A nice small town in the South
Using staircase as an entrance is always problem unless it is big enough.
Wrong partitioning and black paint painted in the wrong area.
There were gaps on the upper part of the partition. I wonder whose idea was this or from where its originated?
The bars would kill the birds. They will hit on it. It is too thin for the echolocation re-bounce.
Internal tweeters shouldn't be facing nesting room. Speaker wire daggling is another trap that kills birds.Last week I was in Simpang Regam a nice small town located in the South to look at a Bh which is not doing well.
I have spoken with Mr. M the owner of the Bh few months back. He had explained the situation he is facing, less than 5 nests after a year of operation. But he didn’t know what has gone wrong. He had tried to get few Swiftlet farm gadgets to improve the Bh but it doesn’t seem to help.
I supposed to have visited his Bh in May if I could remember but had postponed it few times due to my busy schedule. “My apology to Mr.M for the delay”. Anyhow last week I squeezed in the time to see this Bh that needs help.
This Bh is located at a strategic area unfortunately it fails to attract birds to stay and to make nests. There were plenty of birds came and play but they don’t stay and make nests.
I reached S.Regam at noon and Mr. M already waiting at the main road for me as I called him he was just standing opposite the road.
Before seeing the Bh I’ve already anticipated the Internal environment & the Design is the problem to this Bh. I told Mr.M there are many things needed to be done as we walk up to the Bh.
As anticipated the whole internal environment was out. This was due to the design and the renovation of the Bh by the previous person who undertake this Job. All the windows were only sealed with ceiling board though there were Styrofoam in between but that is not good enough. It is somehow artificial, it has no moist retention action. Mr.M should have used bricks instead. I have seen many failed Bhs using this method to do walls. It is cheap but at the end the farm fails. I don't encourage this method.
The ceiling temperature was 34C recorded on my sensor gun but Mr. M didn’t know about it until I show him. There is a hygrometer in the Bh but it was on the floor close to the humidifier and the reading shows average. Birds built nests on planks which are at the ceilings not on floor. Furthermore hot air rises the hygrometer should be put 1 feet below the ceiling and this would show the actual temperature and humidity.
The design of the farm restricted the movement of the air as well as the flying path of the birds. Birds hate this kind of farm design.
There were so many things needed to be done. For me I would want to demolish the whole internal and re-do it like building a new one. But I can’t ask Mr.M to do that because he had already spent so much money in it.
The Bh was too dark with Black paint, young birds having hard time to find their ways in and out as the results many won’t fly into the nesting area.
The tweeters arrangement was another problem. Instead of facing the entrance hole most of the internal tweeters were facing the nesting area this confuses the birds.
There're 101 things needed to be done. I ask Mr. M to remove all the partitions and make new ones at different areas which I had marked. Practically re-design the whole Bh.
I gave him a list , things that needed to be done speaker arrangement, sound system, partitioning, entrance hole size, height of the Dog kennel, etc.
I hope after this he would learn and understand Swiftlet farming the right way.
Good Swiftlet Farming All!