Barn Board Bird House

K's bird house, in Clara's tree

  A while ago I was given some barn boards by friends of ours.  The boards had been in their garage for years and before that the boards had been out in to fresh air and sunshine for years, definitely boards with character, nice wide boards over an inch think too.


  My initial thought had been to plane them down and have nice clear pine boards for projects but after some more thought I decided to use them on things that would benefit from their weathered appearance.  Nothing came to mind until I was looking for something that my 2 1/2 year old grandson could build in the shop with Opa.  Kieran has already helped put his sisters crib together as well as assemble the book cases in his family room, he even has his own tool belt.  He is actually a help, I hold the drill driver and he pushes the trigger and we drive the screws together.


   Building the bird house was an interesting project, I looked up the specifications matching houses to species of birds on the computer. As well as giving proper hole sizes ( smaller than I would have thought) it recommended that there not be a perch in front of the hole. without the perch predator birds have nothing to stand on while pushing their heads into the house to attack chicks or break eggs.


  This project also had a different method of work,  I chose to do all the cutting of the barn board with hand tools.  I have experience with reclaimed lumber and know that there can everything from blown sand to buck shot in those old boards. I though if I cross cut and ripped the boards with hand tools I would have a better feel for possible trouble, and....it is a worth while skill to keep up.

Driving in the screws, I hold the drill, he pushes the button

   I cut the boards to size on afternoon during Kieran's nap and pre-drilled all the holes for assembly.  The next day we put it together. 

K spreading glue on the bottom

Hammering the bottom in

   I am hopeful that  he will continue to like building things, he doesn't have to make it a hobby or a passion but I want him to   grow up valuing people who create, make and repair things.


   I won't be too long and Clara will get her chance in the workshop too.