Hey,

I want to build a new aviary for my birds.

Can people help me out with the sizes and shapes and so on?

thanks

There will be many readers who are newcomers to the hobby and who are contemplating the construction of an aviary to suit their needs. Most inexperienced fanciers select a corner of their land to build their proposed aviary, putting their own personal ideas before that of their stock. The purpose of this article is to elaborate on the pitfalls that one can encounter and simultaneously to give every fancier the opportunity to build a professional aviary that suits both the owner and his birds.

 

THE MODEL AVIARY

Some years ago, Cyril Saunders who lived in Cheam, Surrey, U.K. decided to build such an establishment. He went to considerable efforts to learn all he could about aviary construction and with the help of a close friend, build, what we consider is the Model Aviary for the average budgerigar fancier. Measuring only 18 feet by 14 feet (5.4 m by 4.3 m) and taking up a total area of just over 250 square feet (23 sq. metres) this aviary can be sited in most gardens and can be orientated correctly to benefit the stock when it comes to the breeding season.

 

TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING ACT

In the United Kingdom we are governed by a Town and Country Planning Act. Other countries will have similar Acts, which the Local Councils implement. In Britain, owners of freehold property are strongly advised to approach their Local Authority if they are contemplating the erection of a structure such as we are describing. It is essential, to protect yourself against the bureaucratic attitude of the odd official, that you request them to examine the Act which is in order at that moment in time. Some Authorities seem to "feel" you must comply with Planning and Building Regulations whereas the Act, currently in operation, states clearly that the keeping of birds does not require Planning Permission as it is within the permitted use classes of the General Development Order, ancillary to the enjoyment of the dwelling house. Building Regulations are obligatory, but are very easy to comply with. The principal requirements concern the siting of the aviary relative to your plot boundary and that you ensure you have a half an hour fire resistant lining to the aviary. Should you site the aviary right on your boundary line, the rear of the structure will have to be asbestolux or the equivalent. If it is sited away from the boundary line the Local Authority will permit a wooden exterior all round, subject to the areas of the rear face and ends. These areas stipulate the proximity of the aviary to the land lines when the use of wood is desired.

 

A COSY AVIARY

The "Saunders" Aviary was build in 1974. It is constructed of wood and thermalite (breeze) blocks. It is so designed that it is compact, easily maintained, can house up to 220 birds and is totally vermin proof. Lastly it is very cosy, which not all aviaries are by any means. A cosy aviary means the fancier is induced to do his entire bird husbandry properly instead of a quick dash round the stock once a day.

 

The accompanying drawings and photograph speak for themselves. Should you wish to make a larger aviary then there is no problem to scale up the extra size and increase the illustrated fifteen breeding cages to the number you require. The main features of this particular unit are the ease with which it is cleaned. Every part of the aviary, in the interior section, which is exposed to the birds themselves, has been Formica covered. No destructive chewing by the birds is possible, with the exception, of course, of the perches and the interior nest boxes.

 

The aspect of the aviary is all important. It is generally felt that if it can be arranged to face south or west, these aspects are preferable to those, which are obliged to face north and east. On the other hand, do be careful not to have large windows - it is very easy to create a "greenhouse" by doing so, which is not desirable in the summer months.

 

Obviously there is no substitute for a concrete base for the main birdroom. If this can be arranged it is vermin proof and if a thin screed of finer concrete is laid over the main layer, this will be perfect on which to lay floor tiles. In the case of Cyril Saunders, he elected to mount his main room on to brick piers and lay very heavy floor timbers across them. The resulting gap underneath could be a vermin trap, so these gaps are protected with heavy duty wire mesh cemented into the ground, the cement having had ground glass mixed in with it beforehand.

 

VENTILATION IS VITAL

Ventilation is vital in a birdroom otherwise diseases can be a problem. In general there should be ventilation apertures placed low on the rear face of the birdroom and complementary ones placed high on the front face. This allows a displacement of foul air throughout the room. You can also include louvre windows, such as those in the Saunders aviary. "These have been well worth initial expense since I can control all the extremes of temperature quite easily", said Cyril. He has also included an extractor fan which he finds essential to put in use when "cleaning out" is in progress. As a chest sufferer, the created feather dust can be devastating to him. His particular unit is placed in the roof of the aviary with the control unit nearby. Do remember however, these extractors take out the heat as well as the dusty air.

