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I'm sure there must be lots of people with house walls that get baked either am, pm or all day and thus are not good positions for putting nest boxes.
Having thought about this somewhat frustratedly I've recently been wondering if anyone has made nesting boxes suitable for such positions. I've tried google but can't find anything. (Those woodcrete ones don't look as if they'd be up to the job.)
Yet making a box that stays cool in direct sun can't be that hard can it? All it needs is some kind of a shade or a double skin perhaps or maybe thicker and/or denser material at the front, insulation and/or something that reflects the suns heat.
I'm surprised I've never come across ideas as there must be lots of properties that could take advantage of such a design.
I have the woodcrete boxes and have had successful broods of bluetits.
Woodcrete has properties making it warm in winter and cool in summer as the temperature is stable.Woodcrete is also quite thick.They may be expensive but very hard wearing.
Direct sun is not a good position for a nest box of whatever sort but I believe the woodcrete ones do the job they are supposed too.
Rachel
It's not always easy to hug a hedgehog.
But that doesn't mean you shouldn't.
Hi Syntarsus
I'm not sure which nest boxes you mean when you say that the woodcrete ones don't look up to the job, but if you mean this type then I think you might find that they are really popular nest boxes.
You could always contact different manufacturers and ask for guidance, but I would be very surprised if you didn't have a suitable position for at least one.
I assume you have read the RSPB advice on nest boxes.
Plus there are many other threads all about nest boxes here
Best wishes Chris
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Some of the nesting boxes I have seen in the USA have vents or slits in them to allow the air to circulate. The temperature there can get very high very quickly.
You could also combine this idea the thicker timber which may provide more insulating properties.
I Googled one design as , there are many more. I could make this easily
http://www.nabluebirdsociety.org/nestboxes/carllittle.htm
The vents will need to be protected from predators using 1/2" mesh and aperture size adjusted to the species you wish to house. The design would not be much good for winter roosting as it would allow cold air in.
Another method would be to paint the box white using water based paint, as this will reflect the direct rays of the sun.
Good luck
madpenguin said: Direct sun is not a good position for a nest box of whatever sort but I believe the woodcrete ones do the job they are supposed too.
So are they supposed to be suitable for direct sun?
Birds wouldn't normally nest in a position where their young would be in direct South facing sun all day. So if that is your only possible position for a nest box then you might be unlucky
Hi
as woodpecker has said, birds don't like direct sunlight.
It's up to us to put them in a sheltered position.
Facing N to NE.
Ray
a good laugh is better than a tonic
Schwegler 1B
I got a delivery today of one of these boxes, the instructions say to place facing southeast, or a different direction, if the site is sheltered. I will probably use the southeast direction, since the constuction is heavy, more like concrete than woodcrete, which I have never heard of. My main wish is to avoid cat and human interference, so the garden shed is a no-no, as are the trees, which are used by the cats from nearby as aerial sporting frames.
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