Aviary Temprature

[rip64]

How hot is TOO hot ??
I put the digital thermometer from my engel in my aviary the other day to check inside temp, yesterday outside temp was reported as 28c inside was 38c - today was 25c & inside was 29c. What temp is too hot ??(Goulds,Stars,Hecks,Scarlets & doves). I have recently added removable panel on south side of aviary for air flow through aviary, (aviary is 5m x5m with poly carb full roof). Just thinking ahead if we get some more 40c days. I have a mist system but hesitate using it as humidity i feel is worse than dry heat. East and north are full wire, south and west are enclosed timber.
Any idea's

[gouldianpaul]

i would have thought that anything above 35c for an extended period of time would not be good....if you are worried about humidity have you thought of cooling the roof down by running a sprinkler on the roof during hot weather....using tank water of course : )..although I would be more inclined to use the mist spray as this will dry pretty quickly...as a long term solution i would be thinking about replacing some of the polycarb sheeting with corrigated metal sheeting...just my thoughts...hope it helps..cheers, Paul

[shox]

Rip 64,
The issue is the polycarb roofinng it absorbs the heat and does not allow airflow. What you can do is get some shade cloth and put on the top of the roofing lets sun in but takes away a lot of the heat. The other thing you can do in summer is lower the height of the perches as the temperature drops as you get away from the roof.

[E Orix]

If your aviary has metal walls and roof then you have to watch your birds carefully.
Generally when it gets too hot for Gouldians and other birds then they will move to the floor providing there is some shade.
In hot weather make sure the water container is shaded from the sun and if possible put in a bigger deeper water bowl.
The water will tend to stay a little cooler.
On the roof; if you have any old hessian sacks(not the plastic seed bags) throw them on the roof and better still if you can give them a hose.If they can't be wet don't worry as they will still bring the temp. down.Even shade cloth draped over the roof and walls will help dramatically.
The tin walls become like hot plates and if you have brush fixed to the wall generallyany chicks or eggs will be lost,yet if you can drap something down the wall then chicks may be saved.All my exterior walls are insulated with conflute or plywood,this was done several years ago when a whole colony of sitting hens,young and eggs were lost on one very hot day.
The other important point is leave them well alone the less disturbance the better,they don't want to be disturbed as they will generally stay as still as they can with wings open and panting.

[AMCA26]

My aviaries today rip were at 38c but it does not feel that hot, compared when you stand outside at 38c, it has got to 44c again did not feel like it was that hot or i would not be able to stand inside. I put it in the new avairies today and the same 37c but was actually very comfortable inside and i have put Clear, Pearl Ice, Clear, Pearl Ice etc on the roof over the aviary section.
And yes they will sit on the floor if its too hot and i dont go near them until late afternoon.

[desertbirds]

Airflow,insulation (wooden products as per Eorix suggestion),shadecloth and some shrubbery that provides all these things.In a perfect world we would have removable panels for summer and winter.The polycarbonate roof is ideal for winter but is probably a bit restrictive for summer.Its currently stinking hot here and will be for most of the month,my birds are on the ground all day and sitting under shrubs.A clean water bowl (for bathing twice a day)and a" quick "squirt down of the aviary mid afternoon helps a lot.Hot air goes up and its probably very hot just under that roof.Ive noticed with my birds that as soon as the water bowl isnt clean they will wait for clean water to have a dip in.One drinking type set up and a shallow (bout 20 millimetres) bowl for bathing works ok here.If you have young birds (especially baby quail) add some well washed gravel/pebbles to the bath bowl and clean twice a day,put the drinking one up out of harms way (besa brick works for me) but make sure both are in the shade.I`ve found the birds happiest to jump in and cool off if their feet can touch the bottom. Try and do the chores early in the morning and later in the arvo when its cooled off a bit.If you do have birds nesting dont be alarmed if their not sitting,they know more about egg temps than we do and how to regulate whats going on.

[rip64]

Thank-you, you learned lot.
This morning I upgraded my mist spray system in main flight and fixed shade cloth over half of the polycarb roof, the inside is a noticable 5-6 degrees cooler on the thermometer than the past few days. Before tomorrow & Mondays 41 degrees, I will fully cover roof and get misting on a timer to give short burst every hour or so.
Thanks again
Brian

[Mickp]

right now the temperature in my aviaries is 46 & 48.
usually my mist sprays are set by timer to come on once every two hours.
with weather like today and with tomorrow expected to be even hotter I have adjusted the timer
so that the sprays are on for 5 minutes every hour.

[Diane]

Temp in the shed was 42C, lift up door open, windows open and pa door open with fan blowing. Birds have ice blocks in the water, they are standing around the ice. Dont seem distressed. Replaced the ice block in front of the fan 38C
Aviaries are 37C, blinds are down but held away from the front of the aviaries to catch any breezes, ice blocks in water, standing near the water.
The automated misting system ( thats me standing outside in a floppy hat with the hosepipe ) bring the temps down by about 4-5 C

[finchbreeder]

I have my water bowls on twice daily automatic flush. I don;t have to disturb the birds but know they are getting a cool refreshing drink.
LML