 

One might ask, does the Saunders aviary lack anything at all? The answer is yes, it does. Most definitely it lacks a water supply, a sink and drainage board and a suitable soakaway. This could easily be fitted into this scheme, sacrificing one of the seed bins. Today, however much it costs initially, the expense of fitting a sink, etc. would always be appreciated. Water is on hand and your utensils can always be washed on site, instead of in the house kitchen. Do remember your pipes have to be laid below the frost level at a depth of 18 inches. This is a requirement by most Water Authorities.

 

ELECTRICITY A MUST

A source of electricity is of course a must. This had to operate not only the artificial lighting, but the various appliances associated with the hobby. These will include dimmer units, black tubular heating, an incubator perhaps, a winnowing machine, a hospital cage or an infra red lamp(s) and so on. You must install a mains fuse box in the aviary from which your power and lighting wires emanate. Extra refinements can include an intercom between the aviary and the house, just to speak to your spouse occasionally, and a telephone.

 

It is not the purpose of this article to give you the step by step building of the aviary and cages. It is designed to put ideas into your mind which you now know suit both you and your expensive stock. Given this "Saunders" aviary, you are more than halfway down the road to success. Budgerigars will breed very successfully in such an establishment and once this heavy initial outlay has been passed, you can undoubtedly begin to enjoy the hobby to its fullest capacity.

I think you would, like an electric tube heater or something.

Well, thats what I do.

i heat my aviary with a oil filled radiator run of the electric, the electric to the heater has a thermostat inline with it so it turns the electric on and off depending on the temp i set it,so i dont have to rely on the thermostat on the radiator as these are quite hard to set on the rite temp.my heating goes on in november around may as i start to breed late november

ive got a digital control panel inside, and its fully automatic and so on.

Just set, and forget!

Is electricity or any heating appliances neccessary? Or can you go without it?

And if it is needed, do you really need all the fancy lighting?

with show birds in the uk you start to breed in the winter i like to keep the temp around 5 to 10 degrees the light is to give them 12 hours of light to help bring them into condition so yes i do need the fancy lighting and heat but if you have a outside avairy for pet birds then no i keep some at my dads and they have no light or heat but they dont breed

ELECTRICITY A MUSTA source of electricity is of course a must. This had to operate not only the artificial lighting, but the various appliances associated with the hobby. These will include dimmer units, black tubular heating, an incubator perhaps, a winnowing machine, a hospital cage or an infra red lamp(s) and so on. You must install a mains fuse box in the aviary from which your power and lighting wires emanate. Extra refinements can include an intercom between the aviary and the house, just to speak to your spouse occasionally, and a telephone.

How many people have electricity connected to there aviary? I plan on doing it but just wondering about everyone else... And a phone?? Now that is a luxury aviary...

