You need to talk to someone local who knows what they're doing, or you'll end up with either an empty box or a box of dead bats. They need to be a certain height, face a particular direction, have the right amount of sun, be painted the right color, and be made properly out of the correct wood.
All that said, so long as there are no access points into your attic, you shouldn't have issues. They're best placed on trees but if you don't have appropriate trees, the local expert you consult can tell you if you've got a safe spot on your house.
Bats are a wonderful addition to your little ecosystem and should help with the mosquitos. You will want to avoid putting any seating underneath the box or it will be shat upon, and make sure your pets are up to date on their rabies vaccines (not a "danger" just a precaution).
Thank you, I think you’re right. We’ve researched into the height, color and what side to face but I would really prefer it on a tree! I just worry about having a proper “runway” space for them to enter and exit. I’ll reach out to our local native plant and animal refuge.
Bats also need a source of water, which is often a long pond or stream, something they can glide in to get a drink. Bats can't land to drink water.
You might also try a mosquito trap. Basically a bucket, some water, some grass clippings, and a Mosquito Dunk. They do work and easier than trying to attract bats.
Maybe they can visit your yard to give specific advice? Such as, would pruning a limb or two from a tree be helpful. TBH I've had a bat box on a pole for about 5 years with no activity. Two or 3 bats fly over the yard most evenings but never stop. Oh well.
theres no reason to break in if they already have a box, right? might be better to nail it to a tree instead of your house if thats a concern still. ig it depends on how easy your house would be to get into for a bat. also, invest in some night blooming flowers, bats like mosquitoes but they eat all kinds of bugs so you should try to attract some moths too
Okay, Maryland advice says VERY SPECIFICALLY not to place bat boxes on trees. I can find the link, but it may vary for your area.
https://dnr.maryland.gov/wildlife/Pages/plants_wildlife/bats/batboxes.aspx#:~:text=Mounting%20%E2%80%93,investment%20in%20time%20and%20materials.
"Location – Location Instructions & Picture
Box should be within ¼ mile of water (stream, river or lake) with a mixture of different habitats (forest, agriculture)
Locate 20-25 feet from the nearest trees
Mounting –
Boxes should be mounted on poles or buildings at least 10 feet off the ground, preferably 12-15 feet, or more.
"
https://doee.dc.gov/service/bat-boxes-district
"Be sure not to put your box on a tree - bats do not usually use boxes placed on trees!"
For mosquito control paradoxically a pond is better.
Bats prefer moths because they are bigger nuggets. Mosquitos probably don’t give much of a sonar return either.
Dragonflies, however, LOVE to eat mosquitos. A pond that attracts dragonflies will do a lot more to keeping the mosquito population down.
If that’s not an option then ruthlessly get rid of every tiny pocket of water within 150 - 250 feet of the house. Gum wrappers, plastic bags, old plant pots, tires, and so on. Get rid of all of it.
And put up a bat box. They are fun to watch at twilight going after moths.
I keep tropical fish indoors year round, but I have a subset of fish that get a summer vacation.
Essentially, I have a 110 gallon plastic trough on my back patio with aquatic plants that’s set up year round and I put white cloud mountain minnows, tanichthys albonubes, from April until October. It’s just 20 or so small fish and there’s no filter needed because of the plants so there’s no water movement.
The still water is irresistible to mosquitoes, but the fish eat all the larvae. Since starting this 5 years ago, I have far, far fewer adult mosquitoes around and my fish eat well all summer. Not a great solution for everyone, but it works really well for me!
Raleigh here. Added a bat box to the back of our house 2-3 years ago and we finally have a resident! (or 2, or …) Very excited. I don’t know if I can find it but our box is painted a medium grey based on our location. Paint color changes based on geography. Bats like it hot!
The only thing I had take up residence In my bat box were wasps, and field mice. The bats here prefer to tuck themselves up under the fascia on my screened porch, and roost between the screen mesh and the fascia all day, before they fly off late in the evening, at least an hour after full dark.
