Decorative birdhouses made of wood. Preparations for spring are in full swing: learning how to make birdhouses. Drawing and dimensions of a wooden structure

In the article you will find drawings, diagrams, photos of birdhouses for different birds. Recommendations for building a birdhouse.

Every spring, birds fly from warm countries. It can be difficult for them to find housing: old birdhouses are often destroyed and trees are cut down.

Birds help nature and people. They fight insect pests and their larvae and protect trees. In addition, they make people happy by singing and give joy. Our job is to take care of them. The simplest thing we can do for them is build birdhouses.

Birdhouses not only serve as homes for different types of birds, but are also a decorative element in garden and park landscapes. You can find birdhouses from a variety of different materials and bizarre shapes.

What materials are birdhouses made from:

The most famous and reliable material is wood.
Plastic.
Cardboard.
Metal.
Plywood.

Important: The right house for birds, one that is made of wood. Other materials are not suitable for providing comfortable living for birds. Birdhouses made of chipboard, cardboard, and plastic serve for decorative purposes and are located in places where rain does not penetrate.

The right birdhouse: what is it?

Dimensions of birdhouses and hole diameters for wagtails, titmice, and various birds: table

The tree is the only one natural material, which is able to provide birds with protection from the cold and rain. Let's not forget that birds are part of nature, and they are not adapted to life in an artificial environment.

What characteristics should a tree have:

The most suitable types of wood for birdhouses are birch and oak.
Pine trees are not suitable for these purposes because they emit resin.
The thickness of the boards must be at least 2 cm to retain heat.
The inside of the birdhouse must be rough so that it is convenient for birds (especially chicks) to get out of the house.
Boards should not be fastened with glue; it can release harmful substances.
There should be no nails or screws protruding from the boards, as this could injure the birds.

Let's talk separately about the size of birdhouses. Birds come in different sizes, which means that houses must be the right size for different species.

Table 1 “Sizes of birdhouses for different birds”

Bird species	Taphole diameter (cm)	Bottom Width(cm)	Front wall height (cm)	Back wall height (cm)
Tits	3-3,5	10-12 (square)	22-25	28-30
Wagtails	5	40*15 (rectangle)	15	18
pikas	6	16-18 (square)	22-26	28-32
Flycatchers	4	10 (square)	7	14

Features of bird houses:

Wagtails will choose a house in the form of a rectangle with a threshold in front of the entrance, because this bird likes to trample in front of the entrance to the house.
Pikas settle in birdhouses with two entrances. This helps them escape if cats attack.
The flycatcher likes to settle in a semi-hollow - a house that looks like a natural hollow in a tree.

How to make a nest box step by step

Flycatcher house

Birdhouse for wagtail

How to make a birdhouse for starlings with your own hands from wood: drawing with dimensions, step-by-step instructions, photo

Birdhouse size for starlings:

Bottom width - 15 cm;
Height - 30-40 cm;
The diameter of the tap hole is 4-5 cm;
A round perch in front of the entrance is 5-6 cm long.

Important: There must be a presence on the roof small canopy(edge) above the entrance. Then rainwater will not be able to get inside.

When making birdhouses, you must adhere to size recommendations. Otherwise, the birds may simply not settle in the house. From birdhouses with a large diameter entrance, starlings can drive out small birds. If you make the entrance diameter too small, the starling may not fit into the hole. The correct internal space of the birdhouse helps to create favorable conditions for hatching healthy offspring and creating a warm nest. Typically, starlings hatch 5 chicks, rarely the number reaches 7.

To make a birdhouse you will need the following materials:

Dry boards;
Nails or screws;
Wire (to hang the birdhouse);
Hammer;
Hacksaw;
Drill (d=50, d=4 mm);
Pencil;
Square;
Screwdriver, screwdriver.

Instructions for making a birdhouse

Birdhouse project

Drawing classic birdhouse

Drawing of a birdhouse-house

To quickly clean the birdhouse, you need to make it with a removable roof. At the same time, make sure that the roof holds up well and does not fall from the wind or the invasion of “uninvited guests” - cats, crows.

How to do it? Answer: A sleeve identical to the dimensions of the bottom must be attached to the removable roof. Additionally, the roof is secured with wire.

What does a removable roof look like?

