Hi!
I'm Deanna and live just outside of Austin.
I had my sprinkler on about a month ago and we watched some martins zooming and swooping and I was hooked. Wow!! It was amazing!!
Some of my neighbors have the metal houses on poles but not a single one takes it down or cleans them so I am on my own here.
You guys here are *so* knowledgeable about these birds and I hope to learn alot.
I am reading all I can on these birds and hope to have something ready for them for next season. They are in the area so I just need to put together a housing setup for them and hope they move in.
I'm trying to build my own setup for as cheap as I can. I have a pulley (yardsale find that I *knew* I would find a use for one day!) that I hope to use and DH has agreed to plant a pole for me. I've chosen a spot for it(middle of the back property line- there is a small 4 foot high chain link fence but plenty of space all around) but where in the world do I get a really tall pole? Home Depot? Any cheaper alternatives?? I even thought about somehow using my big giant dead sattelite dish's pole (I plan on freecycling the dish but was thinking of keeping the pole) but I don't think it is tall enough and it is in the corner of the yard close to a fence and a power pole.
This seems to be the first hurdle for me and I'm not doing so good here. Can y'all offer some advice please?
Deanna
Hi! And pole question
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CUL Lou~Mich
Deanna. You could go to the top of this page where it says PMCA Shop, click on that, then look at housing. I'd think there should be poles in with the housing. I'll also send you another link to a competitor via Private Message. CUL Lou
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Dale Davis
Hi Deanna, I agree with Lou, check in the PMCA shop section and you should find a pole.
I also suggest you get a ground socket with the pole in case you find later on you have to move it for some reason. It will make the job a lot easier.
Also keep in mind the weight of your house and purchase a sturdy enough pole to handle the weight and possible wind from thunderstorms.
Good luck to you in 2006.
Dale
I also suggest you get a ground socket with the pole in case you find later on you have to move it for some reason. It will make the job a lot easier.
Also keep in mind the weight of your house and purchase a sturdy enough pole to handle the weight and possible wind from thunderstorms.
Good luck to you in 2006.
Dale
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Emil Pampell-Tx
- Posts: 6743
- Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2003 1:26 pm
- Location: Tx, Richmond (SW of Houston)
- Martin Colony History: First started in Gretna, La in 1969 with a small homemade house, have had martins ever since at 2 different homes in Texas
There is one kind of pole that you should avoid, that is the telescoping pole. It is very weak, often difficult to go up and down, and sort of dangerous, as it can quickly cut or pinch your hands. It often bends in high winds, and then you will need a replacement
A pole should be carefully chosen, depending upon the weight that you put on it. A metal pole with a winch is the most desirable of all poles, because it is lightweight, relatively strong, and it truly makes the martin hobby very enjoyable. The winch is the secret, if you can raise & lower the house very easily, then you will enjoy it more.
About building your own, this can be challenging without experience. A wooden 4x4 treated pole is an excellent choice, but it is very heavy, you may need several men to put it up. You will also need a good method to hold the pole up. Once you have the pole up with the pulley at the top, then it gets much easier. I have one wooden pole, it is very strong, and the pulley & winch can be attached with screws, nuts & bolts. The 4x4 wooden pole does warp sometimes, so it may get a bit crooked. If you are interested, I can post photos of my pole, the sliding assembly, and the angle iron that holds it up. The angle iron is cemented into the ground.
If you use a metal pole, you may need someone to do some welding to make it servicable. Its usually hard to find a welder that wants to work on a birdhouse pole. The housing should be approx 13 to 16 feet above the ground. If you put it higher, the pole needs to be stronger due to high winds. Junkyards sometimes have 2-1/2 to 3in metal pipe, often oilfield pipe, it sometimes sells for about $1 per foot, but you will need a welder to cut it & and to attach the pulley..
If you purchase a pole with a winch, inquire about the amount of weight that you can put on it. In Austin, a great choice is gourds instead of a house. Most martins prefer gourds to a house. Also, you probably will have less trouble keeping away the sparrows & starlings if you use gourds.
It is best to put a predator guard on the pole as you are erecting the setup. Snakes can climb any pole that you put up. For a predator guard, I slip a 4ft long piece of pvc pipe over the pole. It is the cheapest predator guard, I have used them for about 13 years and the pvc pipe works. However, you will not be able to lower the housing any lower than the 4ft predator guard alllows. Other guards are available but they are not always effective, and you must be careful about the height that you install them, as snakes are very good climbers.
