Best Way to Build a Telescoping Martin House Pole

Purple Martin Housing

This is probably ane of the most important sections to the hobby, what type of housing do we want to use for our martins?  There are a large number of choices to pick from and in reality, it's our own personal preference every bit to what type to apply.  There's commercially manufactured houses of all sorts to choose from.  Aluminum houses, plastic houses, wooden houses and both plastic and natural gourds.  Beneath, we'll investigate each in detail so that a newcomer to the hobby tin make an informed decision as to what blazon he or she would like to employ.  For the most part, it volition be assumed that we are starting out with naught and creating a site from scratch.  All the same, if you lot already have an established site that doesn't lucifer these specifications or maybe you're thinking about making a change, then past all means, read on and see if there's something hither that catches your eye.  I would and so suggest your making the update at the primeval possible opportunity, or at to the lowest degree before the return of the martins.

First, let's look at a few things before we start earthworks holes and erecting poles for our houses.

Starting time decision... To kickoff a purple martin colony.

At present that you've made the decision to start a colony, y'all want to practise it in such a way that you'll enjoy what you're doing and there are a number of factors that have to exist thought out earlier we begin.

Offset, be forewarned.  Nosotros are dealing with nature and wild creatures, therefore, you 'will' be bothered by pests and predators.  You 'will' accept to become at the housing to remove the pests and make clean out their nests

Second, you lot 'should' perform nest checks.  Recent studies accept shown that they have get a very important part of keeping martins.

And third, there is ever some full general maintenance that's required from time to fourth dimension. If yous accept to climb ladders or work with difficult housing to do these things, then information technology won't be any fun and therefore, you won't enjoy yourself or the hobby.  Hobbies are supposed to exist fun, that's why we do them.

Regardless of what type of housing you desire, it should exist easily accessible.  You lot want to be able to easily perform your maintenance.  This one betoken is very important in making the hobby enjoyable. Your housing should be easily attainable by vertically raising and lowering on a pole. This can be either a pulley system or a telescoping pole system depending on the type of housing yous have. This makes maintenance very quick and easy, something that is desirable when the martins are in the site. Going out of your way to properly cock your site to begin with will brand life a lot easier and more enjoyable for you in future years.  If you presently have an established site that doesn't have these features, and then you should past all ways, update your equipment so that information technology does.

Too, NEVER use housing that TILTS on a pole to gain access to the business firm. This could damage the eggs or impairment the immature when the unit is tilted to go into them.

Second decision... what blazon of housing to utilize?

Now the conclusion has to be made as to what type of housing to use.  Each has its own merits, but we every bit humans all come across things differently, so the type of housing to be used is of our own accord.  The reason you need to decide on the type of housing first is it'southward a gene in choosing the type of pole yous'll be using.  If it's not a telescoping pole, then y'all'll demand a pulley system of some sort for the superlative of the pole you'll be erecting.

Inquire yourself these questions.

Is the housing light or heavy?

Volition I demand a winch or will a uncomplicated rope and pulley system work?

Each has a different mechanism to lift it and this needs to be decided offset.

Sturdiness

I am a strong abet of using steel poles that are enough strong enough to handle the housing I utilise.  I as well strongly recommend using footing sockets to hold these metal poles in place.  That fashion, should annihilation e'er become incorrect, the primary pole can always exist lifted out of the footing socket, repaired and and then replaced in the ground socket.  Most people just dig a pigsty and bury the pipe right in the concrete and that'due south not the style to do information technology.  Once fix, they have all kinds of difficulty getting to the top of their poles when annihilation goes wrong whereas, had they used a basis socket to begin with, all they would have to do is lift the pole out, set the trouble and and then return it to the socket.

Without going into a lot of the technical garb, the pipes I apply are 1-1/two" welded steel piping.  (one.900" O.D., i.610" I.D., schedule 40.  The schedule 40 refers to the wall thickness of the pipe).  These usually come in 18 to 20 foot lengths and you can either have it cut to the length you want or you lot could fifty-fifty cut it yourself.  Without going thru all the calculations here, mine have gone thru 50 mile an hour winds without any ill effect on them at all.  I go them home and lay them on a couple of saw horses and easily work them to what I desire.