Video: DIY birdhouse

How to make a birdhouse from 8 mm plywood: drawing with dimensions, step-by-step instructions, photo

Important: For the birdhouse, you can use unsanded waterproof plywood. Water resistance means there is no need to treat the walls of the birdhouse additionally. If you have sanded plywood, make notches on it.

The process of making a birdhouse from this material is standard:

Draw a drawing of the parts using a simple pencil and a square.
Cut out the parts with a hacksaw or jigsaw.
For the tap hole, drill a hole so that a jigsaw file fits into it. Next, cut out the entrance in a circle. You can drill out the tap hole with a file.
Process the cut lines sandpaper.
Mark the locations for the screws and drill holes.
First, assemble the front wall of the house by attaching a perch to it.
Then connect the walls together.
Finally, attach the bottom and roof.
Nail a long piece of wood to the back wall for further installation of the birdhouse.

Birdhouse project

Taphole cutting

Assembling birdhouse parts

This is what a plywood birdhouse looks like

How to make a birdhouse from a 5 liter plastic bottle: drawing with dimensions, step-by-step instructions, photo

Important: A plastic birdhouse is most often made for decorative purposes. You can make such a craft with children and brightly decorate it so that it is pleasing to the eye.

Reasons why birds will not settle in a plastic birdhouse.

Birds will not settle in or reproduce because the plastic is transparent and does not promote a sense of protection.
Birds are also unlikely to settle in a birdhouse that is too colorful, in order to protect it from predators. And colorful will attract cats, forty.
Plastic does not allow air to pass through and releases toxins in the sun.

If you want to make a decorative birdhouse, plastic will do. This material can be found in every home and is easy to work with. Bottles of different sizes are suitable for a decorative birdhouse, it all depends on your imagination.

All you need is: cut out the entrance, decorate the birdhouse and hang it in a visible place. There are many decor options:

You can paint the bottle and draw patterns and ornaments.
Glue on beads and buttons.
Decorate with thick yarn and colored rope.

Birdhouse made from a plastic bottle

Decorative birdhouses made from small ones plastic bottles

It’s better to make a feeder out of a plastic bottle; it will bring much more benefits.

Plastic bottles are suitable for making feeders

Feeders made from large plastic bottles

Video: How to make a birdhouse from a bottle?

How to make a birdhouse from a cardboard shoebox: step-by-step instructions, photos

As you already understand, birds are not stupid creatures. They choose a reliable home that will protect them from rain, cold, and predators. It is for this reason that a birdhouse made of cardboard should not be taken seriously, but as a decoration, yes.

If you have a cardboard shoe box lying around, don’t rush to throw it away. You can give it a second life by building a decorative house. Compliance with the dimensions is not important here, because birds will not settle here.

Step-by-step production of a birdhouse from a cardboard box:

Cover the edges of the cardboard box with tape to prevent the edges from falling apart over time.
Mark the taphole with a pencil.
Cut it out using a utility knife.
Decorate the box.
Attach it to a tree or under a roof.

Cardboard box bird house

Cardboard bird house

It is quite possible that birds will choose your cardboard house as a feeder if you regularly put treats there in the form of seeds and bread crumbs.

Feeder out of the box

How to make a birdhouse from a juice or milk carton: step-by-step instructions, photos

You can very quickly and easily make an analogue of a birdhouse from a bag that contained juice or milk. To do this, you will need an empty juice or milk carton, scissors, rope or wire for fastening.

Step-by-step production:

Cut two holes in the box. Two holes are made so that the bird can quickly fly away if it is in danger.
Make small holes for the rope or wire and thread the rope through.
Secure the tree house.

If you apply diligence and use your imagination, you can make a bright, colorful, original house. Ideas in the photo below.

A milk carton feeder that even kids can make

Decorative birdhouses made from juice boxes

How to make a birdhouse from wine corks: drawing with dimensions, step-by-step instructions, photo

Wine corks - good material for making a birdhouse. Due to their density, they allow the house to remain dry even during rain, and also serve as additional insulation.

The easiest way is to glue corks onto the finished birdhouse using hot glue, which also serve as original decor.
It is not advisable to hammer the plugs into the birdhouse with nails - the sharp ends of the nails can injure the birds.

Birdhouse insulated with wine corks

You can make a decorative birdhouse. For this you will need:

Traffic jams;
Hot glue;
Cardboard.

Step-by-step production:

Glue the corks together with hot glue. Take an equal number of corks on each side of the house.
In your design, leave room for a tap hole.
To make a roof, glue corks onto cardboard.
Attach the roof to the house.
Decorate the birdhouse as you wish.

