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Postby Curious Diode » Sun Oct 04, 2015 8:41 am

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Re: nu perch style constuction

Postby Pajarita » Sun Oct 04, 2015 10:20 am

If you want the very best, use natural tree branches. Nothing beats nature.
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Re: nu perch style constuction

Postby Michael » Sun Oct 04, 2015 10:38 am

Contact me if you'd like to order a bunch of unprocessed NU perch sticks. I can provide lengths of 24, 36, or even 48 inches. It's a fairly involved process in manufacturing them. Since you're looking at getting a GCC, you'd need small ones. The only trouble with those is that you have to use really small screws to join them or you risk splitting the wood. I use stainless steel on all my play stands.

And I do believe they are better than natural branches when it comes to cages. Simply put, natural branches don't offer sufficient variations in shrot lengths for cages. natural branches have variations across long lengths of branches on trees. In the cage, when you are only dealing with one or two feet length of perch, they are often uniform like a dowel. Also natural branches can be poisonous to parrots unless you use the right ones. They can harbor mold, bacteria, or bugs. There is a lot involved in making natural branches work for parrots in the captive environment.
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Re: nu perch style constuction

Postby ParrotsForLife » Sun Oct 04, 2015 10:47 am

Michael wrote:Contact me if you'd like to order a bunch of unprocessed NU perch sticks. I can provide lengths of 24, 36, or even 48 inches. It's a fairly involved process in manufacturing them. Since you're looking at getting a GCC, you'd need small ones. The only trouble with those is that you have to use really small screws to join them or you risk splitting the wood. I use stainless steel on all my play stands.

And I do believe they are better than natural branches when it comes to cages. Simply put, natural branches don't offer sufficient variations in shrot lengths for cages. natural branches have variations across long lengths of branches on trees. In the cage, when you are only dealing with one or two feet length of perch, they are often uniform like a dowel. Also natural branches can be poisonous to parrots unless you use the right ones. They can harbor mold, bacteria, or bugs. There is a lot involved in making natural branches work for parrots in the captive environment.

Theres so many things I would buy from your store but most things are highly expensive your book is a good price so I will be getting that.
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Postby Curious Diode » Sun Oct 04, 2015 11:00 am

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Re: nu perch style constuction

Postby Michael » Sun Oct 04, 2015 11:18 am

ParrotsForLife wrote:Theres so many things I would buy from your store but most things are highly expensive your book is a good price so I will be getting that.


Well these things are costly to produce in relatively small quantity. Nothing about parrot ownership is cheap in the first place. In my experience the best way to save money with parrots in the long run is to get the right stuff from the first try. For example trying to save money buying a cheaper cage ends up costing more when you gotta replace it with a better one than just getting the better one in the first place.

Also there is much to learn from others. I went through 3 different air purifiers until I found the right one to use with parrots. I wasted a lot of money in this learning proccess. Had I known up front that the fancy ones won't be suitable, I could have saved a lot of money on pointless devices. That is why places like this forum are so helpful. You can learn from others and make more informed decisions.
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Re: nu perch style constuction

Postby Michael » Sun Oct 04, 2015 11:21 am

Curious Diode wrote:
Michael wrote:Contact me if you'd like to order a bunch of unprocessed NU perch sticks. I can provide lengths of 24, 36, or even 48 inches.


Cool! I hadn't realized you had unprocessed perch lengths available. I'll have to get back to you on that, how soft are the NU perches compared to the hardwood NU perches?


The regular ones are a medium harness wood. So if Balsa is soft and Oak is hard, then the standard NU perches are right in between. They are not soft like you can scratch them with your nails or anything. However, they aren't so hard that a parrot couldn't chew it up if it wanted to. Luckily they are hard enough that it takes most parrots so long that the entertainment value is justified. The hard wood ones are virtually indestructible. I wouldn't both using hardwood on a gcc unless it was a really dedicatd bird to nothing but perch destruction. With sufficient toys, it isn't likely the bird will destroy the standard type NU Perches in less than a year.
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Re: nu perch style constuction

Postby ParrotsForLife » Sun Oct 04, 2015 11:41 am

Michael wrote:
ParrotsForLife wrote:Theres so many things I would buy from your store but most things are highly expensive your book is a good price so I will be getting that.


Well these things are costly to produce in relatively small quantity. Nothing about parrot ownership is cheap in the first place. In my experience the best way to save money with parrots in the long run is to get the right stuff from the first try. For example trying to save money buying a cheaper cage ends up costing more when you gotta replace it with a better one than just getting the better one in the first place.

Also there is much to learn from others. I went through 3 different air purifiers until I found the right one to use with parrots. I wasted a lot of money in this learning proccess. Had I known up front that the fancy ones won't be suitable, I could have saved a lot of money on pointless devices. That is why places like this forum are so helpful. You can learn from others and make more informed decisions.

Yeah I know those Java trees are very expensive too around €300.I think ill have to get a new harness from you too Loki's is coming apart at the top where the leash connects and will probably snap if she flies outside and I wouldnt want her flying away and getting lost again.EDIT:I emailed Steve Hartman he said he will repair the harness for me.
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Re: nu perch style constuction

Postby Wolf » Sun Oct 04, 2015 1:05 pm

As to making your own I would suggest using white pine or fir for the wood and turning them on a wood lathe using the parting knife. I would then bake them in the oven at 350 degrees F., for about an hour. The wood that you use must be untreated to begin with, kiln drying is allowable but no chemical treatments can be used on the wood before or after making the perches.
You could also use a drum sander of up to 2 inches in diameter with the drum at about a 30 degree angle.
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Re: nu perch style constuction

Postby Pajarita » Mon Oct 05, 2015 10:51 am

Actually, 15 minutes at 400 degrees kills both parasites and any type of fungus or mold growing in the wood. As to varying diameters, if we are talking about using them inside the cage, all you need is different diameter branches and the problem is solved - but you can also use, like I do, a thicker branch with a smaller diameter one(s) coming off it (the little ones are great for bounce) and place it kind of crooked in there so it can be used both for climbing and perching (I don't like perfectly parallel or straight perches).
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