Wood is a natural for a birdhouse. Birds have lived in
trees for eons, so wood is the material for natural housing
for birds, so why not use if for yours as well?
Here we take a look at some commercially available wooden
bird houses. The styles are of all sorts of creative designs.
Some common wood species often used for wooden birdhouse
include:
Cedar - Cedar is a real workhorse in outdoor projects.
First of all, it's a lightweight wood, which makes it a good
wood to use in hanging projects like many birdhouses and bird
feeders. It can be painted stained, or treated with a
preservative, but most often it is left unfinished so it will
age to that classic aged gray color. The smell of cedar is
unmistakable, and it's resistant to many insects (so much so
that it is used for many indoor projects that house clothing
such as cedar chests and closets).
Cypress - This is a classic choice for birdhouses. It
can be used by itself, but often it is combined with other
construction materials when adding a feature like a rooftop,
where it may be combined with copper or other metals or
woods.
Mahogany -This is really one of the all time favorite
wood species for use in birding projects, especially in
smaller birdhouses. This is a dense wood so it withstands
weather well. It is one of the more expensive woods, but it
has an unmistakeable finish and is one of the more beautiful
wood species.
One other material often thought of as a wood product is
bamboo. It is actually a grass, but because of its strength
it's often referred to as green steel, and is used in indoor
products like cabinets because it is not only very attractive
but its harder than many hardwoods, so it performs as well as
real wood for these projects. It's favored for birdhouses
especially those with an oriental theme for the
bamboo birdhouse design.
There are many types of wood birdhouses to be found. Wood
works well as it's a natural material, holds up well over the
years, and is an easy product to work with.