L Winebun

I had a quick question.   I was looking for natural oils to coat some birdhouse gourds we grew last year.  First time growing them and using them for birdhouses.  I didn't want to use anything that the birds could possibly scratch at like paint or sealant.  
Would olive oil spoil and be dangerous for birds?  

Thanks
Larry

Kelly Craig wrote:The primary danger of oil soaked rags is with hardening oils, like tung oil and linseed and other such oils.  The reason they are a problem is, they react with oxygen in the course of hardening. The reaction generates heat.

For that reason, I spread my rags out so they get a lot of air during the hardening process. It's kind of cool. Take an old diaper, for example, saturate it with boiled linseed oil, shape it and let it harden (again, with lots of air around it). You end up with a pretty cool, hard rag you can paint (you, not me, because I have the talent of a kindergartner).

L. Johnson wrote:In my amateur woodworking adventures I've mostly been steered towards using drying oils for wood finishes. The advice has always been to avoid oils that go rancid and don't polymerize. I guess if you're using them outdoors and not for skin contact or food contact it doesn't really matter though does it?

My plan for otherwise useless vegetable oils was to one day use as a lamp oil. I've heard most will burn fine, even very old rancid ones.