Building Bird Houses For
Wrens, Bluebirds and More

When building bird houses it's important to know what types of birds you'll be building the house for. One size does not fit all when it comes to building bird houses. Blue birds and wrens have different size requirements. (Chart below.)

While it's possible to get birds to nest in any bird house you build, you'll have greater success attracting the birds you want by building nest boxes to the proper size, and using the correct materials and dimensions.

There are about 50 different North American birds that will use man-made bird houses. With so much competition from house sparrows and starlings it's important that we help by building properly constructed bird houses where we can.

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Some of the types of birds that use bird houses are: Bluebirds, Wrens, Chickadees and Tree Swallows.

Building a bird house can be a wonderful way to spend time with children. It can be a fun way for a child to learn about nature and stay entertained at the same time.

The chart below will be useful to more experience woodworkers in building bird houses for some of the more common types of birds.

Building Bird Houses

Some things to keep in mind when building bird houses are:

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Choose the right material to build your birdhouses. Birds in the wild nest in old trees, fence post or utility poles, wood is the preferred material for building bird houses.

Ideally, a naturally decay-resistant wood such as cedar, redwood or a good grade of exterior plywood is best for building bird houses.

Wood should be 3/4" thick anything less will allow heat to build up which is detrimental to young birds.

Avoid using paint, especially dark paint (absorbs heat) Natural looking houses will be more attrative to birds.

Make sure that you provide proper drainage so as to keep the nest and its contents dry. You can do this with an ample overhang on the roof and 1/4" drain holes bored in each corner of the floor.

Ventilation can be provided by drilling 1/2" vent holes at the top of each side or with a ventilation gap between the roof and sides.

The hole dimension probably is the most critical when building bird houses. If it's too small, your chosen bird species may not be able to enter the house. If it's too large, it could allow bigger, more aggressive species such as starlings or sparrows to use the houses.

Predator guards are another necessary feature. These can be as simple as an additional piece of wood at the entry hole to add more "depth" to the face of the box.

This makes it more difficult for a predator to reach into the nest. You also can drill the entry hole at an angle to deflect a predator's reach up and away from the nest.

Never add a perch when building bird houses. Birds don't need it, but it could be an advantage to predators.

Once the young are ready to fledge, building an easy exit is necessary. This can be done in several ways. You can place the rough side of the wood to the inside of the house, you can score the inside of the box or you can add a piece of small gauge screen or small pieces of wood to act as a ladder for the young birds.

You also must provide easy access for clean out. You can do this simply by hinging the front panel or one of the side panels or by having a removable floor or roof.

Building bird houses is a hobby that can be fun and rewarding. Consider giving bird houses as gifts to friends and family. Even if they are not now a birdwatcher, they might become one once they see a family of birds nesting in the house that you built.

In addition to building bird houses consider building or puchasing a nesting shelf. Some birds, such as the American Robin, Eastern Phoebe, Barn swallows, and Mourning Doves can be attracted to nest on these. Give it a try, you might be surprised.

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Springwater Bird Condo 
This house was built with the talents of 2nd & 3rd grade children from the Springwater Environmental (charter) School located just outside Oregon City,...

Extreme Birdhouses  
Hi
This is one of many Extreme birdhouses that I have built. It is made from 80 year old reclaimed barn wood. They range from 2 ft up to 9 ft wide and ...

Many Simple Houses  Not rated yet
Most of them are made from cedar.
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Administration Says: Thats quite a lot of birdhouses. What types of birds are you getting to nest ...