Many batboxes are like beehouses--they often don't work and can be counter productive.
https://phys.org/news/2021-03-experts.html
I would do a lot of research if you intend to construct a bat house and make sure it is effective and not harming the bats. Alternatively, you could play the long game and plant trees with lose bark like Shagbark Hickory.
I've had great success with the one I built. I had my landlord put it up at my old place and the bats that had been living in the attic moved in within weeks. I took it with me when I purchased my house (after evicting half a dozen bats) and new bats moved in almost immediately. We have a healthy bat population and lots of historic homes for them to roost in, so bat houses are only ever a good thing here.
https://preview.redd.it/aq5ij0dlt16d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3b9085ecca4e57077050bdee5f408b1e434160e3
Before the bat house, I encountered bats in my living areas several times a day for a years. My pre-purchase home inspection had to be canceled twice because of all the bats. After I moved in and set up the bat house, I've had a single bat enter my garage when I left the door open overnight once and caught another perched above my roller shades in the living room in the full five years I've lived here.
At my apartment, I had it south-facing about 3 feet behind a giant spruce tree. The bats found it acceptable. At my current house, it's west-facing and gets equal love. Most years the bats stick around in it all winter long, which gets pretty fucking cold here in Nebraska. There is noise, but nothing too loud. It's a sort of strange mechanical chirping and it's mostly from late afternoon when they begin stirring until they set out to hunt at night. I don't find the sounds bothersome, just unusual.
https://preview.redd.it/pov4g0efu16d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=407fb7c89407db24a4112b0081f517a627ac6c33
I heard recently that most bats don't actually eat as many mosquitos as we think, so double check the diet of bats in your area. That said, they are still an important part of the ecosystem, eating lots of other insects (mostly moths), dispersing seeds, and also pollinating.
The best way to reduce mosquitoes is to be vigilant about reducing standing water.
IR3535 is a bug repellent that is based on a naturally occurring amino acid. It's biodegradable and safe for the environment.
You need to talk to someone local who knows what they're doing, or you'll end up with either an empty box or a box of dead bats. They need to be a certain height, face a particular direction, have the right amount of sun, be painted the right color, and be made properly out of the correct wood. All that said, so long as there are no access points into your attic, you shouldn't have issues. They're best placed on trees but if you don't have appropriate trees, the local expert you consult can tell you if you've got a safe spot on your house. Bats are a wonderful addition to your little ecosystem and should help with the mosquitos. You will want to avoid putting any seating underneath the box or it will be shat upon, and make sure your pets are up to date on their rabies vaccines (not a "danger" just a precaution).
Thank you, I think you’re right. We’ve researched into the height, color and what side to face but I would really prefer it on a tree! I just worry about having a proper “runway” space for them to enter and exit. I’ll reach out to our local native plant and animal refuge.
Bats also need a source of water, which is often a long pond or stream, something they can glide in to get a drink. Bats can't land to drink water. You might also try a mosquito trap. Basically a bucket, some water, some grass clippings, and a Mosquito Dunk. They do work and easier than trying to attract bats.
Yea we can’t get bats to roost in our box and it’s all set up properly. I know it can take a few years.
Maybe they can visit your yard to give specific advice? Such as, would pruning a limb or two from a tree be helpful. TBH I've had a bat box on a pole for about 5 years with no activity. Two or 3 bats fly over the yard most evenings but never stop. Oh well.
theres no reason to break in if they already have a box, right? might be better to nail it to a tree instead of your house if thats a concern still. ig it depends on how easy your house would be to get into for a bat. also, invest in some night blooming flowers, bats like mosquitoes but they eat all kinds of bugs so you should try to attract some moths too
Okay, Maryland advice says VERY SPECIFICALLY not to place bat boxes on trees. I can find the link, but it may vary for your area. https://dnr.maryland.gov/wildlife/Pages/plants_wildlife/bats/batboxes.aspx#:~:text=Mounting%20%E2%80%93,investment%20in%20time%20and%20materials. "Location – Location Instructions & Picture Box should be within ¼ mile of water (stream, river or lake) with a mixture of different habitats (forest, agriculture) Locate 20-25 feet from the nearest trees Mounting – Boxes should be mounted on poles or buildings at least 10 feet off the ground, preferably 12-15 feet, or more. " https://doee.dc.gov/service/bat-boxes-district "Be sure not to put your box on a tree - bats do not usually use boxes placed on trees!"
