Where to Hang a Bat House in Your Yard

If you’ve been having mosquito or insect control issues, then buying a bat house may be on your mind. Bat houses offer one of the best ways to control mosquitoes throughout your backyard and property.

Just like everything else in life - you have to install a bat house properly for it to work. Sadly, this is where many people end up going in the wrong direction. Many cheap bat houses don’t offer any advice about where to put a bat house in your yard.

At Big Bat Box, we understand that your bat house is worthless without proper installation. So we dove into the details and developed a system. Using this unique system, we can help you attract more bats than ever before.

More bats equal less mosquitoes and insects. But don’t take our word for it! Just listen to what one of our satisfied customers had to say after installing a Big Bat Box:

"Your bat house came highly recommended from my brother in law. We last counted 70 bats...talk about bug control.  We went from constantly needing bug spray to needing absolutely nothing - ever.  Thanks for making and selling these!" - Dave, Colorado

Alright, let’s dive in and find out where to put a bat house in your yard!

Where to Hang a Bat House in Your Yard

We’re confident in our bat attracting systems here at Big Bat Box, but we must point out one thing. Bats are wild animals. There’s no guarantees in the bat house game. By following these directions, you simply give yourself the absolute best chance at attracting bats.

Here’s exactly where to hang a bat house in your yard:

• Find the Water

Ideally, you have a natural source of water within 1,500 feet of your property. If you do, then there’s a great chance you’ll attract more bats than you could ever imagine. Do you have a stream, lake, pond, creek, or other source of natural water nearby?

If you do, you’re in luck. We’ll try to place the bat box as close to the water as possible, but at least 25-50 feet away from the shore. This also means you can buy a big bat box. Bats form colonies near water. As such, you’ll have a great chance of filling a Big Bat Box with up to 200 bats or more.

If you don’t have a natural source of water within 1,500 feet, that’s ok. You can still attract tons of bats, but you’ll need to take a different route. First, you’ll want to invest in 1-3 bachelor bat boxes. These smaller boxes can house up to 20 bats at a time, all bachelors.

This means a colony won’t form around your property, but you can still get over 60 bats living on your land with these types of bat boxes. That’s more than enough bats to completely eliminate your mosquito issues.

To entice bachelor bats, make sure you have some type of artificial water source fairly close to the houses.  Koi ponds and birdbaths both do well here.

• The Tree Line

Trees play an important role in where you’ll place your bat house. Bats houses must be at least 20-30 feet away from any tree line. Why? Because bats do NOT like to be near tree branches. Tree branches make it easy for predators to snack and prey on bats all day.

If you have a tree line, not just a few trees, then you’ll want to place the boxes about 20 feet ahead of the tree line as close to the water source as possible. We’re getting close to finding the perfect place for your bat house.

Think about it like this:

• Facing the Sun

Bats need a lot of heat to survive, especially at night. There’s a reason hundreds of bats sleep together in one tiny house. It’s because they can stay warm together through their body heat. They like bat houses for this reason.

To ensure you attract more bats, make sure your bat house is facing SE or SW. When facing in these directions, a bat house will receive ample sunlight during the day. Many locations will get 2-8 hours of sun when facing these directions.

The sunlight will warm the bat house up to an ideal temperature for bats. As well, a warm bat house will attract mama bats looking to nest. Female bats refuse to nest in locations they deem too cold.

• How High?

A bat house should generally be 12-20 feet off the ground. Bats like to be far away from other animals and humans, especially predators like cats. We’ve found a height of 20 feet tends to be ideal.

• Home or Post

If your home can meet all the conditions laid out above, then mounting the bat house on your home isn’t a bad idea. However, most homes aren’t perfectly situated to attract bats. Thus, other options should be considered.

Most people find mounting their bat house on two 20' posts to be ideal. By using posts, you give yourself a great deal of flexibility when thinking about where to put a bat house in your yard. This flexibility typically results in more bats if you do things properly.

• Paint Color

While this doesn’t have a lot to do with location, the color of the bat house will help attract bats, too. See, paint color plays a huge role in how hot and cold the bat house gets - and we already know how important temperature is for female bats.

As such, you’ll want a bat house that’s painted darker in cool climates. In warmer climates, a light color is ideal.

Where to Hang the Perfect Bat House: Everything You Need to Know

By following the instructions above, you’ll give yourself the absolute best chance to attract bats. Put your Big Bat Box in the proper location and you may find more bats on your property than you could have ever imagines.

The best way to do just that? Grab a Big Bat Box by clicking here and install it