Bat House Forum

[arkguy]

I am brand new to this so please excuse my questions if they seem like I am a novice, I am. I bought a bat house recently and want to put it up soon. Ideally my chimmney seems like a good spot (good morning sun for 5-6 hours and away from power lines), about 40 feet high, but I am worried about the guano ruining my shingles? I would have to get up there to clean it every couple of weeks so this might be out of the question. I have a rather large back yard, with a pool, that backs up to a nice wooded area. I thought about placing the bat house on the trunk of a tree about 20 feet up but I read this placement might not be good due to predators? I also have a place on the side of the house that gets 5-6 hours of morning sun and I could just spray off the guano as it accumulated at the base of the house. I say all this hoping I can even attract bats, which I understand could take some time.

I appreciate your advice in advance and look forward to the bat board!

Arkguy from Arkansas

[Joe Spencer]

On the side of the house is great spot. You can easily check for inhabitants with a flashlight, or you can better yet place a board or equivalent below it on the ground if there is soil or grass there and you will readily know when you have an occupant(s) from guano on it. Have you seen bats in the immediate area in the past? How far is this location from a year round water source? Sorry it took so long for a response we've been in hibernation ourselves.....

[cloudman75]

Wecome ARKGUY. Now that you have some good advice from Joe, I'll give you some of mine. I like poles for bat houses
out in the back yard. The bats like them here at my place. Take a look at some of my posts for pole mounted houses if interested. Don't mount on a tree except as a last resort. Also stay as far away from the treeline as possible to give you about 30 ft or more in the open if available. I have had several species of hawks from large to small that sit in the trees. I have seen a few bats fall prey over the years to hawks. So far I have had no problems with snakes or racoons that I am aware of anyway. Good luck to you and I agree with Joe that on the house would be a good mount to attract bats
I am in N.W. Georgia, metro Atlanta.

Frank

[arkguy]

Thank you for the advice. I will check out some of the posts on where/how to put the bat house on a pole. Not sure the area I had in mind on the side of the house has enough sun, it's pretty shady. Thanks again.

[cloudman75]

I would be interested to see a description of the bat house you bought and how heavy it is, what color it is, who made it etc.
Also you could use a wood post in lieu of metal like I do. I used metal because I happened to have some poles. Also how high do you plan to place it. Joe asked some questions of you and it would be of interest to see those answers. Also have you checked to see what species is apt to use your house? All of this is interesting to me. I wiil be anxious to hear how your bat house works out for you so please keep us informed on the forum.


Frank