Birdhouse made from wine corks

Decorative birdhouse attached with wire to a tree

How to make a birdhouse from newspaper tubes: drawing with dimensions, step-by-step instructions, photo

Another material for decorating birdhouses is newspaper tubes. You can find out how to make them at.

Wicker bird houses

Tube weaving

How to make a birdhouse from a toilet paper roll: drawing with dimensions, step-by-step instructions, photo

A toilet paper roll is a cheap improvised material for decoration. You can paste the sleeve over the frame of the birdhouse, and then paint it or decorate it with paper.

A simple toilet paper roll also makes excellent feeders. To do this, dip the sleeve in peanut oil and then sprinkle with seeds.

How to use a toilet paper roll

How to protect a birdhouse from cats, squirrels, magpies: tips

Experienced people advise placing birdhouses away from trees, on poles.
The birdhouse should be located at a height of 4.5 m.
A tin collar attached to a pole can serve as protection against cats.
You can also make a barrier on the pole in the form of a roller of barbed wire.
The design of the birdhouse must be correct: a long canopy will not allow a magpie, squirrel or cat to stick its head into the entrance.
The perch in front of the entrance should not be made too long, otherwise a predator will easily settle on it.
The diameter of the taphole should be no more than 5 cm, and it should be located almost at the roof. A large canopy will thus protect the predator from entering the house.

How to protect a birdhouse from moisture, how to cover it: tips

There are several ways to protect a birdhouse from moisture:

Make the roof with a slope, then drops of water will roll down.
You can paint the birdhouse with paint or open it with varnish.
Treat the birdhouse with linseed oil.
Wood also needs to be treated with water-repellent agents, because over time fungal stains can form on it.

Is it possible and how, what color to paint a birdhouse with gouache, what to draw on it?

If you want birds to live in your birdhouse, do not paint or decorate it with colorful decorations. Feathered friends do not care about beauty; for them, protection comes first. A bright birdhouse will attract cats.

A decorative birdhouse serves primarily for beauty. Therefore, when creating it, it is appropriate to use all kinds of decorations and paint.

For painting you can use acrylic paints, gouache, and oil paints based on drying oil. Gouache is very easy to use as it dries quickly.

In order for gouache paint to lay flat on the surface, you need to follow a certain sequence:

First, use sandpaper to sand the surface on which you will apply the paint.
Then apply the base - white acrylic paint. Wait until completely dry.
The next stage is drawing a sketch of the drawing and painting with gouache.
Wait for the gouache to dry completely, and then open the drawing with varnish.
It is advisable to apply the varnish a couple of times.

If you don't know how to draw, you can use stencils. Simply transfer the pre-prepared templates onto the birdhouse using a pencil, and then paint with a brush.

What can you draw on a birdhouse? Everything your imagination tells you - birds, flowers, patterns, butterflies, grass and trees, abstract patterns. There is no limit to perfection. You can see examples of drawings on birdhouses in the photo below.

Birdhouse with drawings

How to paint a birdhouse with gouache

Painted birdhouses

How to make decoupage birdhouse with your own hands: ideas, photos

Even a beginner can easily decorate a birdhouse using the decoupage technique. You will need the following materials:

Preparing a birdhouse;
Napkins for decoupage;
Scissors, decoupage glue;
Brushes, acrylic paint;
Sandpaper.

Step-by-step master class:

Sand the birdhouse with sandpaper to ensure there are no rough spots on it.
Then wipe with a damp cloth to remove dust.
Apply a layer of paint and base. If necessary, apply a couple of layers for a more thorough coloring.
Wait for the paint to dry completely.
Now, from decoupage napkins, cut out rectangles for the sides of the birdhouse of appropriate sizes.
Glue the blanks.
Now all that remains is to glue the cut out elements onto the facade of the birdhouse. In this case it is a gnome, mushrooms, a ladybug and an inscription. You can choose whatever you like.
At the final stage, all that remains is to open the birdhouse with varnish to protect it from moisture and dry it. Now the birdhouse is ready to delight passers-by with its elegant appearance.

Video: Decoupage birdhouse

What beautiful and unusual do-it-yourself birdhouses are there: possible birdhouse options, photos

You can find original birdhouses that are so unusual that you won’t immediately understand that this is a house for birds. In the shape of animals, with colorful stones, painted, in a rustic style.