There will be many readers who are newcomers to the hobby and who are contemplating the construction of an aviary to suit their needs. Most inexperienced fanciers select a corner of their land to build their proposed aviary, putting their own personal ideas before that of their stock. The purpose of this article is to elaborate on the pitfalls that one can encounter and simultaneously to give every fancier the opportunity to build a professional aviary that suits both the owner and his birds.THE MODEL AVIARYSome years ago, Cyril Saunders who lived in Cheam, Surrey, U.K. decided to build such an establishment. He went to considerable efforts to learn all he could about aviary construction and with the help of a close friend, build, what we consider is the Model Aviary for the average budgerigar fancier. Measuring only 18 feet by 14 feet (5.4 m by 4.3 m) and taking up a total area of just over 250 square feet (23 sq. metres) this aviary can be sited in most gardens and can be orientated correctly to benefit the stock when it comes to the breeding season.TOWN AND COUNTRY PLANNING ACTIn the United Kingdom we are governed by a Town and Country Planning Act. Other countries will have similar Acts, which the Local Councils implement. In Britain, owners of freehold property are strongly advised to approach their Local Authority if they are contemplating the erection of a structure such as we are describing. It is essential, to protect yourself against the bureaucratic attitude of the odd official, that you request them to examine the Act which is in order at that moment in time. Some Authorities seem to "feel" you must comply with Planning and Building Regulations whereas the Act, currently in operation, states clearly that the keeping of birds does not require Planning Permission as it is within the permitted use classes of the General Development Order, ancillary to the enjoyment of the dwelling house. Building Regulations are obligatory, but are very easy to comply with. The principal requirements concern the siting of the aviary relative to your plot boundary and that you ensure you have a half an hour fire resistant lining to the aviary. Should you site the aviary right on your boundary line, the rear of the structure will have to be asbestolux or the equivalent. If it is sited away from the boundary line the Local Authority will permit a wooden exterior all round, subject to the areas of the rear face and ends. These areas stipulate the proximity of the aviary to the land lines when the use of wood is desired.A COSY AVIARYThe "Saunders" Aviary was build in 1974. It is constructed of wood and thermalite (breeze) blocks. It is so designed that it is compact, easily maintained, can house up to 220 birds and is totally vermin proof. Lastly it is very cosy, which not all aviaries are by any means. A cosy aviary means the fancier is induced to do his entire bird husbandry properly instead of a quick dash round the stock once a day.The accompanying drawings and photograph speak for themselves. Should you wish to make a larger aviary then there is no problem to scale up the extra size and increase the illustrated fifteen breeding cages to the number you require. The main features of this particular unit are the ease with which it is cleaned. Every part of the aviary, in the interior section, which is exposed to the birds themselves, has been Formica covered. No destructive chewing by the birds is possible, with the exception, of course, of the perches and the interior nest boxes.The aspect of the aviary is all important. It is generally felt that if it can be arranged to face south or west, these aspects are preferable to those, which are obliged to face north and east. On the other hand, do be careful not to have large windows - it is very easy to create a "greenhouse" by doing so, which is not desirable in the summer months.Obviously there is no substitute for a concrete base for the main birdroom. If this can be arranged it is vermin proof and if a thin screed of finer concrete is laid over the main layer, this will be perfect on which to lay floor tiles. In the case of Cyril Saunders, he elected to mount his main room on to brick piers and lay very heavy floor timbers across them. The resulting gap underneath could be a vermin trap, so these gaps are protected with heavy duty wire mesh cemented into the ground, the cement having had ground glass mixed in with it beforehand.VENTILATION IS VITALVentilation is vital in a birdroom otherwise diseases can be a problem. In general there should be ventilation apertures placed low on the rear face of the birdroom and complementary ones placed high on the front face. This allows a displacement of foul air throughout the room. You can also include louvre windows, such as those in the Saunders aviary. "These have been well worth initial expense since I can control all the extremes of temperature quite easily", said Cyril. He has also included an extractor fan which he finds essential to put in use when "cleaning out" is in progress. As a chest sufferer, the created feather dust can be devastating to him. His particular unit is placed in the roof of the aviary with the control unit nearby. Do remember however, these extractors take out the heat as well as the dusty air.One might ask, does the Saunders aviary lack anything at all? The answer is yes, it does. Most definitely it lacks a water supply, a sink and drainage board and a suitable soakaway. This could easily be fitted into this scheme, sacrificing one of the seed bins. Today, however much it costs initially, the expense of fitting a sink, etc. would always be appreciated. Water is on hand and your utensils can always be washed on site, instead of in the house kitchen. Do remember your pipes have to be laid below the frost level at a depth of 18 inches. This is a requirement by most Water Authorities.ELECTRICITY A MUSTA source of electricity is of course a must. This had to operate not only the artificial lighting, but the various appliances associated with the hobby. These will include dimmer units, black tubular heating, an incubator perhaps, a winnowing machine, a hospital cage or an infra red lamp(s) and so on. You must install a mains fuse box in the aviary from which your power and lighting wires emanate. Extra refinements can include an intercom between the aviary and the house, just to speak to your spouse occasionally, and a telephone.It is not the purpose of this article to give you the step by step building of the aviary and cages. It is designed to put ideas into your mind which you now know suit both you and your expensive stock. Given this "Saunders" aviary, you are more than halfway down the road to success. Budgerigars will breed very successfully in such an establishment and once this heavy initial outlay has been passed, you can undoubtedly begin to enjoy the hobby to its fullest capacity. :fear

My budgie aviary is inside my garage so I suppose that I do have but my outside aviaries don't. I reckon this was written in the days before every house had a cordless phone, my cordless goes everywhere with me

Edited December 11, 200816 yr by Neat

Hey Adam .... remember this one.... ;)I have electricity in my aviary, what I would like is running water.

Edited December 11, 200816 yr by Neat

haha I know Adam was quite a chatterbox on the forum back in the day... Now he's to busy in the office :hap: