Fun Family Project: How to Build a Bat House

By: Chrystle Fiedler, This Old House online

Shopping List

Supplies You Will Need

1. 2-by-4-foot section of ½-inch exterior-grade plywood

2. One 6-foot 1x2

3. ½-inch deer netting

4. Exterior latex paint (black and another dark color)

5. Low-VOC adhesive caulk

6. 1-inch deck screws

7. ⅜-inch staples

8. 3½-inch deck screws

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Tools List
Tools You Will Need
- Measuring tape
- Straightedge
- Combination square
- Spring clamps
- Safety glasses
- Jigsaw
- French curve and circle templates
- Drill/driver fitted with ¼-inch drill bit
- Caulking gun
- Paintbrush (2-inch)
- Foam roller (4-inch)
- Scissors
- Staple gun
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Photo: Wendell T. Webber

Introduction
Overview
Steps:
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12

11: Hang it up!

11. Hang it up!

Hang your bat house under the eaves of your house or from a tall, flat pole made from pressure-treated lumber. (Make sure to bury one-third of the lumber in the ground to keep it steady.) Attach it by driving 3½-inch deck screws through the corners into the siding or fascia of your house or, if you’re using a pole, along the middle at the top and bottom.

The bat house should be at least 15 feet off the ground, away from bright lights. Choose a place that faces south so that it gets plenty of sunlight (aim for 6 to 10 hours of exposure). This will keep it nice and hot—just the way bats like it!

To parents: Hanging the bat house is a job best left for adults. Just be sure to practice when you put it up.