Use of Fluon

25 Jul 2019, 08:20

Do any of you use Fluon to keep ants and other creepies out of cages or suspended aviaries? I was thinking about painting the legs of my outdoor cages with it but thought I would ask if anyone has used it with any success or failure first.

For those unfamiliar with Fluon it is a PTFE based paint used to contain insects such as woodies used as food for reptiles etc. It's also used to keep ants inside a formicarium (ant farm).

As PTFE (Teflon) can be toxic to birds when heated I wasn't sure if anyone would use it or not.

25 Jul 2019, 09:34

I would be more concerned about fumes from it and or if the birds come in contact with it. Coopex is a residual product and is very safe for birds and good at keeping creepy crawlies at bay. Craig

25 Jul 2019, 09:55

Never heard of it. With Coopex the creepy crawlies die and are so non toxic that birds can eat them safely.
LML

25 Jul 2019, 10:50

It's also used to keep ants inside a formicarium (ant farm).

If only I had known that as a child, my ants were always getting out

Cheers
Brett

25 Jul 2019, 10:58

I tried it many years ago to contain 'woodies' for softbills

From memory ( ?) I had trouble getting it to 'stick' to the plastic containers that I was using, and didn't persevere

Can't remember it being particularly dear . .

Give it a go, and let us know

25 Jul 2019, 12:31

There would be no way for my birds to come into contact with it as the bottom of the cages are a good 30 - 40 cm away from the end of the legs. The fumes are a concern to some extent as it's a paint. I'm hoping being outdoors and only using a very small amount will prevent that being an issue. Legs on breeding cages are 15mm tubular steel so not massive amounts would be needed to cover them. I will let you know in a couple of days if my birds survive it.

Coopex is not really an option as it will most likely kill the marsh frogs and pobblebonks that live in my yard. The amphibian population is dying off quickly enough without me contributing to it if I don't need to. I'll use it if I have to but I'd rather it be my last resort.

25 Jul 2019, 23:08

Fair enough - frogs are as important as finches.

LML

26 Jul 2019, 08:29

So painted the legs yesterday arvo with the Fluon. No issues with fumes or anything of the sort. No signs of any respiratory issues or any distress. I used a cotton bud to paint it on so I wasn't using a lot at once. No issues getting it to stick to the cage legs. Hopefully that will keep the ants out as they are a pretty decent size.

01 Aug 2019, 09:27

arthur wrote: 25 Jul 2019, 10:58 Can't remember it being particularly dear . .

Just checked the price . .

On one site it is listed @ $11 for 30ml (6 teaspoons)

Either my memory is bad . .

Or I was too careless with my money in those days

02 Aug 2019, 07:57

I paid $8.50 for 35ml. Seems expensive but it goes a long way. Consistency is similar to water. Can't really call it paint but I guess that's close enough. Just need to use enough to wet the surface. Used it on my formicarium and 8 of the 12 cage legs I needed to paint and barely used any. I would say I have a little over 30ml left. Painted it on with a damp cotton bud. Wasted more than I used with what was on my hands and left on the cotton bud.

No reaction from any of the parrots who are in the cages to the use of Fluon. No I just have to hope its enough to keep the red and black sugar ants out. Would hate to see how destructive such large ants could be if the got into the nest box. Just wish my neighbour would do something about them but they don't seem to care. Poisoned them with that jelly bait in the syringe a couple of times before I had the breeding cages there but they keep returning.