SRSeedBurners Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 (edited) By the way, this is the 'Costco carport' which I detailed in the 'Costco Outdoor Aviary' thread. Step 1: complete - Setup the structure in various places and see if we like the placement. We bought two of these intending to set them end to end or side-by-side. They turned out to be a LOT larger than I anticipated sitting in our backyard. Although we live on two acres, the available spaces I have that I am comfortable with keeping my babies is limited, i.e. as close to the house as possible. We originally set it up next to the house inline with the covered back porch. We finally decided a pergola type aviary would be much better suited for that space. So we decided to knock down a corner of our immediate backyard fence and place it in the corner under a tree. We're pretty pleased with the location. Step 2: complete - Bury the concrete footings, square and level I assumed this would take a few hours. It took a whole damn day from 5:30am to around 6pm. I was beat. It's good that GreycieMae was available to sit in her supervisors quarters and assure that things are built to specs. Edited September 23, 2014 by SterlingSL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KimKim Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 This looks like it's going to be one awesome aviary! Looking forward to seeing the progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greywings Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 Looking good but do remember to wire or cement under the cage to avoid dig ins or outs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvparrots Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 Looking good. Can't wait to see the finished product!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRSeedBurners Posted August 25, 2014 Author Share Posted August 25, 2014 Looking good but do remember to wire or cement under the cage to avoid dig ins or outs. I'm planning to lay about a foot or two of wire on the ground surrounding the aviary just below the surface to keep any digger out. We're not too worried about the diggers as my dogs will be on patrol in the yard anytime my birds are out. They will kill anything foreign that dares set foot on the property. What I'm worried about is the hawks. Our dogs chase those too but of course can't fly. If anyone has any ideas about what to plant inside the aviary, shoot me some ideas. We're trying to figure out whether to go with playground chips, grass or something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inara Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 How wonderful this is going to be. And as for the time involved. My husband and I always figure 3x whatever we've originally estimated when it comes to "house hours." haha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KimKim Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 How about banana trees Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbersmom Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 Looking great! That reminds me of the formula we use at my house. Any time you are attempting a home project or repair of any type, make your best estimate of the time it will take. Multiply by 3. That will be the hours required. Works for us every time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffNOK Posted August 25, 2014 Share Posted August 25, 2014 Wow! You and Luvparrots are putting us all to shame with your 5-star aviaries. I don't dare let Grace see the luxury digs your fids will be enjoying soon. Good luck with finishing the construction. It looks great so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muse Posted August 26, 2014 Share Posted August 26, 2014 I'm planning to lay about a foot or two of wire on the ground surrounding the aviary just below the surface to keep any digger out. We're not too worried about the diggers as my dogs will be on patrol in the yard anytime my birds are out. They will kill anything foreign that dares set foot on the property. What I'm worried about is the hawks. Our dogs chase those too but of course can't fly. If anyone has any ideas about what to plant inside the aviary, shoot me some ideas. We're trying to figure out whether to go with playground chips, grass or something else. We are going with a bark-type mulch which is what Matt uses at Project Perry. He put down red wiggler worms, which live under the mulch and turns the mulch, I believe he said weekly, and the worms keep it very clean. You could always put two layers of wire cloth on the top, one over the supports and one under. If you get the wire mesh fine enough, a hawk can't reach through and if you have two layers, toes (and thus legs) won't be close to the outside for potential grabbing. I would recommend a safety cage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2birds Posted August 27, 2014 Share Posted August 27, 2014 What kind of wire are you using? I want to build one as well but can't seem to find the appropriate wire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRSeedBurners Posted August 27, 2014 Author Share Posted August 27, 2014 Using 14 gauge galvanized-after-weld (GAW) in 1"x2" mesh. I found a little farm store near me that could special order the 6ft x100ft roll I was looking for. I searched for a long time trying to find the wire. I can find it everywhere in 24 and 36 and some places even have 48 but finding it in 72" height was pretty hard. Had I not found the 6ft, I was going with the 3ft rolls and just hog ring them together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRSeedBurners