cleansing nest boxes question

[mrbright]

having had my first nest box inhabited this year , albeit a gimmicky one, i have read that after octoberish, they must be cleaned out to kill parasites, my question is, does this mean that birds nesting in tree holes never revisit the same hole?

[valleyforge]

Originally Posted by mrbright

... does this mean that birds nesting in tree holes never revisit the same hole?

No of course not, or good nesting sites would soon get all used up.

Birds do they're own spring clean and will discard soiled nesting material and replace with fresh each year. In fact they'll continue to do running repairs and minor top-ups as necessary throughout the nesting period.

However it is still good practise to clean & disinfect your nest boxes early in the season to ensure that the hatchlings are troubled as little as possible from the presence of parasitic invertibrates. You may occasionally also need to remove the corpses of birds that have died while sheltering in them over winter.

[mrbright]

many thanks for that, i am but a mere novice, having my first nesting birds in my garden , want to make sure its not the last.

[Elizabeth B]

According to the RSPB, the only thing you should use to kill off any mites etc in the box (after you have emptied out the nest/bodies/eggs etc) is boiling water, and this should be done in the Autumn.

[bobbarber]

Originally Posted by Elizabeth B

According to the RSPB, the only thing you should use to kill off any mites etc in the box (after you have emptied out the nest/bodies/eggs etc) is boiling water, and this should be done in the Autumn.

Make sure that it is thoroughly dry before re-fixing as many birds use nest boxes to roost in at night during the Autumn and Winter...Bob