How to clean bird (or possibly chameleon) poop?

[Syn]

So I got this REALLY nice wood and screen cage.. Unfortunately there is no screen top so the lights will be at an angle to the outside of the cage (the old one is INSIDE and we're trying to take it out) and to top it all off, the wood that was for the enclosure is screwed or stapled into the wood.

That's why it was so cheap, I'm assuming.

Anyways, I've been spraying at the leaves and the bird poop (or a TON of chameleon poop, looks like it's accumulated..) for about 15 minutes and it won't come off. I'm wondering if there's some magic solution or something to get the gunk off!

The only reason I think it might be bird poo is because she does a rescue and saves birds, iguanas, and recently a chameleon, so she may have temporarily housed a bird in the cage...

I'LL POST PICTURES OF IT LATER!


Thanks.


(Oh and my title looks misleading from the front page LMAO sorry if you thought I was going to teach you how to clean a bird! )

 

[Sang]

lots of heat with the water.. hot water should break stuff down, also soak it, let it get soft, and then use like a good spray gun with alot of pressure behind it.

 

[Malicious]

Post a picture Syn if you can, I wanna see what ya got. The only way to really get stuff off of wood like that is to soften it with a soapy water solution, and use a scrub pad and if needed a metal scraper. Option 2 would be the use of a pressure washer, if you dont have one the local token car wash will, just be careful with the pressure and the screen. Follow that up with a mild bleach and water solution to disinfect, 10% bleach and 90% water will do just fine. Caked of stuff like that just requires time and elbow grease! Good luck

 

[Sang]

that should work as well, when using the bleach solution, just make sure to rinse really well, and let it sun dry.

 

[Syn]

My mom helped me take the leaves out thank goodness. Didn't need to be stapled anyways. All that's left are the branches. Will hand wash the leaves.

Posting some pictures in a few.

 

[Syn]

The old bulb is in the corner. Trying to find a way to get it out.

Side view.

Now you can see how it's in there - looks like it was built around it!

 

[tv321406]

what is that little critter peeking out of the house thingy in the second picture??

 

[Malicious]

what is that little critter peeking out of the house thingy in the second picture??

Looks like a meercat...

Edit: Actually looks like a skeleton of a regular cat!!

 

[Syn]

LMFAO! That's the wheel on the neighbor's wheelbarrow thingy. That scared me poop-less.

 

[Sang]

hey sabrina, you know the lenoleum tiles they make with the sticky pads
pop those on the bottom right, make them fit really well.


then use sillicone gel to seal it, the amount of watter that goes in will rot that wood. since its a flat bottom plywood, if you can it'd be a good idea to try and modify the bottom to have a slope..so the water moves out one way

 

[tv321406]

oooooh now i see. i thought it was a lemur haha

 

[Syn]

Will do Sang, I'll probably add a bit of wood to one side of the stand.

Yep we got some good eat'ns in Arizona.. Lemurs are gooood, like some chickens and potatoes..

 

[Sang]

that'd be a bandicoot if that was the case ... not a lemur.

also that tack board can easly be replaced with mesh.

 

[Syn]

Not a clue how I'd do that.

 

[sandrachameleon]

Looks a lot like my cages I use peg board on wood framed cages.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/members/sandrachameleon-albums-cage.html
Dont replace the peg board with screen. Peg board provides a nice visual barrier, stops drafts, releases heat and humidity more slowly, protects wall behind from mister overspray, and is sturdy for attaching feeder cups, plants, branches to.

You might want to cut out the top wood (jig saw would work) and replace with a screen section, so you can house the light outside the cage and on top. The staples for the existing light cord should be not too hard to remove with plyers or similar. If the old light wire is sandwiched between the top boards, and you dont want to dismantle (or cant due to glue) just cut the cord as flush as you can. If you cant get flush on the inside and there is a sharp bit, cover with silicon. You'll want to paint the wood to protect from water. I used zero VOC latex acrylic. And youre artistic so can be creative in the painting too - use multiple colours and paint a jungle.

Soften the poop with hot water or a steamer. Use a spatchula or scrubber pad to remove. I'd use a mild bleach or peroxide solution as well, in case whatever was in there was unwell.

 

[Syn]

Thanks Sandra! I will probably remove the top, just gotta figure out how to add screen to make it look nice, or possibly make the top removable for the lighting. Zero VOC latex acrylic.. that will be a later project. I don't plan on moving anything in just yet, but I will if I ever get the chance! Might just be an outside cage for the veiled during nice months, probably during the late fall.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

If you don't care about the light just cut the cord and pull it out from both ends.
You need to have the UVB coming from the top so you will have to figure out screening it.

-Brad

 

[Sang]

screening shouldn't be hard, once she jigsaws the top out. if you have access to a high powered stapler, or hammer stapler.. HD stapler, you can get alluminum mesh and put it over the area which you removed, staple one side, stretch out the mesh to get it tight, and stape the the rest.. as long as you leave something to staple the mesh down to, then depnding if any goes all the way through, just bend them in and heavy coat of paint over them.

 

[sandrachameleon]

Thanks Sandra! I will probably remove the top, just gotta figure out how to add screen to make it look nice....

Trim is a poor carpenters good friend.

 

[Syn]

If you don't care about the light just cut the cord and pull it out from both ends.
You need to have the UVB coming from the top so you will have to figure out screening it.

-Brad

Brad I'll probably have to take out the top - I was thinking about that if worst came to worst but then I remembered the whole UVB thing. Thanks.

Trim is a poor carpenters good friend.

I'll need a ton of it.

if you have access to a high powered stapler, or hammer stapler.. HD stapler, you can get alluminum mesh and put it over the area which you removed, staple one side, stretch out the mesh to get it tight, and stape the the rest..

I'm glad I have some friends who build houses for a living.