Posted September 2, 2014 Author Share Posted September 2, 2014 Update 9/1/2014 - Labor for my Feathered Brats Day. Step 3: complete - Bring in dirt to level the base We found a pile of dirt at a local school less than 1 mile from the house. Talked to the foreman and he said we could have as much as we want. Even offered to load it with his loader operator. Saved me a ton of effort and time as all I had to do was unload it and level it which was and ALL DAY affair - requiring a few evening pain meds as my back became strained after 10 hours of working the Texas clay. This crap is nothing but bubble gum. Aviary Job foreman, GreycieMae, and her executive staff, Toby Toby and Rio Romeo. They're hoping this aviary project gets done post haste as they're tired of spending their out of doors time as seen here: My sweet wife helping with the first load before the 100 degree temps set in: Load number 2: Once we got the 3rd load unloaded, I spent four hours shoveling and leveling. Pictures seem to lie as their is several tons of dirt here and over half the aviary required 1.5-2.5 feet of fill to get the level I was looking for. This was a TON of work. Aviary was taken down to allow for the truck to get in and unload. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray P Posted September 2, 2014 Share Posted September 2, 2014 The things we are willing to do for our fids. Looking good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2birds Posted September 2, 2014 Share Posted September 2, 2014 Using 14 gauge galvanized-after-weld (GAW) in 1"x2" mesh. I found a little farm store near me that could special order the 6ft x100ft roll I was looking for. I searched for a long time trying to find the wire. I can find it everywhere in 24 and 36 and some places even have 48 but finding it in 72" height was pretty hard. Had I not found the 6ft, I was going with the 3ft rolls and just hog ring them together. I guess I will have to start asking around. I can't find it either. I've been looking online. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2birds Posted September 2, 2014 Share Posted September 2, 2014 Looking good. I'm right there with your feathered friends, can't wait to see it finished. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timbersmom Posted September 2, 2014 Share Posted September 2, 2014 Looking good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kins2321@yahoo.com Posted September 2, 2014 Share Posted September 2, 2014 What fantastic parrents you guys are! PARTY at your house with a sleepover!!!! Nancy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chezron Posted September 10, 2014 Share Posted September 10, 2014 Nice job! Looking excellent! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRSeedBurners Posted September 24, 2014 Author Share Posted September 24, 2014 Update 9/24/2014 - Step 4: complete - Wire the top and lift Another all day effort. I'm regretting using 14 gauge wire. If I had a helper it would be ok but by myself, it's a nightmare to maneuver and hold, stretch, j-clip and finally strap it to the beams. GreycieMae would have done just fine in 16 gauge wire and I'm sure it weighs about half. The wire is so stiff, I have to use a rubber mallet to pound it around bends. What a pain-in-the-buttfeathers. The roll we bought weighs around 300lbs. My wife did help me insert the legs while I lifted each side. I was going to have to use ladders to hold it otherwise...so that sped things up. Started to put the side wire on and realized my hose clamps are not big enough as the diameter of the legs are quite a bit bigger than the roof. Also what you can't see: I planted some winter rye and watered it real good. That should be coming up soon and the dirt patch will turn greeeeeeeeeennnnnnnn. GreycieMae is getting excited to move into her mansion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greytness Posted September 24, 2014 Share Posted September 24, 2014 Great work, Sterling! GreycieMae is going to love her new digs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M'sBabies Posted September 24, 2014 Share Posted September 24, 2014 Love it!! Nice and big. She is never going to want to come in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VStar Mama Posted September 24, 2014 Share Posted September 24, 2014 Although 16-gauge wire would probably have made your job easier and been more workable for a single laborer, isn't the thicker wire overall going to provide a safer aviary? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KimKim Posted September 24, 2014 Share Posted September 24, 2014 Wow, it looks awesome! I am going to do this when we upgrade our aviary. I just need to figure out where we can put it. How are you going to do the door? I didn't really get it when I read the site that you linked and got the idea from... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SRSeedBurners Posted September 24, 2014 Author Share Posted September 24, 2014 Although 16-gauge wire would probably have made your job easier and been more workable for a single laborer, isn't the thicker wire overall going to provide a safer aviary? If you have to deal with predators then yes. In our case, our dogs will be out when the birds are out. Unless a bear gets in the back yard, we're good. My dogs will take care of anything smaller. Also our biggest bird is GreycieMae and she's not really a type that will try and break the wire. We are going to also have to use a bird netting to keep the dang hawks from sitting on top and trying to reach in and grab. That's out biggest problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now