Bat House Progress

I spent this afternoon soaking in the January sun while cutting up two sheets of plywood and two 1×6 planks.

Result:

All the pieces are in place for the double bat house; I still need to cut some 1 1/2″ access holes in the dividers to allow the bats to move around inside the houses (to find the right temperatures as the days pass). Likewise I must still cut 1/2″ side vents. I have cut grooves horizontally on all inside surfaces for the bats to grip; it was a dusty pain in the rump to get done but it is behind me.

Below, the two houses are roughly stacked together to check fit; the top is to the left and the roof boards aren’t in the picture.

The roof boards will cover the top along with some scavenged rusty galvanized metal roofing; while open you can look into the top of the houses and see the dividers separating the individual chambers:

The division of the interior is more apparent from the bottom; there are 4 chambers in each and when mounted back to back an extra chamber will be created between the two houses. Access holes will be cut to allow the bats to move between the houses. (One will have southern exposure and the other northern exposure; this gives multiple choices for the bats as far as temperature goes inside the houses.

I doubt I’ll get them finished tomorrow- even if I make the final cuts and get them assembled, I’ll still need to apply caulking and stain.

Stay tuned….