean

subersibo · Post by **subersibo** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 12:57 am

I went to Lowe's and purchased a drill/driver, 2 pieces of wood and a small sheet of acrylic to practice on. I don't wanna spend a lot of money and find out I won't be able to do this!
Weird thing is that the wood I bought was labeled 1"x2"x2' but when I measured it at home it was 1"x1/2"x2'. Anyway, I'm having difficulty screwing the pieces of wood together as the 3" long wood screws keep losing tread just as it's about to go through the first piece of wood!

More practice, I guess!

fairestfinches · Post by **fairestfinches** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 1:36 am

I use dry wall screws instead of "wood screws". "Wood" screws are usually soft pot type metal. Dry wall screws are made from steal and coated with lubricant to allow the srew to slide through drywall and wood. You may also want to predrill the holes so the wood does not split when you run the screw in, since you are using small or narrow pieces. You deffinately need to pre drill the plexiglass or it will most likely crack.

Cliff Claven factoid: wood is measured nominally because it is a ntural material and may shrink a bit more when drying over time even if it is kiln dryed wood, and is always 1/4" narrower than the stated measurement. i.e. 2"x4" is actually 1 3/4"x 3 3/4"

Sean

subersibo · Post by **subersibo** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 5:20 am

Sean, thanks for all the helpful info! Your aviary was one of the aviaries I've been checking out (I think I must've checked out most if not all of the aviaries posted on the web!)

Yes, I must buy a drill bit to make the screw go through without too much difficulty. I already wore out the treads on 3 screws. Screwing the plexiglas to the wood went much smoother.
I had to do some adjustments on design based on the thickness of the wood and budget, I wouldn't want to cut the acrylic sheets since they cost so much.
I redesigned my flight to be 6 ft long, about 3 ft plus high, and 2 ft deep. If all goes well I'll construct another one and place it on top of the first. Not really an aviary now but a long flight cage.

subersibo · Post by **subersibo** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 5:21 am

Sean, thanks for all the helpful info! Your aviary was one of the aviaries I've been checking out (I think I must've checked out most if not all of the aviaries posted on the web!)
Yes, I must buy a drill bit to make the screw go through without too much difficulty. I already wore out the treads on 3 screws. Screwing the plexiglas to the wood went much smoother.
I had to do some adjustments on design based on the thickness of the wood and budget, I wouldn't want to cut the acrylic sheets since they cost so much.
I redesigned my flight to be 6 ft long, about 3 ft plus high, and 2 ft deep. If all goes well I'll construct another one and place it on top of the first. Not really an aviary now but a long flight cage.

dfcauley · Post by **dfcauley** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 7:13 am

I love the plastic mesh also. We had a screen door entering our walk in aviary and took all the screen out and put the plastic black mesh in place of it.
My birds had not gotten hung up in it (yet) but I noticed they had begun landing on it. I really like it much more now that it is mesh. I can't see through it as well, but....... it is safer for my birds.

Christopher Smith · Post by **Christopher Smith** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 6:16 pm

To those that use plastic mesh. Are your flights indoor or outdoor?

dfcauley · Post by **dfcauley** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 6:33 pm

Christopher Smith wrote:To those that use plastic mesh. Are your flights indoor or outdoor?

Mine is indoor.

mickp · Post by **mickp** » Thu Oct 30, 2008 11:20 pm

you may need to use different guage screws for different areas of your cage. by guage I mean the thickness of the screw. it would also be easier to use a phillips head screw than the plain old slot type, the phillips head ( star/cross shape) has less chance of being damaged when used, the slotted type will round out a lot easier.