A comfortable room temp and humidity

[Mjhandy]

It's finally summer here in Southern Ontario. Yesterday was around 38C (100F) with very high humidity. Fine, but we don't have central air. House and furnace is too old. We do have portable AC units, but not in the bird room.

Right now the bird room is around 27C (80f), though they're all out right now. What's a safe way to cool the room, and what's an ideal ambient temp and humidity?

 

[Scott]

Keeping in mind your birds hail from tropical regions, the most important issue is acclimation. If they have spent one or more seasons in your area, best practice is to keep them shaded, provide plenty of drinking water/moist foods, and bathe/mist for temperature control.

Some of my cockatoos crave misting, others abhor water unless they choose to splash around in their drinking bowl.

Box-type or modern incarnations such as tower fans are helpful as long as you are absolutely certain there is no potential of blade damage.

Bottom line, I don't know of any ideal temp for SoCal residents. I used to live in Escondido and had central air, though some birds were not full time indoors. Gradual seasonal acclimation was a huge help. (similar climate with Ontario)

 

[Mjhandy]

Here in Ontario we get all extremes. Really hot and humid summers, and really cold winters.

I want to avoid the flock getting over heated, we could put a portable AC unit in the room, but the noise at night could be too much.

M

 

[Mjhandy]

I put an portable AC unit in the bird room. I think I'll only run it when the door is open and during the day. The birds are all over the house right now so it's fine, but when we're away at work it should keep the room cooler.

It may be too loud at night, but we'll see.

 

[SailBoat]

Check your portable unit for its fan control. The low or lowest speed setting is much quieter than the other setting(s). IMHO, the continuous low speed fan setting provides the best of all Worlds as it maintains a base noise level and provides a more balanced temperature.

The noise of 'window shakers' (portable air condition) is just that, the vibration of the window frame and the projection off the glass surface. Near all big box stores and most local hardware supply stores will have an AC mounting device that is mounted on the window sill and supports the bottom of the AC unit. This greatly reduces the overall noise level as majority of vibration is directed into the framing and not the window itself.

Note: Setting the AC unit at Max Cooling will not cool the area any faster than setting it at a target temperature and let the unit come to that temperature and the end result is the same. Plus, you do not over cool the area.

Ontario shares climate conditions from several regions depending on wind directions and the flow path of the Jet Stream. In short, your weather varies greater than near everyone in North America. That said, because Ontario spans over three to four climate regions, providing 'Weather' advice to anyone in Ontario requires knowing their location since there is a vast difference between being North of Lake Superior or North of Lake Ontario.

As Scott so very well stated, once your Parrot acclimates to your Weather conditions and you follow his directions your Parrot will suffer no more than the locals. Your Parrot will drop tons of downy feathers late Spring and during the Summer and will grow them back in the Winter. We target what we are comfortable with and find our Amazon to be as comfortable as we.

Winter time is more an issue with Parrots as a result of the very low humidity levels in the Great White North.

 

[Mjhandy]

Thanks guys,

I found out the this room and the one next are on the same circuit, so I can't run two portable AC units. I can run one, and then the second on the bird room with the fan on low.

Not ideal, and I may switch it for a tower fan.

 

[Donald2Chatara]

Check your portable unit for its fan control. The low or lowest speed setting is much quieter than the other setting(s). IMHO, the continuous low speed fan setting provides the best of all Worlds as it maintains a base noise level and provides a more balanced temperature.

The noise of 'window shakers' (portable air condition) is just that, the vibration of the window frame and the projection off the glass surface. Near all big box stores and most local hardware supply stores will have an AC mounting device that is mounted on the window sill and supports the bottom of the AC unit. This greatly reduces the overall noise level as majority of vibration is directed into the framing and not the window itself.

Note: Setting the AC unit at Max Cooling will not cool the area any faster than setting it at a target temperature and let the unit come to that temperature and the end result is the same. Plus, you do not over the cooling mats for dogs[/URL] the area.

Ontario shares climate conditions from several regions depending on wind directions and the flow path of the Jet Stream. In short, your weather varies greater than near everyone in North America. That said, because Ontario spans over three to four climate regions, providing 'Weather' advice to anyone in Ontario requires knowing their location since there is a vast difference between being North of Lake Superior or North of Lake Ontario.

As Scott so very well stated, once your Parrot acclimates to your Weather conditions and you follow his directions your Parrot will suffer no more than the locals. Your Parrot will drop tons of downy feathers late Spring and during the Summer and will grow them back in the Winter. We target what we are comfortable with and find our Amazon to be as comfortable as we.

Winter time is more an issue with Parrots as a result of the very low humidity levels in the Great White North.

Much appreciated folks, I discovered the this room and the one next are on a similar circuit, so I can't run two compact AC units. I can run one, and after that the second on the fledgling room with the fan on low.

 

[noodles123]

You don't want them to be near a draft from the AC. If you can, cool a different room and then see if you can use box fans to circulate the air. Birds can tolerate a range of temperatures as long as the transition is gradual. You don't want to swing the range back and forth by ten degrees or more if you can help it. They need time to adjust (as in days/weeks) if you are going to suddenly decrease or increase the temp by a lot. That having been said, you wouldn't want to keep your bird room much warmer than 80 for a prolonged period of time, as that will put stress on your birds over time.
I have read that humidity should be around 55%-60% in general, but I am not sure how temperature will impact this...This may also vary by species...Basically, you want it to be humid, but not so humid that mold becomes an issue (as that is a problem as well).

 

[SailBoat]

Temperature and Humidity function as a team.
As a general statement in Late Spring thru Early Fall in the Great White North it is easy to add Humidity to a home. In the dryness of Winter, maintaining /adding Humidity is far more difficult as the air outside is commonly drier than the interior of the home.

During the Summer months, we attempt to target an interior Humidity level (digitally measured) between 50 and 60% by using a dehumidifier with a target temperature in the mid 70 degree (F) range.
During the Winter months, we attempt to target a interior Humidity level (digitally measured) between 40 and 45% by using a whole house humidifier with a target temperature at or near 70 degrees (F) range.
It would be wonderful to target a higher Humidity in the Winter, but as the interior Humidity level approaches /exceeds 50% (digitally measured) moisture develops on Windows. This leads to the formation of mold in the home. During short periods of extreme cold weather moisture will form on Windows, this is not the same as it occurring during normal Winter temperature ranges.