While I'm at the pipe store, I likewise get me a 30 inch long slice of ground socket.  The ground socket is nothing more than a xxx" long piece of two" welded steel pipe.  (2.375" O.D., 2.067" I.D., schedule 40).  The master pipe easily fits down into this pipe and makes for easy removal should it ever be required.

The only thing you need to do on the ground socket is drill a clearance hole for a 3/8" bore bolt three" upward from the bottom.  A 7/16" (.440") hole will practise just fine.  Then, put a 3/8 ten 2 1/ii" long bolt through information technology and put a nut on it.  This bolt is what the main pipe sits on when in place.  Nothing special has to be washed to information technology because the ground socket is going to be concreted in place and the bolt will never come up out.  The main pole has a " V " notch cut in the bottom of information technology so information technology will sit down over the bolt and the notch prevents any twisting of the main pole.  Hopefully the pictures below will describe all this conspicuously.

Third decision... Where to identify the identify the pole?

Now comes a very important decision... where to place your pole?  This should be given a considerable amount of thought considering of all the rules that demand to be followed to attract martins.  If you're not already familiar with the tips to concenter martins, and so please read them commencement before digging any holes.  Then, make your conclusion.

Some Tips to attract Imperial Martins

Once y'all decide where you want your housing to be located, using post pigsty diggers or a shovel, dig a hole only deep enough and then that the pinnacle of the ground socked is level with the ground.  I similar to dig mine a petty deeper and then add a couple inches of crushed stone in the bottom for drainage.  Information technology also allows me to adjust the tiptop of my basis socket to the correct height by either adding or removing stones.  And, although not real important for most folks, if you lot're particular which direction you want your winch or caster system to confront, the commodities in the ground socket should be aligned in that direction. Once the socket is positioned correctly, fill the hole to within three" of the height with dry Sacrete, (or any physical mix) making sure the socket is straight up and down.  I only fill mine to within 3" of the superlative because I and so put dirt on top of information technology so the grass will grow around my socket.  Then, leave it gear up for a twenty-four hour period.  The moisture from the ground hardens the physical quickly and is just every bit strong were it poured in wet.

One reason for having the superlative of the footing socket level with the ground is that, if you always determine to change locations, all y'all have to do is brand another basis socket and bury it in the new location.  The quondam one can stay where information technology is and no i will ever know. It'southward much more than work to dig upwardly an onetime footing socket than to build a new one and the cost for a new one isn't that much.

Also, if yous take your housing down for the off seasons, yous can mow and rake and practise any lawn piece of work without a pole sticking upwards out of the footing.  Just don't lose rails of information technology.  Grass tin can rapidly grow over one and it makes it pretty difficult to detect each bound.

Now cut the " V " notch in the bottom of your pole.  And finally, make sure the hole at the pinnacle to mount your caster is in line with your " V ".  This will insure your winch or pulley system is where yous originally wanted it when yous aligned the commodities in your ground socket.  Now, after assembling the winch or pulley system to the pole, put the whole assembly into your footing socket.  Now, you're ready for your housing.

Housing type

Since you've already decided the type of housing you lot're going to employ, the top of the piping has to exist worked accordingly.  If you decided on heavy housing and require a winch, the following picture will prove you one idea of how to add a pulley at the top of your pipe for apply with a winch.  The pulley is sandwiched between two safe brackets that are attached to the pipe.  This will give you lot the best forces on your cable.  The brackets over the top of the pulley deed as a safety strap.  Should your cable come up out of the pulley groove for whatever reason, the strap prevents it from falling off the piping and allowing your house to come up down on you.  Plus, the large diameter washers allow the housing to be lowered safely to remove it from the pole.  Now, only remove the pole from the ground socket and render the cablevision to the pulley grove.  Remember, nosotros demand to be safe too equally accept fun.