Summer residents decorate their plots with birdhouses to the delight of themselves and their neighbors, but they are no less active in decorating parks. You can find entire towns made of birdhouses.

We have collected a selection of original birdhouses for your inspiration.

In addition to the design of the birdhouse, its correct construction, as a rule, you need to come up with a name. One of the requirements of the competition is a card indicating the name. We have collected possible names of birdhouses that you can take note of or as an idea:

Bird House;
Teremok-breadwinner;
Miracle House;
Eco-lodge;
Bird Cafe;
A hut on chicken legs;
Titmouse;
Hotel for starlings.

An original name will help your birdhouse stand out from others.

Video: How to make a birdhouse for birds to live in?

Birds are indispensable helpers in the fight against harmful insects. But in order to “agree” with the birds to provide all possible assistance, you need to attract them to your site. And for this we will learn the basics of building a birdhouse. By the way, the ability to build such bird houses will also be useful for introducing a child to caring about the world around him. So, if the age and development of motor skills of the baby’s hands allow it, take him as an apprentice. In the article you will find different ideas for making bird houses from wood.

What you can do: birdhouse, titmouse and other houses

Much is known about the benefits of birds on the farm, but some figures are still impressive: during the season, a small starling destroys up to a thousand cockchafer larvae. This allows you to keep root crops safe and sound.

If your main goal is to attract birds to the site, then, depending on the planned result, the birds should be specific type. But even if the birdhouse is built simply as a feeder, you must take into account that not only starlings populate hanging apartments. So it’s worth first familiarizing yourself with the types of these dwellings, and at the same time some of the engineering features of their construction.

Dimensions for drawings of wooden houses for different birds

Its shape, size and some other nuances will depend on what birds you are building a house for.

Nesting. A house with a vertical wall at the rear, a long roof slope that joins this wall at an angle of 30–40 degrees, and triangular sidewalls, as well as through entrances. Such structures are built no higher than 1–1.5 m from the ground and are intended for pikas.
wagtail. This house should be located horizontally at a height of 3–5 m from the ground, since the birds do not fit in a classic birdhouse, the dimensions of the bottom of which range from 14–16 cm, and the walls from 20 to 30 cm.
Titmouse. This is a habitat for small birds. Height 30 cm, dimensions 10 x 10 cm, entrance 3–4 cm.
Duplyanka. A kind of “tourist” house for different birds, 2 m from the ground, which can be made from a log with two plugs on top, bottom and an entrance hole in the middle. Outer deck diameter - from 15 cm
Poluduplyanka. Built for flycatchers. Outwardly it looks like a smaller copy of a birdhouse - 12 x 12 cm and 15 cm high. This house needs to be equipped with a wide rectangular entrance and a sloping roof overhanging it.
Birdhouse. It has a square bottom 14 x 14 cm and sides in the shape of a rectangular trapezoid. Moreover, the back board should be higher than the front so that the roof rests on them at an angle. It may also have a gable roof.

Photo gallery: types of wooden houses for different birds

Gable birdhouse Single-pitched birdhouse Titmouse House for small birds Nesting area for owls Nesting area for small birds Duplyanka

Materials and tools

To make a classic birdhouse you need:

boards, preferably pine, or a log of suitable width;
screws, nails of different sizes;
acrylic weather-resistant paints - if you will paint the product;
wood putty - fill cracks if necessary.

As for tools, you need:

hand hacksaw or jigsaw;
drill with a cutter for cutting out a taphole;
screwdriver;
screwdriver;
hammer;
pencil, ruler, protractor, compass.

Safety precautions

When designing a birdhouse, you will have to deal with piercing and cutting objects. So you can’t do without following safety rules.

Let's list the main ones:

When deciding on the housing issue for birds, you need to be focused, attentive and not be distracted by extraneous matters.
You should work at a comfortable and sturdy table so that you can place all the tools and materials on it.
If you decide to trim a tree before marking, do it with glasses so that sawdust does not get into your eyes, and with gloves so that you do not have to remove splinters.
After assembly, make sure there are no nicks left in the bird house, otherwise your feathered guests may be injured. For the same purpose, you need to bend or file the protruding ends of nails or screws.

Birdhouses with step-by-step manufacturing descriptions

Let's consider options for bird houses from traditional to original.

