This post is taken from Chapter 17 of my book,
"Rosie Bird's Guide to Small Exotic Birds" by Gail A. Lewis
"Rosie Bird's Guide to Small Exotic Birds" by Gail A. Lewis
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| Home to multiple clutches of baby birds, the humble nest box duplicates the hollows where many varieties of birds nest and reproduce in the wild. |
Making a nest box for your birds need not be
an overwhelming project. Anyone with basic carpentry skills and a few tools can
produce an inexpensive and functional box. The sizes given in this chapter will
yield a box suitable for
the various Grasskeets discussed
in this book. It also works for Linnies and Finches. If you plan to raise
larger birds, proportionally increase the dimensions.
Tools You Will
Need
A saw capable of cutting plywood.
A 12 inch ruler or tape measure.
Drill with a 3/8 inch bit, 1/8 inch bit, and a 1¾ inch hole cutter.
Piece of 3/8 inch dowel – about six inches.
Rasp to round off corners.
Sandpaper to smooth edges.
Carpenter’s glue, such as Elmer’s Wood Glue.
Clamp(s) to hold pieces together as they dry.
A generous handful of small finish nails.
A hammer to drive those nails.
Pliers and small wire cutters to install nest box.
Each nest box is constructed of
a bottom piece made from ¾” exterior plywood. The sides and lid are made of 3/8”
plywood.
We asked our friendly local lumberyard to rip a sheet of plywood into
nine inch strips lengthwise. Since a sheet of plywood is 48 inches wide, this
yields five 9” x 8’ strips and one thin remainder. Save that remainder to use
later. If you’re only making a couple of nest boxes, check with your lumber
yard to see if they sell half-sheets of plywood.
Here’s a cutting
list of pieces needed for a Grasskeet-sized box:
Floor – 9” x 8 1/4” piece cut from ¾” exterior plywood.
Front – 9” wide x 11” high
plywood piece with the entrance hole, and a row of four or five small holes,
1/2” down from the top.
Back – 9” wide”
x 10” high cut from plywood.
Side A – 9” wide x 9 ¾” high cut from plywood.
This ¼” is the lip that the lid will rest on.
Side B – 9” wide x
10” high plywood piece. This
will become the hinge side.
Top or Lid – 8” wide x 10” long plywood.
Schematic of
the Nest Box
Viewed from
above — Lid not shown
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| All corner joints are glued and nailed for strength and stability. |
Preparing for
Assembly:
1. Cut your plywood floor to size.
2. Cut out the plywood pieces from a 9 inch strip of plywood.
3.
The front will be mounted against the cage. Determine where you want to place
the entry hole. [This will be determined by the location where you intend to
remove several bars of the cage so the birds can access it from inside the
cage.] It can be centered, or off to either side. Draw a horizontal line across
the back (the 9” x 11” piece) about 3 ½ inches down from the top. Draw a
vertical line where you want the middle of the entry to be. Where these two
lines cross marks the center of the entry hole. Drill a 1¾ inch diameter hole
there.
4. Carefully sand and smooth the edges of the entry hole to protect
your birds.
5. About ¾ inches below the entry hole, drill a 3/8 inch hole on your
vertical line for a perch.
6.
Take your six inch dowel and carefully drive it through the hole under the
entry. Enlarge the hole slightly if necessary, but not so much that
the dowel doesn’t fit tightly. Center the dowel so there’s as much inside as
there is outside. This allows a mother bird in the nest to stand on it while
the father bird in the cage feeds her from outside the box. You can make this
easier by placing one of the cage’s perches adjacent to it.
7.
Drill a series of four or five 1/8 inch holes in an
evenly-spaced line about ½ inch
below the top of the board. They will be used to attach the nest box to the
cage.
Creating the
hinge:
1. Take the thin leftover strip of plywood and cut a piece equal to the
width of the lid. This will be used to form a hinge. The lid is hinged from side-to-side
and is attached between the front and back of the cage.
2. Apply glue, clamp the strip tightly, and let it dry.
3. After the glue has dried, use the rasp and sandpaper to round the
bottom and top edge of the hinge end. This will allow it to open and close
without binding. You’ll also want to round the exterior corners and edge,
sanding them smooth. You’ll be lifting the lid often to check the eggs and baby
birds...so smooth is nice.
Assembling the
Nest Box, Step 1:
1. Lay your floor board floor flat on your work table. It helps to
lay the four sides of
the Nest Box on the work table around the floor so you can visualize how it
comes together.
2. Attach the sides. Apply glue to one side of the base. Put Side A in
place and drive several nails along the bottom to reinforce the connection.
Remember, the lid will close onto Side A; its placement determines the
direction the lid faces. Repeat the process, putting Side B on the opposite
side.
Assembling the
Nest Box, Step 2:
Attach the front and back. Spread glue along the floor edge and the
edges of the piece. Carefully slip it in between the sides you’ve already put
on. Nail along the floor and temporarily clamp. Repeat the process with the
final piece. Once it’s in place and clamped, drive some nails along the joint
where the two sides meet.
Assembling the
Nest Box, Step 3:
Install the lid. Put the lid on the box the
way it will be installed. The hinge portion should slip in between the front
and back sides. Hold in place by pressing down the lip onto Side A, the shorter
side, so the lid is level. Mark this position on Side B with a pencil line.
Now turn the box on its side and align the
lid with the pencil line. Move it away from Side B creating a tiny gap so it
doesn’t rub when opened. Once the lid is properly positioned, drive a 2d (1”)
finish nail through each side and into the thin scrap glued to the lid. The
nails will act as a hinge allowing you to open and close the box lid.
How to attach the
Nest Box to a cage:
Align the nest with the hole you’ve created by removing several
sections of the cage’s bars. Feed an 8” plastic cable tie through one of the
holes previously drilled across the top of the Nest Box. Loop it around the upper
horizontal bar of the cage and tighten. Four or five ties securely hold the box
in place.
You can view our nest boxes at the Link Below:
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PEACE AND BLESSINGS!