Lastly, to avoid starlings, I would suggest that you start with the SREH (starling resistant entry holes), and then you would only need to trap or shoot the sparrows.
Austin has plenty of martins, they are relatively easy to attract if your yard is open. It is good that you are getting started now, it would be nice to have it completely ready to go before the martins arrive..
If you ever have martins, you will probably fall in love with them, they are so graceful, so loyal to your housing, they come back to the same pole every year, fun to watch, very vocal. Enjoy them & Good luck
A pole should be carefully chosen, depending upon the weight that you put on it. A metal pole with a winch is the most desirable of all poles, because it is lightweight, relatively strong, and it truly makes the martin hobby very enjoyable. The winch is the secret, if you can raise & lower the house very easily, then you will enjoy it more.
About building your own, this can be challenging without experience. A wooden 4x4 treated pole is an excellent choice, but it is very heavy, you may need several men to put it up. You will also need a good method to hold the pole up. Once you have the pole up with the pulley at the top, then it gets much easier. I have one wooden pole, it is very strong, and the pulley & winch can be attached with screws, nuts & bolts. The 4x4 wooden pole does warp sometimes, so it may get a bit crooked. If you are interested, I can post photos of my pole, the sliding assembly, and the angle iron that holds it up. The angle iron is cemented into the ground.
If you use a metal pole, you may need someone to do some welding to make it servicable. Its usually hard to find a welder that wants to work on a birdhouse pole. The housing should be approx 13 to 16 feet above the ground. If you put it higher, the pole needs to be stronger due to high winds. Junkyards sometimes have 2-1/2 to 3in metal pipe, often oilfield pipe, it sometimes sells for about $1 per foot, but you will need a welder to cut it & and to attach the pulley..
If you purchase a pole with a winch, inquire about the amount of weight that you can put on it. In Austin, a great choice is gourds instead of a house. Most martins prefer gourds to a house. Also, you probably will have less trouble keeping away the sparrows & starlings if you use gourds.
It is best to put a predator guard on the pole as you are erecting the setup. Snakes can climb any pole that you put up. For a predator guard, I slip a 4ft long piece of pvc pipe over the pole. It is the cheapest predator guard, I have used them for about 13 years and the pvc pipe works. However, you will not be able to lower the housing any lower than the 4ft predator guard alllows. Other guards are available but they are not always effective, and you must be careful about the height that you install them, as snakes are very good climbers.
Lastly, to avoid starlings, I would suggest that you start with the SREH (starling resistant entry holes), and then you would only need to trap or shoot the sparrows.
Austin has plenty of martins, they are relatively easy to attract if your yard is open. It is good that you are getting started now, it would be nice to have it completely ready to go before the martins arrive..
If you ever have martins, you will probably fall in love with them, they are so graceful, so loyal to your housing, they come back to the same pole every year, fun to watch, very vocal. Enjoy them & Good luck
Last edited by Emil Pampell-Tx on Wed Aug 03, 2005 9:45 am, edited 1 time in total.
PMCA Member, 250 gourds, 6 poles, 2traps
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Guest
Setting up martin housing for the first time can be an extremely confusing and frustrating experience. There is lots of reading to do and you will receive tons of advice - some of it will apply to you situation some will not. The mistakes made can be costly and take a long time to change.
I would strongly recommend that you try to speak to local landlords, they are in a position to know best what works in your area. Even better go to PMCA home page and click on the Mentor Program, locate a mentor in your area and contact him/her. The mentor will probably be willing to visit your site and give you sound advice.
Here is a good pole mounting article:
http://home.earthlink.net/~chuckabare/t14mtg.htm
(Chuck Abares is great reading for PM landlords)
Good luck.
I would strongly recommend that you try to speak to local landlords, they are in a position to know best what works in your area. Even better go to PMCA home page and click on the Mentor Program, locate a mentor in your area and contact him/her. The mentor will probably be willing to visit your site and give you sound advice.
Here is a good pole mounting article:
http://home.earthlink.net/~chuckabare/t14mtg.htm
(Chuck Abares is great reading for PM landlords)
Good luck.