Does anyone know if exposed two by fours on the ceiling are acceptable? How about exposed four by four posts in the corners? Any ideas on vertical bar spacing? The regulations say spaced smaller the the birds chest which is not clear to me. I live in Washington State.
Well Mike I would suggest getting in contact with whom ever will be doing inspections. Here in BC. I was given the same guidelines so I space my bars 2 1/2 inches appart. Apon inspection the wildlife office then said that due to the fact my permits allow me to posses birds as small as male kestrals that my bars should be no more than 1 1/2 inches appart and so I had to insert extra bars. As for exposed 2X4 and 4X4 s mine are exposed and have no problems but again who's doing the inspecting I was fortunet inthat for the most part my inspector relide on me to logically explane to her why it was built the way it was. ( she had never actually inspected a mew before). Chris Foster
Post by wingover001 on Jan 3, 2004 21:01:02 GMT -5
in the state of wisconsin the spacing on the bars of a window have to be small enough that the bird cannot get its head through...sounds pretty logical to me.
I love the sound of screamin' bunnies in the morning...sounds like victory!!!! -me-
Ah wingover the size is still based on the size of the bird and speciese will very the space of the bar. Though i say again I'm not famillar with what the apprenticiship requirements I've heard that in the States you have to start with a passage red tail. This would put spacing of your bars around 1 1\4 inches, but what if you put up 1\4 mess does this allow you to space your bars farther apart? Here no this is because the British Columbian government thinks that this will cause feather damage yet a rehab center requires no vertical bars at all. In reality bar spacing depends on how much respect your bird has for the bariers infront of it. Even where you are you state that state policy is based on the size of a birds head. What happens if you space for a hen and chatch a male? Yes I can be an ass and I'm trying to be, because the gorverning body sets us up to fail. they say guess one and we can change the peramitters later. Thinking of the government not your remark because your right sounds logical but then when has the gorvernment ever used logic in anything they do. If your local government does then you are one of the lucky ones. Good flying and good health to your birds. Chris Foster PS. It's -20 F here and I've been stewing inside all day sorry if I offended anyone.
Mike, I found this site about Squirrel Hawking with Red Tails and he has some photos and plans. He has a note on the photo of the bars that says "Bars should be spaced 1-1/2" to 2" apart, any closer is dangerous to buteos and parabuteos." Don't know why closer would be any more dangerous than farther apart?
Inspected my new Mew this summer,Passed with flying colors, with exposed 2x4 and 1 1/2 in spacing, BUT that was my inspector here, in Louisiana, He did say before the inspection to be shore to double check for expose objects inside - nails- slivers-wire, good common sense went a long way for me, Here in the States we're alouded R/T's , Kerstels,or Red shoulded hawks as an apprentince, Happy Hunting
When I built my mew for a passage red tail I used 3/4 galvanized pipes and drilled my holes on 1 and 1/2 in centers, the final result was, I had 1" from the edge of one bar to the next. The reasoning for using the round piping was to insure that the bars would turn so the hawk could not grab and cling to them. Now if you are using different size dows, or other materials then of course your spacing could vary. I like using metal dows verses wood because they don't splinter when the hawk grabs at them. Hope this is helpful.
Post by kevin clements on Jan 4, 2004 16:49:10 GMT -5
I used exposed 4x4's in the corners and 2x6's turned flat ways as studs and had no problems, also in washington. I used 1/2" conduit, which is 5/8" OD for window bars, but spacing was a problem. One window is on 2" centers, for 1 3/8" in the clear, the other is on 1 1/2" centers for 7/8" in the clear. Both passed inspection, both were fine for the female kestrel I had last year. The problem came with my lovely new male Kestrel I trapped in november. I free lofted him as soon as he was tame enough, and the first afternoon he escaped through the 1 3/8" space in that window. Just enough difference in body size between male and female to allow that.
Hi guys kevin's statment helps support what i said the other day. Spacing of vertical dowel vary so much from bird to bird that the guide lines put out from the government are to vage. In my case I also put up a 3/4 inch wire mesh on the out side of the mew to help prevent mink and weasels from climbing in threw the windows. Chris Foster
I place my bars 1 3/4 " apart this will work for everything but a sharpie and kestrel. EMT works really great. My last mew had exposed 4x4's in the corners and it didn't bother anything. If your concerned about it though home depot has this great stuff called hard board it's like pegboard only without the holes. it's smooth and light and easy to put up. It also makes for easy cleaning! I recently put this on the walls of my mew and it's working great.
I was just reading some of these old posts and was just going to give ya'll an idea for a covering on the mew walls. If you collect all the plastic voting signs around town at the next election this lightweight Coroplast is super easy to clean. I know several falconers that even make their giant hood out of it. you can tack it to the walls of the mew to make things easy to clean and maintain.
Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines "Give a man a fish, and you'll feed him for a day; give him a religion................ and he'll starve to death while praying for a fish."
I think I need mews to pass inspection up here. How can I build it cheap? I was thinking plywood and screws with a sloping roof with tar paper.. Why does the window need to be facing south? I would put bars 3/4 in. apart and then double layers of chicken wire(for the coons). Also maybe a board to cover up the window when it rains? Would this pass inspection? Also where can I get this stuff CHEAP?
I think I need mews to pass inspection up here. How can I build it cheap? I was thinking plywood and screws with a sloping roof with tar paper.. Why does the window need to be facing south? I would put bars 3/4 in. apart and then double layers of chicken wire(for the coons). Also maybe a board to cover up the window when it rains? Would this pass inspection? Also where can I get this stuff CHEAP?
Try this go to the scrap Iron works most towns have one look in the phone book first. You will find metel conduit and while you're there see if you can find a grounding rod. It helps to know what the retail prices of things are before you go so you can hagle the price. A flea market can yeild doors paint some wood shingles etc. Check your local lumber yard for the damaged lumber pile, It may have a twist but if you know how to work with it nobody will even notice once It's cut in place and painted. I did not paint the interior of my mews but if you find something safe make sure you let the paint cure a few days before you put your partner inside it.
What exactly is coroplast? I'm in the process of hanging a slick, rigid, pressed masonite-like, 1/16", solid white panelling in my mews. I think it's more the type that's used in shower stalls. It's very easy to clean... Just hose it down and spray your disinfectant. The sanitation control alone makes it well worth the work. Is this the same stuff you're talking about, Noel? If it is, I never thought about the political sign thing, and since i'm paying @ $10 a sheet for this stuff i'd love to find a more economical way of doing it. The added benefit is that bating hawks have less of a chance of snagging a toe or breaking a feather when the studs are covered... At least, that's McDermott's opinion. I have been tacking the panels to the walls, but recently i tried using contact cement. It's so much easier, faster and seems to hold just as well. I'm taping the seams with a white plastic tape to avoid potential snags and for aesthetic reasons. Mind you, with my back in the shape it is, I'm hanging 1 or 2 sheets a month. My estimated time of completion is August, 2008.