Paint, toxic?

[Sugar Land]

I've cut wooden dividers for my trio house and had planned to paint them white.

Yesterday a friend gave me an article from the Houston Chronicle which cautioned landlords about the dangers of painted (wooden) PM houses. It stated paint was toxic to PM.

If this is true, could painting my porch dividers be "possibly" toxic?

Cheryl

[John Balga]

Hi Cheryl,
There should ne no harm in painting the dividers after you prime and finish them with an good exterior latex paint. Numerous wooden houses have been painted in the past as well as natural gourds. Sometimes painting the interior of the houses, which is heavily frowned upon causes odour problems if the incorrect kind of paint is used.
If you are still concerned, may I recommend using some aluminum insert dividers instead of wood. They can be cut to size, slit and inserted between the doors or drilled and attached to the dividers with screws of pop rivets. Some landlords also use high density styrofoam inserts or plastic corrugated cardboard which essentially achieves the same function. You didn't mention the type of Trio you were using. Trio also sells dividers for their houses but I often found them lacking due to their height. The martin could actually look over the divider and defeat the purpose for them. Essentially, they should be installed to the roof line if possible. I hope this helps. 8-)

[Sugar Land]

Thanks John, I will proceed with painting. No PMs yet but almost freezing last night...normally, by this time my garden has sprung to life...no flowers... no PMs...patience...patience...

[Terry Suchma]

Dear Cheryl,

I was interested in what you read and did find the article and read it. Martin houses have been painted for eons and nothing was much made from it. Considering that lead and oil-based additives have also been removed, while I am not a chemist, I wonder about this.

John has certainly given you good advice on this subject.

I just want to add that had you used cedar wood, you would not have to paint the wood. Having the dividers unpainted inside the house would not upset the martins.

Another suggestion would be to "clad" the wood you are using with pieces of white flashing making sure than any cut surface would not be sharp.

I have a message into a chemist friend of mine and hopeful he can address the statement (• Be wary of painted wooden boxes because the paint can be toxic to martins.) for us.

Good luck to you, Cheryl!

Terry

[Sugar Land]

John & Terry, thank you for guidance. If I undersand your replies, as these are dividers porch dividers for the outside of the house there should be no problem.

I'm thinking that I can safely use paint as they are not inside the house. Please correct me if I have misinterpreted. We are not handy with metal though I do have a friend that is very handy with same.

Regards, Cheryl