Too, remember, NEVER, NEVER use a ROPE with any kind of WINCH.  Ropes just aren't strong enough to use with winches and will break easily.  Ever use a properly sized steel cable fabricated to fit the winch.

Of grade, in social club to utilize this with heavy housing, you lot'll have to as well add a winch to your pipage.  The firm has to have a hole in the middle of it for the pipe and cables to pass through it.  The cable hooks to the winch, passes up over the pulley in the pipe and then goes dorsum down to the business firm and is secured there.  So, when you creepo on the winch, the house is moved up the pole.

Weight...

If you weigh your house when it'southward empty, you lot tin add another pound for each compartment.  Some houses could increase by 20% to xxx% to their original weight and those numbers are a good approximation every bit to what you'll be dealing with when it'due south full.  Most people forget that weight increases when the housing becomes occupied.  That cute piddling aluminum business firm that is then light co-ordinate to the manufacturer all of a sudden becomes a lot heavier than you remember it beingness in the store.  All the extra weight of the martins and their nesting materials have to be considered.  This is one reason telescoping poles go difficult to piece of work with, and specially for someone who is slight in stature, this could become a problem.

At present, permit's look at a cartoon of a pulley system that volition elevator things similar gourd racks and lighter houses.  This is a uncomplicated pattern to make and I use this arrangement on my racks and it works very well.

All I do is purchase a 4 inch aluminum turnbuckle, (3/8" threads), cutting information technology in one-half, drill a clearance hole for a ane/4 - 20 bolt.

Then, I buy a couple of proficient potent pulleys.  These are distributed past National.

I so put the pulley in the yoke of the 1/2 turnbuckle with the 1/4 - 20 commodities as shown above.

I drill a clearance hole for a 3/8 inch bolt (vii/xvi inch hole)  in the elevation of the pipe and laissez passer the cease of the turnbuckle through the hole and screw the turnbuckle into place.  Information technology really works good and is enough stiff plenty to pigsty a full rack of 24 gourds.  I use a iii/8" diameter braided rope which I go at M-mart (Lowes, Wal-Mart)  to become with the system.  The larger the rope, the easier it is to handle, peculiarly if you accept older and larger hands like I exercise.  And of course, the larger rope makes the unabridged system more than secure.

Aluminum Housing

Probably one of the first encounters we have with aluminum martin houses is when nosotros run across them in a shop or come across them setting on pinnacle of poles in other people's back yards as we drive around.  The average person thinks, "what beautiful niggling bird houses".  Unfortunately, those thoughts are correct, "cute" and "little".  Think one thing. Although some manufacturers are changing, virtually aluminum houses are made and sold to make money. Therefore, they are engineered to be manufactured for the least investment possible so the manufacturer can make as much turn a profit as possible. In most cases, I don't believe the martins' best interests are fully taken into consideration since nigh martin houses are built with small compartments.  If they were concerned almost the martins, these small compartments would be enlarged to fit the birds' requirements and have more room to heighten their broods.  Adult purple martins are 8" long.  The compartment in well-nigh of these commercial aluminum houses are just six x half-dozen x 6, a full 2 inches smaller than the adult birds.  Yet, the manufacturer says that they are plenty big enough for the birds to raise a brood.  I'm sorry, but I feel this is very wrong.  Although the birds will use them information technology's normally considering at that place isn't anything more suitable around and 9 times out of 10, the broods simply consist of 2 or 3 young, hardly enough to overcome the natural decline of the species.  Recent testing has shown that in larger 6 x 6 x 12 compartments, the averages are between 4 and vi young with vii beingness very common.  The better houses have the power to remove a middle console and make the compartments a full half dozen inches deeper or are designed from the start for the larger compartments. This gives the birds much more room to enhance their broods and also offers much more protection if a flight predator but happens by.