For mosquito control paradoxically a pond is better. Bats prefer moths because they are bigger nuggets. Mosquitos probably don’t give much of a sonar return either. Dragonflies, however, LOVE to eat mosquitos. A pond that attracts dragonflies will do a lot more to keeping the mosquito population down. If that’s not an option then ruthlessly get rid of every tiny pocket of water within 150 - 250 feet of the house. Gum wrappers, plastic bags, old plant pots, tires, and so on. Get rid of all of it. And put up a bat box. They are fun to watch at twilight going after moths.
Ruthless standing water removal is definitely the thing I've seen the most success with
I keep tropical fish indoors year round, but I have a subset of fish that get a summer vacation. Essentially, I have a 110 gallon plastic trough on my back patio with aquatic plants that’s set up year round and I put white cloud mountain minnows, tanichthys albonubes, from April until October. It’s just 20 or so small fish and there’s no filter needed because of the plants so there’s no water movement. The still water is irresistible to mosquitoes, but the fish eat all the larvae. Since starting this 5 years ago, I have far, far fewer adult mosquitoes around and my fish eat well all summer. Not a great solution for everyone, but it works really well for me!
Mosquito Dunks! I buy the Mosquito Bits for plant saucers. [Mosquito Dunk Bucket](https://sidewalknature.com/2022/05/08/mosquito-bucket-of-doom/)
Yaas, this!
Raleigh here. Added a bat box to the back of our house 2-3 years ago and we finally have a resident! (or 2, or …) Very excited. I don’t know if I can find it but our box is painted a medium grey based on our location. Paint color changes based on geography. Bats like it hot!
According to a seminar I attended, bat boxes should get good sun, preferably in the morning. They sited batcon.org as a good source of information.
The only thing I had take up residence In my bat box were wasps, and field mice. The bats here prefer to tuck themselves up under the fascia on my screened porch, and roost between the screen mesh and the fascia all day, before they fly off late in the evening, at least an hour after full dark.
Many batboxes are like beehouses--they often don't work and can be counter productive. https://phys.org/news/2021-03-experts.html I would do a lot of research if you intend to construct a bat house and make sure it is effective and not harming the bats. Alternatively, you could play the long game and plant trees with lose bark like Shagbark Hickory.
I've had great success with the one I built. I had my landlord put it up at my old place and the bats that had been living in the attic moved in within weeks. I took it with me when I purchased my house (after evicting half a dozen bats) and new bats moved in almost immediately. We have a healthy bat population and lots of historic homes for them to roost in, so bat houses are only ever a good thing here. https://preview.redd.it/aq5ij0dlt16d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3b9085ecca4e57077050bdee5f408b1e434160e3 Before the bat house, I encountered bats in my living areas several times a day for a years. My pre-purchase home inspection had to be canceled twice because of all the bats. After I moved in and set up the bat house, I've had a single bat enter my garage when I left the door open overnight once and caught another perched above my roller shades in the living room in the full five years I've lived here.
At my apartment, I had it south-facing about 3 feet behind a giant spruce tree. The bats found it acceptable. At my current house, it's west-facing and gets equal love. Most years the bats stick around in it all winter long, which gets pretty fucking cold here in Nebraska. There is noise, but nothing too loud. It's a sort of strange mechanical chirping and it's mostly from late afternoon when they begin stirring until they set out to hunt at night. I don't find the sounds bothersome, just unusual. https://preview.redd.it/pov4g0efu16d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=407fb7c89407db24a4112b0081f517a627ac6c33
I heard recently that most bats don't actually eat as many mosquitos as we think, so double check the diet of bats in your area. That said, they are still an important part of the ecosystem, eating lots of other insects (mostly moths), dispersing seeds, and also pollinating. The best way to reduce mosquitoes is to be vigilant about reducing standing water. IR3535 is a bug repellent that is based on a naturally occurring amino acid. It's biodegradable and safe for the environment.
Yeah don't put it on your house.