Electric pole shocker should be high voltage, low amp. So it would only cause pain to the area that touches. Not whole body shock. (Amp=flowing of electricity)
Owl problem often face by standalones which surrounded by trees which some trees got owl nests on them. One of the expensive option is to clear up larger area trees. This option is call "Habitat Modification".

Some owner use trap outside BH to catch owls and relocate them. Spring net trap, bubu type traps did caught some owls before. Rat bait + rat glue did caught some smaller size owls but the glue not strong enough to hold larger owls.

Poisoned rat bait - No comment. since not allowed by wildlife act. Pandai-pandai lah.

Frightening - I've seen 1 BH hanging a dead/dried body of owl outside the BH to scare owls away. Works or not don't know.

Shooting - Since the owls are causing damage to BH......

then how about the size of entrance door for dog cannel??and how big is the standard?hope seeseng can share with us newbie ,thanks
and how about the distance the entrance door should install from ceiling and beam corner???thansks

The open roof type... i have never entered a BH which uses this... do standalones use this type? What i foresee are problems with rain/water... but i'm sure there are ways owners solve that. would it be suitable for standalones...? i really would like to know. My BH (not finished yet) is located in an area with plantations, lots of trees and most probably flying predators as well. I've seen some sort of helang, but so far no owls. I also am not aware of the nature of these predatory birds... yet. It might help a lot understanding them, like understanding the swiftlets. Know the enemy.

I am a bit in dilemma about the entry holes... the monkey house i have decided to put in the general direction of an open area (an ex-paddy field) that has enough space for the birds to circle. But the exact direction or opening of the entry hole... dunno yet. I was planning to open 2 holes initially... then gradually closing them. Maybe someone has some tips? At least i can bergaduh with the consultant. >.<

I did learn that the external walls should be plastered to prevent climbing animals enter... maybe the 1st floor only should be ok (budget). I was think of maybe putting atap zink around the external wall as well, so biawaks n the sort won't be able to climb. This a friend suggested since the National parks of some other country and possibly Malaysia did this for storks... they wrapped zink/other material around the trunks of trees where birds made nests so predators like biawak and ular can't eat the chicks. But this will look a bit horrible... maybe ugly.

you cant really see a owl in days time and when this predator come u will gonna say this to ur chick [Ha Sai Zoi Kin].
open roof use by standalone is not an good idea.think twice !!!

lol, i see. i'll think more than twice since it might decide the fate of my BH. thanks for the advice.

mmm... meaning to say i'll have to stay overnight a few times to observe the presence of owls? I remember when i was in the states (boy scouts) we used to observer owl shits/pellets (mainly fur & bones/indigestible stuff), and if not mistaken the pellets are regurgitated. Not sure about local owls, but maybe i should check out possible perching areas for them. Crap, the BH is in a scary area and the nearest house is about 1km away... have to ajak a friend to teman. Scary. >.<

can anyone recommend a good brand of the electric shock security thing? or recommend a person who is capable of installing it.

This post has been edited by dunsuntutmybuntut: Mar 9 2009, 09:33 PM

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But West Wing, siewaan's BH is open roof leh... But does owl nose dive to open roof entrance hole when they fly ? )

An owl will be a problem to any design you make and I feel that the open air well design give swiftlets a equal chances to escape . If your opening is what a small, like a auto gate you might as well forget getting alot of birds into your BH in a short time.

Even just like my next door BH having a thousand birds suffered after some modification to make a metal grill entrance to prevent thief even though no one has broken into his BH. His birds are so scare to fly in and I was happy then for thanks to him for some wonderful present; although some do fly through the metal bars but others stayed aovernight at my hotel next door and some of those birds are my guests now. Since it was a windfall, I kept so quite about the whole matter but then my neighbour seem to know about his problem and remove the grill.........that is the end of my windfall's fortune.

If you understand my above story, you will know how to plan your BH well...... Use any thing else like spot light shining outward during the night but never create too small an opening. Owls do not like bright light shining into their eyes. On it from 8.30pm to 5 am or use the electrical shocking type and thank to my friend here......was it high voltage but low amp, right?

Luckily, I do not have any of your problems as all my BHs are in town but then town's problems just started to begin and for that I am very afraid....not for myself but for my wonderful swiftlets.