The first attempts to build houses for birds were made by the Hindus in the last millennium. Gradually, this innovation moved to Europe, from where it came to Russia through the efforts of Peter I, who appreciated all sorts of funny things.

Classic birdhouse with a gable roof

Materials and tools:

2 rectangular pieces for the sides, 15 cm wide and 22 cm high;
3 parts 19X37 cm for the front and back walls;
2 pieces 15x15 cm as the floor and one part of the roof;
pole stick;
roof part 15x17 cm;
nails, hammer;
glue for fixing the pole;
drill with an attachment for cutting round holes 5 cm in diameter;
ruler, pencil.

Instructions:

We draw out all the details on the board and cut them out.
Don't forget to cut an entrance hole in the middle of the front wall with a diameter of 5 cm at a distance of 19.5 cm from the bottom.
On the front and rear parts we make a 15 cm bevel under the roof with an angle of 90 degrees.
We connect the facade and walls.
If necessary, we bend the protruding parts of the nails so that they are pressed tightly against the walls and, to seal, treat the joints with hot wax or a special putty for wood.
We attach the roof parts to the back wall and facade, joining them well to each other (it is worth puttingtying the seam). Only so that the roof can be raised and the birdhouse cleaned. To do this, it is better to use self-tapping screws that can be unscrewed and then screwed in again.
We check again to see if there are any protruding nails or screws inside the birdhouse. We fasten the bottom.
Glue the pole.

Attention! The same model can be made with an easily removable bottom. To do this, we fasten it not with screws, but with long wooden “studs”. By the way, the remaining parts can be attached with wood glue.

Birdhouse made of rectangular parts

A simplified variation of the classic birdhouse, which a schoolchild can make on his own, assumes that all the details of the house are cut out in the shape of rectangles.

Instructions:

We cut out the details. Please note that all vertical parts are the same, and the bottom is equal in length to the width of one vertical part + two board thicknesses, and the length is equal to the width of the facade. The roof has the shape of a square with sides equal to the length of the bottom.
In the front part we cut out a taphole with a diameter of 5 cm and a small hole for the pole.
We connect the vertical parts with nails or self-tapping screws.
Attach the bottom and roof. Glue in a pole stick.
We nail the birdhouse onto a long narrow board, using which we will attach it to the tree.

Video: boy makes a birdhouse with a flat roof with his own hands

The original version without a diagram - a bird house from a deck

Materials and tools:

a deck of suitable size;
chainsaw;
drill for removing wood.

Instructions:

Video: log birdhouse - folk method

Light house made of wood and tube

Materials and tools:

tube;
a small board with a width no less than the diameter of the tube, a length of at least two diameters;
jigsaw;
pencil, compass;
drill and screws or hammer and nails, long and short.

Instructions:

Cut off about ¼ of the tube.
We measure the inner diameter of the hole.
We make 2 circles of this diameter from the board.
We fix the first circle on the tree with screws or nails.
In the second we cut out a round hole-tap.
We drill a hole in it just below for the pole and insert the pole.
We place the façade in a tube. We nail it around the circumference with small nails, “drowning” it slightly into the depth, so that the house has a canopy.
We put the workpiece on the second circle fixed to the tree and also nail it with nails.

If you do not want to damage the tree, you can try not to cut out the back wall from the board, but simply leave the bottom of the tube and then thread a belt or wire through its hole for the handle and secure it to the trunk.

Photo gallery: bird houses made of other materials

Birdhouses made from plastic bottles can be painted with acrylic paints so that the house is not transparent, but even then there is no guarantee that birds will settle there Birdhouses can be made from the most unusual things, for example, from a propane tank Birdhouse boots can be decorated with a bright pattern This model can only be a feeder, birds will not feel comfortable in a transparent house The disadvantages of cardboard “apartments” are their extreme impracticality, as well as their low weight, which creates problems in rainy or windy weather

Feeders and birdhouses are successfully used to attract birds to the site; with their help, you don’t have to worry about the safety of the future harvest. Almost all types of birds live in such houses. In cold weather they eat wintering caterpillars, and in summer they eat pest larvae.

You can make a birdhouse with your own hands without spending money out of your pocket. After all, it is not necessary to buy new building materials; it is enough to use your imagination using improvised means.

