Directions for Flight Made Using Wooden Screen Doors

debbyloo · Post by **debbyloo** » Sat Oct 04, 2008 1:13 pm

I am thinking about trying to make one of those flight cages where you use the wooden screen doors (like, 2 or 3 doors on each side and one at each end). Are there good directions somewhere about how to do that?

For those of you in the know about this, here are some specific questions I have:

1. How do you get the screen out of the wooden doors and and attach the hardware cloth? Does the h.w. cloth go in the same "slot" as the screen did, or do you attach it by sandwiching it in between the wooden frame and some kind of wooden trim? I would like to eliminate any ledges on the inside where seed and stuff can gather, so just wondered about how to do this.

2. If you paint the hardware cloth, does the paint stay on good or do you have ongoing problems with it clipping and flaking off, especially in wet areas around water dishes or places where you've attached perches? What kind of paint to use? What kind of prep to the hardware cloth first? Everyone says black is the color to use as you can see the birds best that way - is that right? Is unpainted just unacceptable for viewing the birds?

3. I would like to decrease/eliminate seeds and feathers flying out the bottom and see where some people use plexiglass (expensive) in the bottom panel areas for this. Could you use real glass siliconed into the bottom panel areas instead? It's cheaper and cleans up good. Just be careful not to break it! For bottom panels where you need to access the bottom of the cage, could you use 2 slightly overlapping pieces of glass (or plexi) and rout out a slot so they would be "sliding doors" for easy access? Does this sound do-able?

I am not mechanically minded at all, but was just trying to gather my thoughts about how to do this.

Thanks for any help or guidance!

atarasi · Post by **atarasi** » Sun Oct 05, 2008 12:43 am

Sounds expensive to use 5-7 wooden screen doors if you're just going to modify them. Sounds to me a lot easier and less expensive to just build a wooden frame.

Someone on here used plexiglass on the front. Looked really cool when he was done.

debbyloo · Post by **debbyloo** » Sun Oct 05, 2008 9:16 am

Wooden screen doors around here are available for around 20 dollars a piece. I figure I might need 6 total. It might sound "pricey" compared to just lumber, but since I am not a carpenter, joining screen doors together with fixed hinges or brackets or something sounds more like something I might be able to do as opposed to building something from scratch or paying someone else to do it.

I am thinking others on the forum have made flights this way and would love to find some directions for dummys on how to do it.

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Sun Oct 05, 2008 9:43 am

debbyloo

If you check out this link http://www.finchinfo.com/housing/panel_ ... uction.php
It should give some ideas

debbyloo · Post by **debbyloo** » Sun Oct 05, 2008 5:23 pm

Hey - thank you thank you thank you! I KNEW I had seen this information somewhere! Looks like something appropriate to my construction skill level!

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Sun Oct 05, 2008 6:07 pm

As long as your using this in the house and no animals are trying to bust thru the Plexiglas it can be real thin and still be strong enough for the finches check with home depot I have seen the real thin stuff can't remember exactly where right know I think the way they put the doors was great to get in to clean and whatever or catch a bird
Before you start make a plan then make another plan with everything you forgot on the fist plan