Having to potentially do a pipistrelle exclusion this summer, I thought I'd have a go at making and installing an American style bathouse on the building just to see if it worked. I used some modified plans from the Bat Conservation International (BCI) publication 'The bat house builder's handbook' to construct it. I had to adapt the plans slightly for the metric measurements so used a quarter sheet of 9mm ply and another of 12mm ply. I also used exterior grade plywood for the sides as this would make it more long-lasting I figured. This means you will need a little extra ply for this and luckily I had some scraps laying around. I also left out the ventilation holes as it's cooler in the UK, and added a bottom as well.
The total construction cost was around £70 but if you make them in bulk with four boxes to a full sheet of 9mm and 12mm ply, it should come down. I also added a roofing felt cap over the top to keep the rain off longer.
This is the ply all marked out ready for cutting.
This is the timber all cut out and ready for assembly.
The assembled and painted bat house with a 30cm ruler for scale.
View with the bottom door open at the four internal chambers.
Total construction time was about three hours, excluding painting.
I should add that I could probably do a better paint job on the bottom, but I'm assuming that the bats don't care.
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