Everyday materials

One of the simplest options is a birdhouse out of a box. To make it, a juice box is used, it is thoroughly washed and dried. The advantages of this solution are considered to be: cost-effectiveness, original appearance and ease of execution. Materials you will need:

clean box;
thin wooden planks;
acrylic paint;
rope;
glue.

It is worth preparing the following tools:

scissors;
brush.

Work begins with making a tap hole; it should have a diameter of 5-6 cm, and be located at an average height from the bottom of the box. A regular or stationery knife will help you cut the hole. Next, the birdhouse is coated with paint and left to dry.

You can use an ice cream stick to make a perch for the birds to sit on. It is glued to the base under the taphole.

The interior space in the birdhouse should also be comfortable for birds, so the front wall on the inside should be made rough. Therefore, a board made of untreated wood is fixed there; a piece of tree bark is also suitable. The outer walls are also covered with ice cream sticks - this will add aesthetics and allow the birds to cling to them with their paws.

To hang a birdhouse on a tree, make a hole at the top and pass a rope through it. To attract birds, just sprinkle a little food, then a family of birds will definitely settle in the house.

You can use a large plastic container as the base of the birdhouse. When making a birdhouse from a bottle, the process will remain virtually unchanged, you just have to make drainage holes at the bottom.

Cardboard is a practical option

To accommodate the largest number of birds, it is worth making a birdhouse from cardboard - this is the most affordable material. The resulting house can serve decorative element garden or used for its intended purpose. The execution process is very simple and does not take much time. During the work you will need:

two A4 cardboard sheets;
colored paper or paints;
compass;
scissors;
rope;
small stick.

As a blank, look at the drawing or make it according to simple recommendations.

The basis of the future design is a sheet glued into a roll; you can take the remainder of paper towels. Using a compass, draw a circle with a diameter of 4-5 cm on it and cut out a hole. Next, the bottom is covered with a circle of the appropriate size - the base of the birdhouse is ready. To attract attention, it can be decorated, covered with colored paper or painted.

Making the roof begins by cutting out a semicircle, then gluing the straight edge. A thin rope is glued to the top of the dome and connected to the base. All that remains is to glue the stick near the entrance and pour in the food. Such a feeder can receive guests for a long time or simply decorate the garden.

Wood - standard production

There is a traditional option for making a birdhouse from wood. In the process they use:

boards (20 mm thick);
nails;
hacksaw;
hammer;
drill;
pencil and ruler.

The wood materials chosen are unplaned boards with a thickness of at least 20 mm. This ensures heat retention inside the house. As for the breed - would be better suited birch or oak, the smell of pine needles greatly repels birds. The use of pressed or laminated wood is undesirable - it is not a practical option and has a toxic odor.

After choosing the material, the dimensions of the structure are determined. Based on the parameters of the natural hollow (120x120 mm), it is worth making the bottom of the birdhouse 120x120 mm, the height should be 250-350 mm. These sizes allow you to accommodate a family with 5 chicks. With a larger number of offspring, adults cannot provide them with proper care. The size of the entrance is also taken into account; a hole of 40-50 mm is made for the starling, and 30 mm for the tit. The tap hole is placed at a height of 200 mm from the bottom level.

A perch is fixed in front of the entrance to the house, sometimes a small platform made of boards is installed instead. The roof can be gable or single-pitch, but it is worth considering one point - the board must protrude beyond the level of the facade by at least 50 mm. For the convenience of annual cleaning, the roof is made removable, then it is fixed with screws or wire. All dimensions of the elements can be seen in the drawings.

Before you make a birdhouse with your own hands, you should carefully consider the diagram, then cut the boards according to the parameters in the image. Process progress:

To make a good birdhouse from wood, you should follow the recommendations:

To seal and retain heat inside the structure, all cracks should be coated with clay or sealed with tow;
the surface of the wood should not have large burrs that could injure birds;
you need to use short nails or screws so that they do not stick out;
as protective coating It is better to treat with drying oil. But for decoration you can use gray or red oil paints.

Making your own bird house is not at all difficult; if you use your imagination, the result will become a real decoration of the garden. In the process of making a birdhouse from scrap materials, the most unpredictable base options can be used: pumpkin, stone, coffee pot, shoe.

House installation

In addition to manufacturing, the installation process of the birdhouse is important, so it is worth knowing the recommendations for its placement:

You can make a birdhouse at any time of the year, but it should hang on a tree in late March - early April. Then a family of birds will definitely settle in it.