[quote=tongserseng,Mar 9 2009, 01:14 PM]
[quote=siewann,Mar 8 2009, 10:32 PM]
4)Solar system- since my bh is in farmland without any power and water, i am using solar system drsign from local company. this system is coming with audio and all the timer like auto door(close at 8pm, open at 6:30am), light, humifier, cctv. So far the system is working pretty good, because my audio is never down(touch wood). This system can be stand 7 days without sunlight.
This kind of technique are rare in swiftlet farming..........
Solar system....... Where to get the water supply for humidifier ???? Can share ????????
How much is the total cost for the system ?????? Can introduce the supplier ??????????
Thanks !!!!!!!!!!!!!

[/quote]

the solar system is design by TELETRON. the person who incharge is call chalie tel: 0126388900. i pay more than 20k for that. the price will vary for differ location, because of weather. the system will only supply power, i got water from "Hutan" lah.

Swiftlet rearing provides ecological balance: Tiong

SIBU: Swiftlet rearing can have a positive impact on the environment as it helps in the ecological balance, which is important for the survival of plants and animals.

Sarawak Timber Association (STA) vice-chairman Tan Sri Datuk Tiong Hiew King said as one of the balancing agents in the ecology system, swiftlets had been known to eat up insects and other pests.

“In addition, places with low population of Aedes mosquitoes are those with many swiftlets,” Tiong said yesterday, adding that recent studies had shown that swiftlet farming had positive bearing on the environment.

In this connection, he hoped that swiftlet farming is encouraged in Sarawak.

“I hope the authority would work closely with swiftlet farmers to formulate good management and environment-friendly procedure on the venture. This will also ensure the growing swiftlet population in town,” he said at the tree planting campaign in conjunction with National Landscape Day at Lorong Lada 8A/2 here.

He, however, said swiftlet farming was just one of the facets to maintain ecological balance in the environment.

Tree planting was just as important as it helped in greening the environment.

Although I do not have a standalone farm, I also like to learn the best way to tackle the owl problem as much as you do. This is useful for my future standalone farm.

However, I recently have learnt that owls are protected by law and cannot be harmed or harassed. So, if we kill the owl for the survival of BH, IMO, it is considered equally guilty like killing the swiftlet.

The ultimate solution is to chase them away or prevent them from entering the BH and I think electric pole shocker, trap & relocation should be effective. How to capture it? I just wonder in Malaysia is there any animal control centre, may be we can consult them?

Installing spot lights at night and hanging shiny strips of paper (waterproof type) may also help scare the owls away.

As for frightening with dead owl, some people said it is working because the owl may think it is real and this area is this owl’s territory and it will go find another place to live. But I still have doubt on it. If the owl’s corpse is effective, why not we replace it with a scarecrow or fake plastic owl where it is more hygienic? What if it does not turn out as expected? Will our swiftlets fear of this fake predator bird and all leave the area overnight?

This post has been edited by Engineer Lee: Mar 10 2009, 11:37 AM

I don't think displaying dead owl can be practical. How long can a owl's corpse last ? 2 weeks ? Even if it can last up to 1 month, monthly replacement is still a problem let alone owls are protected by law.

Hi guys,


Thanks for your answers.

What is a better opening for BH a dog kennel or open air top?... i was told that the birds glide in side ways rather than dive in... any advise?

Also, should the opening face sun down?

This post has been edited by imad: Mar 10 2009, 12:46 PM

Very good suggestion I wound say. May I add that BHs in towns should be encourage to build roof garden. The roof garden not only provide beauty to the town but also provide eco friendly environment. The shit may act as fertilizer and the whole concept is a natural gaint filteration system plus temperature controlled system, too. Thank you, Tan Sri.....for telling the truth and so well said.

I dream of a day that I would rest @ my roof garden after having a hard day work @ BH........wonderful life won't you think so and enjoying listening to the smooth new bird songs while having refreshment.

---

Added on March 10, 2009, 1:13 pmNever build a DK type in Town as it is so unpleasant and unpleasing. Most local council will object to this method and unless your's already has one that look like a DK. Air well type is not so obvious and it is good for air circulation which is good for health with any VH on the front or back of the shop that really look so ugly. Divert all VHs in the air well and the air well also act as a heat insulation for the BH.


