Throughout the ages bats have gotten a bad rap.  Bats have been portrayed as scary blood sucking creatures that fly in the night.  In reality bats are mammals.  They are the only mammals that fly.  Yes there are vampire bats, but they only exist in Central and South America and their victims are mostly cows and other animals.  What is not known about bats is that they help maintain an ecological balance in our environment.  Bats eat more than their weight in mosquitoes every night.  If not for bats we would be over run with insects.

Bats like all mammals need food, shelter and water.  Because of urban growth, many natural habitat areas where bats make their homes have been dwindling at an alarming rate making bats an endangered species.  Since bats are running out of places to call home, they will take refuge in abandoned buildings and in some instances in the attics of private homes. 

Bat Houses help the bats, the environment and us.  Depending on the size of the Bat House, small and large bat colonies can find comfort during the day when they sleep and the colonies can grow by having a safe place to raise offspring.  Through the use of bat houses we help the bat colonies thrive, and by placing bat houses near our homes we would have a natural defense against mosquitoes and other insects.

One can find many bat houses for sale on the internet or through specialty garden centers. They come in many shapes, designs and sizes.  There are also many web sites that offer free building plans for those who are handy with their hands and may want to build a bat house from scratch.  Some of the bat houses that are sold can appear to be very decorative, but may not be very conducive to bats. So whether buying or building a bat house there are a few things to keep in mind.

It would be best to place Bat Houses on tall poles as far away from tree limbs as possible. If attachinging the bat house to a building, place them about 10 to 20 feet off the ground and position spacers between the Bat House and the buiding wall to prevent damage from bat urine and feeces. It would be a good idea to place a shallow pan below the Bat House to catch the waste material.

Building mounted bat houses have a higher probability of getting occupied over the pole mounted ones.  Either way both these mountings should be away from tree limbs and power lines.  The chances of attracting more bats are better in locations within a quarter mile near bodies of water such as rivers, lakes and streams.  Also, results from studies in the US have shown that bat houses facing in a Southwesterly direction will get occupied more quickly.

Bat Houses come in a variety of shapes and sizes.  There are decorative ones for placing by a home or in a garden and there are practicle ones referred to as boxes.  Individual Bat Houses are made up of chambers.  A single chambered house can occupy about fifty bats.  While a multi chambered house can hold 200 or more.

The internal temperature of a Bat House should always be between 80 and 100 degrees Farenheit.  The amount of sunlight hitting the house and the construction materials used and the color the house is painted are the determining factors for proper temperature control.

If you should decide to build a bat house the first thing is making sure that it is weather proof. If the structure cannot keep the weather out bats will not occupy it. All wood joining surfaces should be properly caulked.  In order for the bat house to retain heat the outer surfaces should be painted a dark color.

The type of wood used is also important. Cedar is the most common wood used in bat house construction but any rough surfaced exterior wood will do. The bats must be able to cling to the interior surfaces.  The average sized bat house is about 2 feet tall by 1 foot wide. The depth can vary depending on the number of chambers it contains.

A good bat house should have vents for proper air circulation. The size and placement of these vents would depend on the size of the house or the plans being used to build the house. To prevent predators from entering, the bottom opening should only be no more than an inch wide.

Whether you decide to buy or build a bat house, they need little maintenance. They should be checked on a yearly basis for cracks or any gaps caused by weathering. Bats like to be warm and cozy. Caulk and repaint the bat houses as needed during the off season when bats are not present.