Coffee Can Bird House

Coffee Can Bird House FARM HOME Novelty Items 33-4-42 Empty plastic coffee containers can be used to make low-cost, durable bluebird houses, says Bob Wenzel of Fond du Lac, Wis., who mounts each container on a 6-ft. length of conduit set 2 ft. deep in the ground. The 2-lb., 1-oz. coffee container is placed upside down and has a 2-in. dia. hole drilled into it. "It costs almost nothing to build, and because it's plastic it'll last almost forever," says Wenzel. "Another advantage is that animals can't crawl up the conduit and get at the birds. I use Maxwell coffee containers because they have very large lids, which can be easily removed for clean out," says Wenzel. "Before I build each bird house I wash out the container with bleach to remove the coffee smell." He uses a hole saw to drill a 2-in. dia. hole into the side of the can, next to the handle, where the bird goes in. To support the conduit he drills a hole into the top of the handle and then pushes the conduit to the bottom of the container but not through it. Then he drills a 1/4-in. dia. hole through both the tubing and the handle and uses a plastic tie to secure the tubing to the handle, which keeps the wind from blowing the can around. He also drills a pair of 1/8-in. dia. holes on front and back of the can, under the hole where the bird goes in, to insert a twig perch. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Bob Wenzel, W7619 Coyne Rd., Fond Du Lac, Wis. 54937 (ph 920 922-2497).

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