Materials

When you first pick up an aluminum house, yous immediately realize how light it is.  That's because the textile used to make them is very thin.  Also, I feel the thin material is non very strong when a flight predator such equally a Great Horned Owl comes to visit.  These birds are very large and strong enough to literally pull the forepart doors to these houses off when they want to become at the occupants inside.  My ain experiences were not good and I personally would not subject my martins to the dangers of being torn out of their houses past these predators.  However, if an aluminum house is used, a properly designed owl guard should be installed.  Guards such every bit the ones shown below offering the martins full protection from attacking owls and hawks.

Thermals

Since I work in the engineering field, I know that aluminum can misemploy rut very well. I besides know that it tin can absorb heat from direct sun just likewise. Although I have not washed any tests on the subject field as far as aluminum birdhouses are concerned, the experts say that information technology works very well. I have no starting time hand knowledge about them other than comments from other landlords that have them, and they say they work well if you lot can get the martins to nest in them.

Pests

I've seen statements from aluminum housing manufacturers that state starlings shy away from the brilliant insides of aluminum houses, however, that'southward non what I've personally witnessed. I've seen where starlings will literally take over a house, but only because there wasn't whatsoever identify else to nest.  Most of the time, the reason the starlings don't nest in them is because the nesting compartments are too modest.  That tells me that if starlings don't like them, why would anyone think that martins would like them?

I've likewise seen English house sparrows literally infest an aluminum martin house. The pocket-size compartments are just the correct size, just the correct summit and dry. My own personal conclusion is this. Starlings and sparrows will invade Any type of martin housing regardless of what information technology is. Wood, aluminum, plastic and gourds.  All are susceptible to these pests, and once they take up residence, the only way to get rid of them is to trap and destroy them or shoot them.  They but will not requite upward a nesting crenel once they occupy it.

Toll

Another signal well-nigh aluminum, the cost. One of these aluminum houses can be rather pricey. Aluminum, as a material, is very expensive, but will terminal out in the elements for a very long fourth dimension, therefore, it's a great material for outside apply such as martin houses. If your desire is to utilize aluminum housing, then please consider one of the better ones.  Some of the houses today are literally junk and shouldn't be on the market place.  Spend a little more and get a good one.  And if you think almost it, if you lot become a good ane, it will last y'all for many, many years to come and you'll be a lot happier with it than if you bought one of the junk ones and had to replace it every couple of years.

But exercise they work?

Yes, they do.  Martins practice return to them each spring and if taken care of past the landlord, then they will exist used twelvemonth after year.  Even so, many people take this thought that if they but buy the house and put it upward, the martins volition come and everything will be O.K.  I'thousand agape to say that null could exist further from the truth.  That just isn't the manner it is anymore.  With the introduction of the European Starling and the English language House Sparrow, the landlord has to diligently defend his martin firm or the following will apace occur.

Above are the results of a business firm that was put on top of a pole without the ability to easily get at it.  Information technology was left to its own accord and the house sparrows and starlings quickly moved in and accept at present claimed it equally their own.  They really pack and then much nesting cloth into the compartments that the doors literally burst off.  The cute little house quickly becomes a slum firm and does zilch more than than propagate the very birds we are trying to eliminate at tended martin sites.  This is another reason that the housing we choose has to be easily attainable and we equally landlords take to constantly defend it from these pest birds or our housing could end up looking the same as this.  Unfortunately, the thin fabric that nearly of these houses are made of are i of the issues to begin with.  The designs just aren't strong plenty to hold the house together should an event occur.

All the same, beneath is a link to a site that has aluminum houses for sale, aluminum houses that I feel were designed by purple martin landlords with the martins best interests in mind. They are called Lone Star imperial martin houses and I recommend checking them out if aluminum is what you're interested in.  Yes, the houses are expensive, but if you look at all the innovations these houses have, I believe you'll find that they far out manner the disadvantages that the cheaper houses have and also, if you expect at information technology like this, it might make more sense.  If you buy one of these houses and it lasts you for years and years, you could pause the cost down to a per yr footing.  Thus, if you take the business firm and it lasts for as long as 20 or 30 years, then the initial expense doesn't seem so bad at present, does it!  Plus, you're getting a good product and they piece of work, not only for the martins, simply for the landlords too.

