The Latest Project out of the shop....bat houses now with link to photo essay

[Who]

Before they tore down Tampa Stadium, the former home of the Bucalosers, they had to find homes for over 250,000 bats, they wern"t very choosy

[WarmBidetWater]

I built one and it stayed vacant. It finally rotted off the tree and ended up in the trash can.

[Antknot]

Is the paint color critical? That dark color looks like it would heat up the thing. I always though that bats liked a cool as well as a dark place.

[megman]

I built one and it stayed vacant. It finally rotted off the tree and ended up in the trash can.

lots of sun;
at least 15 feet off the ground (to protect against predators); and
ideally a water source nearby (so the mother bat doesn't have to leave her young for too long).

Interestingly, bats are less attracted to bat houses mounted on trees. There's a few reasons for this:

It's too easy for predators to get bats as they exit
The branches causing obstructions to exiting bats which drop down then up into flight
It's too shady from branches above.

[Animal]

I built one and it stayed vacant. It finally rotted off the tree and ended up in the trash can.

lots of sun;
at least 15 feet off the ground (to protect against predators); and
ideally a water source nearby (so the mother bat doesn't have to leave her young for too long).

Interestingly, bats are less attracted to bat houses mounted on trees. There's a few reasons for this:

It's too easy for predators to get bats as they exit
The branches causing obstructions to exiting bats which drop down then up into flight
It's too shady from branches above.

yeah, because caves aren't shady at all.

[Animal]

Is the paint color critical? That dark color looks like it would heat up the thing. I always though that bats liked a cool as well as a dark place.

Actually, bats prefer a temperature range of around ninety degrees to 100 degrees. Yes, the black absorbs the heat to help with that.

north bats must be way different than south bats. down here you find them in caves and under bridges. dark, moist, cool, etc. they like to be upside down.

[beagleboy]

The easiest way to get a bat to move into your house is to install a garage for their mobiles. Guest house next door for the robin?

[WestTexasCrude]

Is the paint color critical? That dark color looks like it would heat up the thing. I always though that bats liked a cool as well as a dark place.

Actually, bats prefer a temperature range of around ninety degrees to 100 degrees. Yes, the black absorbs the heat to help with that.

So, Howie. I just had a question about your bat houses. It's hard to judge size in your photos. Approximately how many bats are each of those designed to "house"? Are the bats up North that much more of a smaller "family units". Down SouthWest. we have Mexican Freetailed bats. A colony of 50,000- 100,000 is considered kind of small.

[WestTexasCrude]

Is the paint color critical? That dark color looks like it would heat up the thing. I always though that bats liked a cool as well as a dark place.

Actually, bats prefer a temperature range of around ninety degrees to 100 degrees. Yes, the black absorbs the heat to help with that.

So, Howie. I just had a question about your bat houses. It's hard to judge size in your photos. Approximately how many bats are each of those designed to "house"? Are the bats up North that much more of a smaller "family units". Down SouthWest. we have Mexican Freetailed bats. A colony of 50,000- 100,000 is considered kind of small.

The prevalent bat in our area is the little brown bat. According to bat house sized estimates....my houses can hold upwards of like two to three hundred bats each. Though that is a pipe dream of achieving, but then, I am not an expert.

Sounds like an awesome project. Lived in the Austin Tx area for 15 years. Whole time, don't remember ever getting bitten by a mosquito ever. Knew what was solving the problem.

[WestTexasCrude]

There is actually a Worldwide leader in bat conservation efforts for the last 30 years. Promoting the species for their benefits. His name is Merlin Tuttle. Based in Austin. Bat Conservation International.

[WestTexasCrude]

Being the worldwide expert, he may have some clues on how to make your bat homes work out. Hope this helps.

[WestTexasCrude]

Hey, Howie. Here is the link to Tuttle's Bat Conservation International > http://www.batcon.org/ Looks like it has some helpful tips on bat habitats

[Animal]

So, wait. You are telling me that 300 bats can fit into that box?

[WestTexasCrude]

So, wait. You are telling me that 300 bats can fit into that box?

Tight fit.

[Reservoir Dog]

So, wait. You are telling me that 300 bats can fit into that box?

When I was a younger man I spent a couple of decades heavily involved in spelunking, and I'm here to tell you that those little flying rats can pack themselves in pretty tight.

[Animal]

Tight fit.

i'm going to guess that box is no more than 3 ft x 2 ft x 1 ft. that's 6 cubic feet. That would allow for 0.02 cubic feet per bat. Or 34 cubic inches. So those bats, if crammed in there, would average 3-1/4 inches tall, wide and thick. I guess it could be possible, but its hard to imagine.

[WestTexasCrude]

Tight fit.

i'm going to guess that box is no more than 3 ft x 2 ft x 1 ft. that's 6 cubic feet. That would allow for 0.02 cubic feet per bat. Or 34 cubic inches. So those bats, if crammed in there, would average 3-1/4 inches tall, wide and thick. I guess it could be possible, but its hard to imagine.

Mexican Freetailed around here. Pretty tiny. There is an underpass in Round Rock, Tx they migrate to. Estimated population (however they do that) of near 400,000. Fly out every night and I was there for over 15 years and don't remember ever getting bitten by a mosquito the entire time. Pretty amazing.

[WestTexasCrude]

Bats88 (375 x 500).jpg

Thats probably the ideal spot to place it; out in the open, no cover, and as much direct sunlight as possible. Good job

There are some basic things you have to adhere to to up your chances of attracting bats. Can't be near trees where predators can sit in wait to attack. Near a body of water...a certain height...positioning according to the sun...color of the houses in relation to the zone you live in and the intensity of the sun....

I'm thinking Biker is making some good points, though. You are approaching it from a bat house builder aspect.Not the bats. I'm no expert on bats, but I'm thinking high up, exposed to predators when you exit/ enter and direct sunlight is the opposite of what bat's are looking for. More like digging spaces underground is their preference. Cool temps, etc.

[Animal]

Here is the link to the entire building and erecting process...start to finish.

Jesus, how in the fuck did you raise that thing up? and how will you lower it to clean or repaint it?

[megman]

http://www.batcon.org/pdfs/bathouses/Ba ... iteria.pdf

[Animal]

If you check out the photo essay of the entire construction and erecting process, it explains that I built he bracket that holds it to the ground to have the pole pivot on a large bolt near the top of the bracket and is locked into an upright position by a slightly smaller bolt near the bottom. Now, it was certainly a heavy mother to get up there. The first plan was to have just my younger brother show up after work one day to help me lift it into place. Well, that didn't work. Ended up having a neighbor come over and the three of us managed to get it raised up. To pivot it back down for maintenance...I will have someone with a 2x4 with a round notch cut into the end to fit the pipe and use this to keep much of the pressure off during the pivot so that two other guys can lower it down.

No, i saw the picture with the pivot point method of raising and holding it into place. Its a very good idea. But that pivot point is so low and that bat house must weigh 200 lbs. I would have expected a pickup truck backed up to it with a guy standing on the roof trying to help get it up.

But I like the idea of the 2x4 with a fork in the top to use. When I was in college and we built a bonfire, we would make "fuck sticks". Which were long skinny logs with a fork in the end. We would put three of those on a tall (heavy) log to help lift it and push it into place.