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How to Build a Barn Owl House

A barn owl nest box can attract owls to an area for photography, bird watching or rodent control. The nest boxes attract a family of the predators that can kill and consume hundreds if not thousands of rodents each year. The barn owl prefers field mice and shrews during its nocturnal hunting efforts. According to the website Bird Studies Canada, the barn owl hunts within about 1 kilometer of its nest, which is usually in a natural cavity in a tree or a barn or other abandon structure.

Things You'll Need

1 sheet exterior plywood, 1/2 inch
50 galvanized wood screws, 1 1/2 inches
1 pine board, 1 by 6 by 28 inches
1 pine board, 1 by 2 by 10 inches
2 small hinges with 1/2 inch wood screws
1 small latch with 1/2 inch wood screws
Circular saw
Screw gun
Tape measure

Instructions

- 1
  Cut a piece of 1/2 inch exterior grade plywood into the six main components of the box. The floor of the barn owl nest box is 16 inches square. The back is 16 inches wide and 20 inches high. The front is 17 inches wide and 14 inches high with a 6-inch square hole cut in the center. The top is 19 inches by 20 inches. The two side pieces are 16 inches wide; one is 15 inches tall and the other is 20 inches tall. Cut a 9-inch square hole in the center of one side and put the cut piece aside for later use.
- 2
  Fasten the pieces together using 1 1/2 exterior grade wood screws. Fasten the reserved piece cut from the side back over the hole with two small flat hinges and a small latch. This hole provides cleaning access for the nest box.
- 3
  Fasten a 28-inch 1 by 6 pine board to the back of the barn owl box. The pine board should extend four inches above and below the box to provide connection points for fastening the barn owl nest box to a tree, pole or barn wall. Fasten a 10-inch long piece of 1 by 2 inch pine to the exterior bottom lip of the front access opening as a perch.
- 4
  Paint the barn owl nest box brown and install in an appropriate area. Install the barn owl nest box on or in a farm building. The building should be open and provide year round access to the nest box. The area should also have as little human activity as possible and be near grassy or brushy areas that provide habitat the owl can hunt. Barn owl nest boxes mounted outside should be mounted at least 18 feet above the ground.

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