Lone Star Regal Martin Houses.

Notation:

Other martin house manufacturers such every bit Coates are now realizing the importance of a proficient martin house and take upgraded their tooling to build a ameliorate majestic martin house.  Here'due south their link.  Coates Royal Martin Houses

Wood Housing

I have a woodshop and I build my martin houses. I make them from Western Cedar, a very lite and weather resistant wood. It is fantabulous for building bird houses of all kinds. Because the wood is porous, it has very skillful insulating properties from heat or cold, and the natural resins in the wood make it a practiced forest to use out in the elements. I have bird houses that I've built 10 years agone from it and they are however going strong showing very little vesture.

Wooden houses are much heavier than aluminum, simply they have their good features.

1, they can exist built to the proper specifications that are required for developed martins.  Unfortunately, most of the plans nosotros larn to make them are incorrect themselves and the results are houses that are not built to the proper specs.  Recent testing has proven that martins need more room than the small half-dozen 10 6 x 6 compartments that are on well-nigh plans available today.  Recent testing has institute that the minimum right compartment dimensions are half-dozen inches high, vii inches wide and at least 9 inches deep with 11 or 12 inches being optimum.

2, another affair that is a must is the power to easily access the house and it should easily heighten and lower vertically on a adept sturdy pole.  Houses of these types are non made to work with telescoping poles.  They are much too heavy.

And 3, houses should take easy admission to the interior by doors on the front of the firm.  This enables nest checks, nest removals and of course, maintenance.

I other thing to annotation.  If y'all're going to build your ain martin firm, or bird house of any kind for that matter, don't build it out of whatsoever kind of wood that isn't suited for use out in the elements. You lot'll only be building it again in five or 6 years.

Special Note:
Unless y'all know what you're doing, exist sure and fully investigate lumber that has been specifically treated for outdoor use when building whatever type of structure intended to firm any kind of live creature. These lumbers take special chemicals imbedded in the forest to make it last longer in the elements, and although not all, some of those chemicals are poisonous to all living creatures, including humans. When working with these forms of wood, masks should be used to protect your lungs from breathing in fumes and fine sawdust particles from these chemicals. Before using this kind of wood, ask questions from an expert to make sure you know what you're dealing with.

Plastic Housing

Plastic houses are another form of commercial housing that is available for martins.  Once again, many of them have the same problems that the commercial aluminum houses have with compartments that are likewise minor for an developed pair of martins to raise a full brood of young.  Some of them now take the option of removing a center console allowing the compartment to be made 12 full inches deep.  This is skilful because the martins demand the extra room, specially if they are backing out of the way of danger.

If you select one of these houses, bank check it out get-go and make certain that the unit is able to be reworked to the larger compartments.  Also, make sure that it is attainable for nest checks.  This will hateful that the front end of the business firm has to be able to be opened and so that the landlord tin get in to do the checks.

And one more matter.  Brand sure that the firm either has crescent shaped entrance holes or tin can at to the lowest degree can be changed to them.  They are a very important factor in the war confronting the European starling.  If all these features aren't nowadays or at least available, and then another house should exist looked for.

Plastic Gourds

In recent years, there accept been a few innovations in plastic gourds that are changing the martin keeping hobby.  Originally, there were a number of pocket-sized 6" gourds that were on the market, but information technology was quickly discovered that these gourds were much too pocket-size to be used for martins.  Unfortunately, the manufacturers of these gourds refuse to quit making them, proving that the lesser line is more important than the martins well being.

In this chapter, I would like to talk about plastic gourds whose manufacturers have realized that those little gourds were likewise small and began manufacturing gourds that are designed for the martins.  If you think you lot'd similar to attempt some plastic gourds, then please make sure you get gourds that are plenty big enough for the martins.

Today's modern plastic gourds are nearly maintenance costless.  Manufactured from white polyethylene, they never need painting or soaking or whatever of the common maintenance bug that naturals require.  The are almost waterproof, sun proof and with the proper crescent entrance holes, starling proof.  Let's look a little closer at a few of them.

