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Keeping birds safe from fumes

RebeccaZM

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Hi everyone!
We had a small sewage leak in our basement and will have to replace roughly 84 square feet of carpet in two narrow hallways. They will use a ‘supposedly’ bio-safe disinfectant that has a less than 1% VOC on the floor once the carpet is removed. We are going to ask if they can air out the carpet for a few days before installing.

I know that new carpet is extremely dangerous for birds and my cockatiel Obi and conure Binxy are always on the second floor, away from the basement. Binxy is new and his quarantine from Obi will be over in a few days and I’m going to board them at their avian vet overnight to do our seasonal furnace/fireplace burn off. Looks like we’ll be extending their visit a bit.

Any ideas on how long they will need to be out of the house? I know some sources say if it’s an area your bird frequents they should be out for 4-6 weeks minimum. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
 

Kiwi's Dad

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Since your birds don’t visit it frequently I think 2 weeks should be fine. @iamwhoiam had carpets installed maybe he knows.
 

Shezbug

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You will want to keep your birds out of any area the fumes from the new carpet can get to- if you can smell new carpet at all then it’s still off gassing and therefore dangerous. Same goes for all new furniture.

No one can tell you exactly how long it will take as it’s going to be a different timeframe in each different situation- brands and environment for each scenario will alter the off gassing time needed.

If you can open windows and run fans and air purifiers the timeframe should be lessened.
 

Shannan

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One thing you may consider if you can and have the means is to buy the carpet ahead of time and have it "off gas" in a different location. Maybe you have a garage (or accesss to a garage or someone's basement who does not have birds. That way it will have a couple of weeks to off gas Not in your house. This may reduce the time that your birds must be away.
You will need to unroll it. Other options include asking the carpet store for a roll that has sat in their warehouse for a couple of weeks instead of the new shipment that just arrived.
 

Shannan

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One thing you may consider if you can and have the means is to buy the carpet ahead of time and have it "off gas" in a different location. Maybe you have a garage (or accesss to a garage or someone's basement who does not have birds. That way it will have a couple of weeks to off gas Not in your house. This may reduce the time that your birds must be away.
You will need to unroll it. Other options include asking the carpet store for a roll that has sat in their warehouse for a couple of weeks instead of the new shipment that just arrived.
Maybe I should read more carefully before I reply.... you already planned this!!!!
 

iamwhoiam

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Since your birds don’t visit it frequently I think 2 weeks should be fine. @iamwhoiam had carpets installed maybe he knows.
My birds weren't here when the carpeting was installed. If I remember correctly (it was a long time ago) they were gone for 2 weeks.
Open windows, run air purifiers and then go with your gut regarding how long they have to be out of the house but
I would say a minimum of 2 weeks.
 
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