S&K.House Longevity

[Thomas Maddox]

Just out of curiosity, how long do these houses last? I've seen several in my town. I don't think that they are ever taken down

[Bird Brain]

The floors and walls made of waxed cardboard. That will be the first thing to break down, I'm sure. 3-5 years maybe for the cardboard to break down?

[flyin-lowe]

I've seen them up for years. Not sure what the insides look like but the exterior will last quite some time. If they are on Tri Tel poles those will fail before the house will.

[jhcox]

My first PM house was a S&K barn style house with tri tel pole. I’ve had it for 7 years I have never taken it down ever only for nest checks. The inside is in excellent condition and the pole has with stood 60 to 70 mph winds and has never felled or even bent for that matter. I love it I guess because it was the first one I got. Hope this helps

[Conrad Baker]

I have had mine since 2006, taking them down at the end of the season (around July 15th) , cleaning them, then putting them back up in January of each season. Other than a few stray pellet holes, they are in great condition. I store them in the attic, out of the way.

[Conrad Baker]

I recall a picture of a town after a hurricane (Galveston I think), that showed some homes that suffered damage from the hurricane. In the foreground of the picture was an S&K house on a Tri-tel pole that appeared to suffer no damage.

[Martintown33]

I have 2 s and k houses along with my gourd rack. The houses are 23 years old and going strong! Years ago, I replaced the plastic snaps that hold it together, with much stronger nuts and bolts. Any gaps are sealed with silicone caulk and I put 10 elbow vents in each house. It’s repainted every year completely white. I’ve reinforced some interior walls with cut pieces of pvc sheets. The compartments are 6x12 of course. I have weather stripping where the doors close and the compartments stay very dry. The martins love them and the first arrivals always pick them over the gourds, so i cant bring myself to get rid of them! They’re mounted on 2 inch square poles.
Rob

[Jones4381]

Thankful for this topic as I've been losing faith in my two SK houses (barn and house). Conrad, Thomabear, and Rob (akaMartin33) reconfirms my attempts to attract more birds this year and will continue using these as overflows from the 24 gourd rack. Had one of the clips snap (break) this past year and interested in Rob's comments on how he's modified the clips that keeps the doors closed if these become occupied this year. One clip is still holding the bottom row closed on the barn but it did concern me and I'll make an attempt to better secure it before ours arrive up here in mid-march+.

I'm going to move some of the naturals that were unoccupied last year on the big rack to put 6 below each house as I migrate towards the Excluder gourds on the primary. I'm interested in the chirpy boxes as well to maybe add next year to the primary rack. Wanted to say thanks for the topic and responses as it makes me think of replacing or keeping the tri-poles each year but not enough birds to justify another 2 grand with the wife for replacements. My biggest complaint with the tri-poles is the servicing during the season...never look forward to lowering and raising these 3 poles after using the winch on big boy.

[Conrad Baker]

I did open the compartments on my S&K houses. So, I have three compartments on each side, 6 inches by 12 inches. It gives them more room and I think it makes it more attractive to the birds.

[Birdiegirl]

Despite building and placing a T-14 last year, S&K barns seem to be the most popular housing with the martins in my area. And because they like them so much (and I want martins!), I have kept both barns but expanded the apartments to six/house- along with my T-14 and a few plastic gourds. I'm hoping with more housing options, I'll entice more martins. My barns are three years old and have held up inside and out. I take them in for the winter and clean them out before storing. This is year four for the barns, and so far so good!

Now about the tri-tel pole . A pain to raise and lower by yourself, okay with a friend. However- mine lasted only a year. We were hit with a freak summer storm and some nasty winds that buckled both my poles. No idea what the wind speed was. Both houses fell and I lost my first ever nests. Talk about heartbreak. Last year I upgraded to steel poles and a winch system, and it's been a nice improvement- easy to raise and lower quickly/by myself and much, much stronger. Maybe we were just unlucky- but if you choose to keep the poles, I'd recommend some sort of interior reinforcement. I seem to recall somewhere in the forum archives a few folks mentioned ways to do that. Maybe better safe than sorry?

Good luck this season!

[Conrad Baker]

Sorry about your loss Birdiegirl. You must have been devastated to find your nests ruined. I must admit that I "cheat" a little on my Tri-tel poles. There are two sections to raise with the main outer section staying in the ground sleeve. I only raise the 2nd 'middle' section which keeps the thinner 3rd inner section inside the pole itself. This makes for a stronger setup, even though it is only 12 feet high. But, the birds don't seem to mind, and it makes it easier to lower the houses for nest checks, etc. The only part of the inner pole is the section that actually goes into the S&K house. I have experienced some strong winds, and had no effect on the pole or houses. If I did raise the two sections to give the house maximum height, I would probably lower the houses one section if strong winds or storms were forecast. I think this would create confusion to the Martins if they returned to find the houses lower than normal, so I just raise the outer two sections, and have had very good luck (so far).

[Birdiegirl]

Oh yes- I definitely learned a valuable lesson. Even with steel poles now, I lower a bit when weather is coming. Can't be too safe, right!? That's good advice for those with Tri-tel- 12' seems plenty tall- not cheating, just careful planning . Have a great season!

[charlesgremillion]

I have an S&K barn and house both are four years old and holding up fine. I did repaint the barn this fall as it had faded, and I wanted to give a new look.