• Welcome to Avian Avenue! To view our forum with less advertisments please register with us.
    Memberships are free and it will just take a moment. Click here

home made natural perches

lil neet

Moving in
Joined
6/20/22
Messages
11
Real Name
Anita
Hi all,
i'm wanting to make some home made natural perches from branches I've found outside. I live in Australia and worried about Psittacine beak and feather disease.
Some people mentioned to me using F10 to ?soak or spray them. Does anyone have experience in this method? I was planning on cutting low branches after rains (which we conveniently have now), washing them in warm water, then spraying heavily with F10 and letting dry in sun.
Any tips greatly appreciated :)
 

flyzipper

Rollerblading along the road
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
9/28/20
Messages
2,591
Location
Canada
Real Name
Steve
I went through a similar process but sundried them, then wire brush to remove obvious things like moss, then pressure wash, dry, F10, dry. F10 dry.

Depending on the size of branch, some people will bake them (which would be my preference if my branches would fit).

I haven't found anyone locally who is willing to kiln dry them, but I would also pursue that if I could (perhaps overkill).
 

Mizzely

Lil Monsters Bird Toys
Super Moderator
Vendor
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avenue Concierge
Joined
8/9/11
Messages
39,964
Location
Northern Mitten Michigan
Real Name
Shawna [she/her]
My method might be overkill but since I sell them, I want to be sure they are as safe as I can make them for my customers.

I use a wire brush to get up any dirt, lichen, grime, etc, then I wash in a bit of warm soapy water (Blue Dawn). This helps give you a "clean" surface.

I rinse, then soak in 1:250 dilution of F10 Disinfectant for about an hour. This sanitizes, kills mold spores, and drowns any buggies.

Another rinse.

I then bake in the oven at 250F or 2 to 4 hours. Thin wood won't need the full 4 hours; thicker pieces could be longer. This dries out the wood, and kills anything the disinfect may have missed (eggs, for instance).

If baking isn't an option, leaving them in the sun somewhere they will not be accessible by wildlife should work but may be slower. I would do another spray down of F10 though if leaving outside at all just in case it picks up some buggies; they should surface dry in your home just fine.
 

lil neet

Moving in
Joined
6/20/22
Messages
11
Real Name
Anita
thanks everyone! I think I'll also do the oven bake as well after F10 to be sure. And in Australia the never ending rain period we're having means the sun is barely out these days :banghead:
 
Top