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Safe Apartment Living and Moving

GeezLouise

Meeting neighbors
Joined
4/1/19
Messages
47
Location
Southern Wyoming
I'm moving two hours drive away to my first apartment in one month. My nerves about concerns I'm not even sure are justified are through the roof :depressed:
I'm well aware of everything that goes into bird-proofing a home, but are there any new concerns that comes with being in an apartment building? Something that keeps replaying in my mind is if there's a shared vent situation within my building, a neighbor could be cooking with Teflon, and somehow it gets into my bird room. Is that even possible? :confused:
Who's out there successfully living in an apartment with their parrot?
 

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
Congratulations on the first apartment!

It's been a while since I lived in an apartment, but my last two places were condos, so close enough.

I can't answer the HVAC shared vent question, as that will depend on the building. If it's a purpose-built apartment/condo building, chances are each unit has a separate duct system. If it's originally a house that was converted into apartments, then it's more likely there's a shared central HVAC system with ducts. Of course, if your unit has radiators or a ductless heatpump, then there are no ducts at all. Leakage of smells between units will depend on how well sealed the units are, but it's also a pressure issue (air flows from high pressure areas to low pressure areas -- picture what happens to a balloon, the higher pressure in the balloon exits to the lower pressure surrounding atmosphere). Some buildings purposely design their common area system with that in mind and will pressurize the hallways (blow air into them), to contain smells in each unit. There may be no such common area ventilation system, in which case pressure differences between each unit will determine where air flows (the dynamic between closed/open windows and externally-vented exhaust fans at a given point in time will dictate this). So... smells from other units... it depends.

Other aspects of apartment living to think about:
  • Noise -- not only how loud your birds are, but what noises can they hear that they'll need to eventually get used to.
  • Entry into your unit -- there will be rules that allow your superintendent, trades people, etc, to enter your unit to perform work or inspections. There may be stipulations regarding how much notice will be given, and there are also provisions that they can enter for emergency purposes (leaks, for example). Either way, strangers will enter your unit and that always annoyed me since my birds were always out of their cages on normal days. This was manageable with notice because I could arrange to be there, or if I wasn't they would be in their cages. Still I was never a fan of strangers entering my home.
  • Double doors on the exits -- I liked the feature of having a door to my unit, and then another door or two to get to the outside (less worry about birds flying out my front door door).
  • Single door on the balcony or patio (if you have one) -- I have a friend who lost his bird on a very windy day when his balcony door swung open after not being properly secured. A bird that can fly indoors doesn't fare well when it suddenly ends up outside 9 stories up during a very windy day.
All that said, I lived in a condo successfully with 2 of my birds and it all worked out.

You're walking into some unknowns even without birds, so be patient with yourself as you learn things that will eventually become normal (try not to worry, you can handle it)
 

GeezLouise

Meeting neighbors
Joined
4/1/19
Messages
47
Location
Southern Wyoming
Thanks so much for your informative reply! I am definitely going to take the vent question to the apartment managers... They said they've had birds live there in the past, so that makes me feel a little more relaxed.
I was thinking of putting hanging beads in the hallway leading to the front door. As for inspections, thankfully they let every building know at what time exactly it will be inspected weeks ahead of time. Phew! :)
 
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