From my experience with swiftlets and through my observation over the year using an open air well with a runaway of about 15 feet which is already there when I bought the building so not extra cost.

The swiftlets glide into the air well like a plane and into the BH and shot out when they are not sure. Gradually, when they know the area well and that after a year or two, you will see them dropping in and then glide into the entrance. I called that helicopter in to the BH.

That's my finding and hope that the above help you in your BH venture.

This post has been edited by West Wing: Mar 10 2009, 01:13 PM

Introducing roof gardening to a BH is not something impossible. It is a good concept of full optimization of space usage for a building. Nowadays, it is quite common to see the roof top garden in the city area’s condominiums or on top of the elevated/suspended podium. The architect names it as “environmental deck” as it is environmental friendly whereby the landscape & plants are used to soften the hardness of concrete structures.

However, we must take into account of the followings to prevent problems happen to the BH and these few things should not be looked lightly:

1) We must make sure that the roof slab can withstand the additional loads from the top soil and the granular fill. This is to ensure that the slab does not collapse or fail.

2) We must make sure that the roof slab has proper drainage system by providing sufficient floor trap and enough gradient to fall for discharging the rain water. We should try to prevent water ponding by granular filling and laying of geo-textile (water separator) prior to earth filling. Too much water stagnant will cause leaking problem and also the water soaking in the earth or saturated earth is very heavy and will be detrimental to the structure.

3) If the slab is unlikely to take the extra load from the granular material, we should consider doing waterproofing on top of the roof slab. The waterproofing area should be properly protected prior to earth filling.

4) Plants should be planted or potted plants should be placed as near as possible to the columns area, if not the beams.

There’s all I can think of at the moment. Just for sharing. Thanks.

IMO the main problem still be waterproofing. How many waterproofing vendors out there can guarantee more than 10 yr no leaking? Even that how are you going to solve waterproofing problem thereafter?

Sometimes, cheap and good still best option compare to complicated and problematic option.

my fren using spotlight oso not use ...the owl oso can going inside n eat all the babie swiftlet... if in out town better think twice to prevent owls

My friend also got the same problem. he use electric shock + sportlight also not use. but his entrance hole is at the side wall. all his bird dead(about 300) and wait almost 5~6 month to get back some bird

Electric shock, spotlight and glue are not a long term solution and the owl problem still come back. Observed from a friend standalone farm, the best solution is auto gate with a small opening and set the right time for the opening/closing.

Rgds,

This senior gentleman I met in Pontianak HM seminar taught me a system that guarantees to work. He got 4 BH all four stories and also process 100 kg of nest per months. All his farms suffered owls attacks. He fitted powerful disco flashing lights and a sensor on top of the entrance of the BH. The sensor can be set to different sensitivity .An automatic timer armed the light from 9pm to 6am. When an owl flies near the BH entrance it will trigger the disco light to give a powerful flash. None of his BH have problem with owl since then.

Another note, I will not switch on the humidifier in a new BH. When birds populations starts to increase only then will set the humidity to 80 and 85 max. And switch off during raining season. Recently I visited 3 BH where the owner is too eager and have pools and fountains inside the BH and only remedy now is to change all the nesting planks.

My good friend Mr. Ling’s 3 year old BH with 1000 nest doesn’t even have a bucket of water in his BH. My take is that the swift lets don’t mind the dry condition. I would turn up the humidifier to 90 for a couple of days before harvesting to prevent broken nest. Mr. Lind commented that some nests does get partially detached from the NP.

My 2 cents.

actually what is the good solution fro standalone fram prevent owl???
any sifu here can tunjuk ajar???????

autogate or electric or spot light????

which type of entrance door is easy enter by owl????open air???dog cannel??side window??????

how the owl enter the entrance door??????

This post has been edited by sosos: Mar 11 2009, 07:30 AM

Hi Uncle Ben,

Your main concern for not switch on the humidifier for new BH is to prevent the fungus grow at the planks right? Is there any other reason like the birds do not like the noise from humidifier?

Even if you turn on the humidifier when the bird population is a lot, the fungus issue still there right?

Btw, humidifier help to reduce the temperature in the BH as well. If we never turn on the humidifier for new BH, how you control the temperature?

Sorry for too many questions.