This gourd is manufactured by Natureline.  It's a total 10 inches in bore and has three different forepart inserts available.  The two" round hole, the 1 3/sixteen" oval and a blank equally shown.  Although not tooled up for crescents yet, a blank can exist ordered and with just a piddling work, the crescent shaped archway pigsty tin be hands cut in.  Since it'due south been shown that starlings are able to negotiate the oval holes, it'south recommended that the crescents be used over all other holes.  For Prices and Ordering Information, y'all can contact Natureline at 1-800-239-4105

This gourd is known equally the SuperGourd and is manufactured by Bird Abodes in Pennsylvania.  This one has an access chapeau which makes it very easy to do nest checks and nest maintenance.  I added the crescent insert to this one because it has a round hole, simply they are now available with crescents molded correct in.  If these interest you lot, contact the PMCA

This gourd is unique in the fact that it's offered to the martins in the horizontal position.  As you can see, it also has the 4" access port and it also has the crescent archway hole molded correct in.  One added characteristic is the depth.  No owl can achieve to the back of this gourd to go at its occupants.  This horizontal gourd is produced by:

The Bird's Paradise'

20835 Morris Rd.

Conneautville, Pa,  16406

Natural Gourds

Finally, allow's look at natural gourds. This is some other form of housing that is widely used throughout the martin's range. They're light, they're inexpensive, they're just the right size and if done correct, very easy to care for. If for some reason i becomes unusable, yous simply replace it. Subsequently dipping in Copper Sulfate, they readily take a coat of regular house primer and and then a couple of coats of adept white business firm paint.  Painting them white is highly recommended and, will not only assistance attract the martins, but information technology will cut down on the oestrus from the summer dominicus.  Painting also helps brand the gourds last longer.

Gourds tin exist presented to the martins in many unlike means. One method is to cord them on a wire stretched between two poles, simply this method makes maintenance very hard, if not impossible.  Raising and lowering a gourd line requires a special mechanism and it has to exist repeatable and then that the gourds render to the same level every time.

They can also exist put on a metal pole with cross arms.  No doubt y'all've seen the old hay rake times welded to the top of a pipe or fifty-fifty the old metal wagon bicycle.  Located correctly, the martins readily take any every bit a nesting site as long equally the gourds are of decent size.  The rack you see above is my own blueprint and, depending on how you build information technology, can concur anywhere from 8 to 25 gourds.  I tin honestly say that the martins honey it.  I came upwardly with my own blueprint for a rack because I wasn't happy with the way the others looked, plus I wanted something that was easily accessible.

Gourds were used long before houses came onto the scene and they worked fine then and they still work simply fine today. And, just similar any other outdoor item you might have, they will crave occasional maintenance, and/or replacing. Although very hard on the exterior, their inner walls are porous and therefore, do not transfer heat very well.   Besides, the softer insides permit for the martin'southward claws to dig into the material so they can get a practiced foot hold when walking around the inside of the gourd.  One other thing, they sway in the wind and this move is said to deter other birds from nesting in them, but I wish someone would tell that to the other birds.  Unfortunately, that's just another of the myths about the martin hobby that has been passed down through the generations.

Gourds can be worked to add whatever manner entrance hole you like plus, you can even add little rain canopies and access holes for nest checks.  The screw on - screw off caps stay put until you take them off and the birds don't mind them at all.

I happen to like gourds.  I like the fact that no two look alike.  Each has its own private aesthetic entreatment.  Plus, the martins love them.  They like them so much in fact that, if you before long have a martin house and even so take non attracted martins, yous might desire to try hanging iv or 5 large gourds from the bottom of it and see what happens. If aught else, the gourds will attract them to your house and if they exercise happen to fill the gourds, they'll before long be overflowing into the house besides.

If gourds interest you, and so here is a link to a page that will prove you but how to work gourds and then that they get 'martin magnets'.

Gourds to birdhouses

ruizligem1945.blogspot.com

Source: http://www.chuckspurplemartinpage.com/housing.htm

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