Bat House

I got to try out my new DeWalt table over the April 1st weekend by building a four-chamber bat house. This is a pretty large house, and it took the good part of a day to cut the lumber and put it together. The inside was stained a dark brown, and the outside the same black as the house. It will supposedly hold close to one hundred bats. The inside surfaces were grooved with the saw, cutting 1/8" deep grooves 3/4" apart. Everything was caulked and sealed and put together with deck screws.

By the way, you cannot fit a half-sheet of plywood into a Prius, no matter how hard you try. Thankfully, Cluss Lumber loaned me a tie-down strap, and I tied the two pieces to the roof of the car. I have got to get an old pick-up truck to haul stuff.

The house was mounted on the south side of the barn, under the eaves. In retrospect, it would have been a good idea to measure the space that was proposed for mounting prior to building the bat house, but in the end, it fit pretty well. It is out of the rain, but in direct sunlight all morning.

It will probably be some time before bats occupy the house. We do see them around at dusk, but not as many as should be there.