Reading time ≈ 6 minutes

Cozy, homemade birdhouses will be the best housing for birds. In addition, they can transform the garden. Photos of original ideas will help you create unique homes for birds, and finished works will inspire you to create your own birdhouse.

Requirements for birdhouses

You can build a feeder from scrap materials, and it is not at all necessary to have technical knowledge and skills. However, you still need to know what characteristics a bird house should have.

The main requirements are:

It is also very important to choose the right place for the birdhouse. Subsequently, it is undesirable to change the location of the house, since the birds very quickly get used to their new housing. They find it difficult to know where to go if their home has been displaced.

The ideal place for a bird house is considered to be one where neither cats, nor squirrels, nor other representatives of the fauna that pose a danger to birds can reach.

Choosing material for a birdhouse

Birdhouses can be constructed from different materials. Many people take as a basis what is left in the house after renovation. Indeed, an original birdhouse can be built not only from wood, but also from thick cardboard, lining, plastic and other materials.

If you decide to build a birdhouse out of wood, it is better to abandon such an idea if only wood is available coniferous species. It is capable of releasing resins during operation. They are the ones who provoke diseases in birds and even glue their wings together.

Otherwise, wooden birdhouses act as undoubted leaders. They have amazing strength and stability.

You can build a house from cardboard of sufficient strength. Of course, you won’t be able to count on its long-term use, but for one season it will be able to serve with dignity.

Plastic is considered a universal material. Even a child can build a birdhouse out of a bottle. Plastic reliably protects the interior from rain, wind and cold.

There is also an ideal solution to the problem when you really want to create a birdhouse, but there are no suitable materials and tools available. Special blanks are available for sale. All elements in them are made according to the drawings. All that remains is to assemble them into a single structure and decorate the house, armed with multi-colored paints.

Original ideas

Making an original birdhouse for birds with your own hands is relatively simple. Often it is enough to study the photo finished design to understand the principle of its manufacture. But to create a unique model, you need to use your own ideas or make changes to an already finished one.

We suggest building birdhouses from scrap materials so as not to burden yourself with additional financial costs.

In the garage you can find an old license plate and thick-walled plywood. You will also need additional materials and tools:

screws;
screwdriver;
paints;
file;
wooden bars.

After preparing the materials and tools, you can begin practical actions according to the step-by-step instructions:

Cut two identical circles from plywood.
Cut an entrance hole in one of them.
In the other one, make several small ventilation holes.
Wrap an old license plate around wooden circles and attach it with screws.
At the junction of the two ends of the number, attach a wooden block, which will seal the joint and can act as a perch.

All that remains is to decorate the house in an original way and find a suitable place for it.

If there is a clock in the house in the form of a cuckoo house, which has not been used for its intended purpose for a long time, since the clock mechanism has finally failed, its base is perfect for building the best house for birds.

Armed with this idea, you won’t have to waste time making a birdhouse, since the house is almost immediately ready for use.

The only thing that will need to be improved is the entrance. After removing the watch face, the hole may be too large. You can't leave it like this. And it will be easy for predators to enter the home, and the wind will blow, causing the birds to experience discomfort.

To reduce the inlet hole, cut out a circle of plywood with a larger diameter. A small hole is made inside the cut out circle. Now the plywood circle is glued to the front side of the house over the place where the dial used to be.

Building birdhouses with children in the spring is a long-standing and very useful tradition. Firstly, birds need homes, and secondly, this is an excellent opportunity to engage a child in manual labor, in the age of gadgets and electronics, to introduce him to the basics of carpentry. Pavel Zakharov from the family carpentry workshop “Workshop No. 13” tells in detail how to make a birdhouse with your own hands, gives a drawing of a birdhouse and step-by-step photos.

We will need:

pine boards 18-20 mm thick and 120, 160 and 200 mm wide
round stick with a diameter of 15 mm
jigsaw with a wide blade for long straight cuts and a narrow blade for curved sawing
electric drill (or drill-driver) with a 4 mm drill (we will also need an 8-10 mm drill, but you can do without it)
Phillips screwdriver PH2 format or corresponding bit attachment for a screwdriver
medium grit sandpaper (80-100 grit)
ruler
pencil
self-tapping screws (PH2) 3.5×41 mm - 19 pieces
nails 1.6×30 - 8 pieces (for attaching the fence)
hammer
acrylic paints
clear nail polish
synthetic brushes

How to make a birdhouse: step by step photos

For work, we will need pine boards with a thickness of 18-20 mm (for ease of calculations, a thickness of 20 mm will appear in the master class) and a width of 120, 160 and 200 mm. Natural wood is an excellent material for a birdhouse; a wooden house will have optimal thermal insulation properties. I don't recommend using plywood or chipboard.

