Urban Wildlife - How to make a nest box
Blue tits chicks in nest box © Lucy Wallington
Fascinating Fact about How to make a nest box
Nest boxes for small birds such as blue tits and great tits, are really popular, and often successful - a must for any wildlife garden!
You can make the hole size suit the birds you expect to visit - 25mm for blue tits, 28mm for great tits and 32mm for house sparrows.
All about How to make a nest box
Equipment needed:
- A plank of wood:
- 160cm long, 140mm wide, 15mm-20mm thick.
- 1.5” Nails - suitable for being outdoors
- Sandpaper
- Roofing felt or bicycle tyre inner tube for hinge
- Tacks for fixing hinge
- Drill bits - For next box entrance and also possibly for pilot holes
- Timber saw
- Workbench
- Pencil
- Tape measure
- Hammer
- Small piece of wire
Measuring
Measure your plank to the lengths shown in the diagram above.
Draw in the pencil lines from edge to edge
IMPORTANT BIT! Turn the plank on its side towards you and measure the bevel line shown in the diagram below. This will give you a slanted edge between
the top and the front on the finished box
Sawing:
With the plank still on its side, saw the slanted cut first. Then turn the plank back so it is flat and continue with the other cuts
Sanding:
Sand any rough edges on the cut pieces
Hammering:
Using 1.5” nails, attach the base to the back panel, positioning it onto the back rather than underneath it Now, using the same nails, add on the side panels positioning them on top of the base. Now add on the front panel so that there is a continuous slant down from the attached side panels. Cut a piece of roofing felt and attach the top section to the back section like a hinge using clout nails Affix predator protection mechanism using clout nails and wire.
Drilling:
Choose what size hole you want and bore it out on the front panel. Drill a smaller hole towards the top of the back for the nail to hang to the tree, and some drainage holes in the bottom of the box to let any water run out.
