Hi. We have a bird house that Purple Martins come to each year at Lake Anna, VA. Over the years, the metal pole has become bent and a little rusted. Can anyone provide any recommendations on who to call to get this pole replaced? We'd like to keep the same bird house, and have the new pole use the same system to raise/lower the bird house, etc. Just need someone who knows how to remove this pole and properly install a new one properly and safely. I've seen similar poles on the shopping pages - but not sure which exact one is needed.
Here is a link to some photos (couldn't get the attachments to work: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/w0ve5tkni8l3 ... 9Ke6a?dl=0
Thank you.
Need help replacing a bird house pole
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Dave Duit
- Posts: 2145
- Joined: Tue Nov 25, 2003 2:02 pm
- Location: Iowa / Nevada
- Martin Colony History: In 2024, 82 pair with 350 fledged youngsters. 110 total cavities available, 82 Troyer Horizontal gourds and a homemade PVC / metal 28 compartment unit, 1 fallout shelter. Hawk and owl guards included. Martin educator and speaker. President and founder of the Iowa Purple Martin Organization. Please visit Iowa Purple Martin Organization on Facebook link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1627283871068161 Emails send to [email protected]. Subject line include Iowa Purple Martin.
It appears to be a square 3 inch aluminum T14 pole. Online they are expensive, so you may want to go to a local steel company that may have the same 3 inch square aluminum pole. But, after viewing your current pole it looks like you may have just some surface rust and with just a little work you can save yourself some money. The pole is not bent at a severe angle and you may be able to push it back to a straight position using a truck with towing straps or come along winch connected to your car or truck. If you go this route and it straightens without issues of the house going up and down smoothly, then you can go on to the next fix which would be using a steel wire brush and sandpaper to remove the surface rust. Once the surface rust is removes and wiped down with a clean cloth; treat the pole with etching spray. Etching spray with allow the paint to stick to its surface. If the pole is rusted deep and not surface rust, you will need to make plans to replace the pole. I hope this helps you.