In addition to the boards, you need a round stick with a diameter of 15 mm for the pole. From a scientific point of view, a pole is a useless thing, but without it the birdhouse looks somehow unusual.

We begin the work by marking the parts. On a board 160 mm wide we mark the contours of the front (A1) and back (A2) walls of the birdhouse. To begin, we measure two rectangular segments 300 mm long. And then, in accordance with the diagram, we draw two lines crosswise so that the angle between them is exactly 90 degrees.

We will make two side walls (B) and the bottom of the birdhouse (C) from a 120 mm wide board.

A 200 mm wide board is intended for roof parts. Our roof consists of two halves - K1 and K2, and part K2 is 20 mm longer (exactly by the thickness of the board), so that when assembled we get a roof with equal slopes.

We cut out all the marked parts using a jigsaw. For curved cuts, a narrow file is more suitable, while straight sawing is best done with a wide one.

If possible, we make decorative elements of the birdhouse design from scraps of boards. We save materials!

We carefully process the edges of all parts with sandpaper.

The next step is marking the mounting holes. Make sure that the centers of the holes are always located at a distance of exactly 10 mm from the edge of the workpiece (half the thickness of the board), so that when assembling the screws hit exactly in the middle of the end of the adjacent part.

The holes in parts A1 and A2 are located identically. Additionally, on the front wall we mark the outline of the future entrance (a round window that will serve as the entrance to the birdhouse). The diameter of the tap hole should be 45-50 mm. Just below you need to make a hole for the pole stick. The entrance should be located at a height of about 200 mm from the bottom of the birdhouse so that the birds have a sufficient safety zone inside (otherwise they will be too accessible to enemies).

In the side walls we mark one hole for attaching the bottom.

We mark the roof parts very carefully, since the holes in the roof must clearly correspond to the dimensions of the birdhouse body. We drill all marked holes using a drill and a drill bit with a diameter of 4 mm.

All that remains is to make a small window in the front wall of A1. To do this, we first drill a hole inside the outline of the tap hole with a thick drill (8-10 mm) so that a jigsaw file can be inserted into it. Then we cut along the contour, after which we process the edges with sandpaper.

Now let's start assembling. We attach a pole stick to the front wall of the birdhouse. To prevent the thin stick from cracking during assembly, you can first drill a hole in it for the self-tapping screw using a thin 2-3 mm drill.

According to the rules for the construction of birdhouses, the inner side of the front wall must be rough. If you use rough, unplaned boards, then this will be the case. And in our case, roughness is applied manually using any sharp tool (knife, self-tapping screw, etc.). These transverse grooves will help the chicks get out of the birdhouse when the time comes.

We assemble the body of the birdhouse by connecting parts A1, A2 and B in any order. For this we will need self-tapping screws and a screwdriver. We orient the side walls so that the hole is at the bottom.

We put the bottom in place and secure it with screws on four sides.

Then we assemble the roof from the two halves, placing the longer part on top of the shorter one and fixing it with two self-tapping screws.

We attach the pipe by inserting a self-tapping screw into the hole from the inside of the roof.

We screw two hinges into the ends of the back wall (if there are no hinges, replace them with ordinary self-tapping screws). Using these rings, the birdhouse will be attached to a tree trunk or the wall of the house.

We install the roof in place so that it slightly overhangs the facade of the birdhouse and is flush with back wall. We secure the roof to the house with four self-tapping screws.

We nail the decorative fence with nails. For reliability, you can additionally use wood glue.

The birdhouse is almost ready. If you want the birdhouse to not only serve the birds, but also become a stylish decoration for your area (park, square), you can paint it.

How to paint a wooden birdhouse

Birds respond well to painted birdhouses and happily settle in them. It is only important to remember that you should use acrylic or water-dispersed paints that are odorless. It is with these paints and varnish that we complete all our kits for assembling birdhouses, and from the experience of several years of work we can say that they have proven themselves to be excellent in harsh outdoor conditions.

Birdhouses painted on the outside last much longer than simple wooden ones, and this is an additional plus in their favor.