# help me make the best loft I can?



## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

hi folks
well I am pleased to say that the New Zealand government has very kindly given me a grant to help me with my white dove release business 
So now I have a little bit of money to build a new and better loft.
What I have worked out I can afford is a 6' x 12' gable-roofed wooden shed, with mods to be done by me and my lovely boyfriend. I have some not so great plans I drew for the guy building the shed, which I figure can reasonably be divided into two compartments. 


























I figured if I made a sort of enclosed porch on the front that would be handy for entering without birds getting out past me
I'd like to ask you all for your input before I modify the shed so I can give my birds the best home possible as I know there are some fantastically knowledgeable people out there. Some areas I need to address are:
outside aviary/trapping/landingboard design
how to make the cage fronts - I can't buy these off the shelf in NZ unfortunately and since we are on the other side of the world from everyone it would be really expensive to build them. I have seen one done in trellis, perhaps that is how I should go.
what's the best material to make the nesting boxes out of, given that squab poo is like concrete and they sure do make a lot of it lol is melamine kitchen shelving any good or would it be too slippery and give the birds splayleg? is there something you can use to line the boxes? I currently have painted ply in my old loft and was wondering if there is something easier to clean
what's the best nesting box size? 12"h x 12"d x 24"w? (I am doing the feet and inches for my american pals, we're metric here)
If you were in my position, what would you do, with the benefit of the mistakes and successes you have had in designing your loft?
thanks so much in advance
Emma


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

How will the birds from the other end get out to the aviary? You could run it along the longer side, with openings in each section for the birds to come out into it.


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

maybe it's had to see in my drawings, the popholes are on the long side of the loft and the aviary will go there but its not shown, the thing on the front is just a double door so I can get in and out without inadvertently letting birds out


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## plamenh (Aug 11, 2006)

Hi Darkfur,
I’m presently using similar one for my birds. What I find is that you need bigger windows for ventilation because it gets pretty hot inside. I placed skylight on one slope of the roof, and then decided to do another slope too, for more light.
This year I will build aviary (flight) in front exactly as yours, but I think that 1m is not wide enough. Trapdoors should be on the side of aviary because pigeons will get used to that side when you let them out. I found also that second hand pallet wood is cheapest and strongest to build if you want to save money and afford more luxuries for your birds.
I would place cover on top of the aviary to protect birds from rain when outside.


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

I just heard back from the builder and it will have skylights on both sides. There are going to be 2 2ft sq mesh windows, one at each end, and the aviary on the long side facing our sunny aspect. For extra ventilation, I'll be doing what I did in my old loft because it worked really really well - I used plastic louvre vents low in the wall, and in the roof I placed the sort of vents that go over the top of the pipe coming up from a toilet (hope that makes sense! - they are like a pipe with a round flymesh type cap on them). That loft stays a great temperature all year round, although I live in a very temperate climate (never over 30C never below -2C) so its not difficult. Good point about the cover on the aviary, this is what my old loft has 








not too easy to see but the roof of the aviary part is polycarbonate (translucent corrugated roofing).


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

ok so I realise I made those plans a little hard to understand. The plans at top don't show the aviary but they do show a porch used to access the loft without the birds getting out. Below plan shows where the aviary goes


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

the original plans don't have the aviary on them because they were drawn up for the shed guy and he won't be building that piece


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## spirit wings (Mar 29, 2008)

I think it will need more ventilation, it would be good if you have more windows to the outside, they can be closer to the floor if you don't want to take up wall space or narrow for between perches or something, you can alwalys cover them in the winter.


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## plamenh (Aug 11, 2006)

Another thought: Water and electricity! Plan it upfront as it is important to have them inside or near loft. Today you have so many el. Gadgets and for cleaning water is better to have nearby.


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

spirit wings said:


> I think it will need more ventilation, it would be good if you have more windows to the outside, they can be closer to the floor if you don't want to take up wall space or narrow for between perches or something, you can alwalys cover them in the winter.


My current loft has these








along the bottom of the wall, and these








fixed into the roof, which have been doing a great job ventilating it in there, I can go there on the hottest day in summer and it's probably more pleasant than in the house! Do you think they'll do the trick in the new loft?


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

plamenh said:


> Another thought: Water and electricity! Plan it upfront as it is important to have them inside or near loft. Today you have so many el. Gadgets and for cleaning water is better to have nearby.


lol I wish there were more gadgets in NZ available! It's going to be within a few metres of my garden shed which is wired so no problems installing an electrical point, good idea. In terms of water I was thinking of installing rainwater collection on the roof, and plumbing that to ballcock continuous waterers.


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## Napoleon's Loft (Aug 25, 2008)

How do you call that round stand up ventilation, how much, and where did you buy it. Can rain and snow get inside? Thanks.


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## adamant (Apr 16, 2009)

my loft is in my signature..


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

Napoleon's Loft said:


> How do you call that round stand up ventilation, how much, and where did you buy it. Can rain and snow get inside? Thanks.


I can't think what it is called, a vent cap or something. If you print the picture then any plumbing or hardware store would recognise it. You may need another little plumbing piece to attach it to the roof, a flange or similar. It was only a couple of dollars 
Actually according to the photo it is called a vent cowl. No, rain and so on don't get in, that's kind of what it is for, it goes on the top of a pipe that comes up from a toilet to vent gases, and the vent cowl keeps stuff from falling in


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

adamant said:


> my loft is in my signature..


thank you Anthony, some good ideas going on there. Nice loft!


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## plamenh (Aug 11, 2006)

Good that you mentioned rain - I found that gutters are quite important thing, after first rain.


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

there will definitely be gutters, my back yard floods like you would not believe (so the loft will be raised on piles). Am planning to use those gutters to collect rainwater


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## Jay3 (May 4, 2008)

Maybe you'll need a canoe to get out to the loft. LOL.


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## darkfur (May 11, 2007)

lol perhaps I should be building an ark


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