How to Make Outside Lights Out of Birdhouses

Add twinkle lights to a decorative birdhouse to help light up the night.

Decorative birdhouses are lovely additions to any landscape, but they are especially useful if you turn them into ambient lighting for your property. To make outside lights out of birdhouses, always select lights that are rated for outdoor use. Twinkle strand lights or even single-light fixtures with low-watt bulbs will work to light up your decorative birdhouses. Look for unfinished wooden birdhouses at craft stores and finished designs at home improvement and design stores.

Things You'll Need

• Decorative wooden birdhouse
• Screwdriver
• Outside string lights
• Measuring tape
• Pen
• Drill
• 3/8-inch diameter drill bit
• 1-inch diameter drill bit
• Exterior polyurethane sealer
• Duct tape

Instructions

1. Remove the screws attaching the wooden base to the birdhouse structure. Remove the wooden base, but save the screws. If your birdhouse does not have visible screws, slide a putty knife between the wood base and the birdhouse walls to break the seal of the glue, and then remove the base.

2. Measure the distance between the lights on a strand of string lights rated for outdoor use. Mark the birdhouse walls and roof with dots that are separated the same distance as the lights on the strand. The dots are the guides for the holes that will fit the lights on the strand. You can create a pattern using a template or place the dots randomly; just make sure that the distance between each dot is equal to the distance between the lights on the strand.

3. Drill 3/8-inch diameter holes through each dot on the birdhouse walls and roof. This measurement is a guide. The lights need to fit through the holes, so drill the appropriate sized hole for the lights you select.

4. Drill a 1-inch diameter hole through the base of the birdhouse. This hole is the exit for the light's power cord. Drill the hole near the center of the birdhouse if you plan to attach the birdhouse to a post. You can enhance your outside light by wrapping the lights around the post as they exit the birdhouse. If you plan to hang the birdhouse light, drill the hole near the back side of the base.

5. Seal the birdhouse and the base with exterior polyurethane sealer. Even though the birdhouse is already decorated, you must protect the freshly drilled holes. Allow the sealer to dry.

6. Fit the string light bulbs through the holes in the birdhouse walls and roof, from the inside. Tape the wires in place with duct tape. Reattach the wooden base to the birdhouse structure.

Tips & Warnings

• Paint an unfinished wooden birdhouse before drilling the holes. To use a single-light fixture to illuminate your birdhouse, cut a hole in the back or bottom of the birdhouse to fit over the light fixture. Attach the fixture to the wood with a bracket. Drill holes in the birdhouse to allow the light to shine through.

References

• Virginia Wind: How to Drill a Hole

Resources

• How to Draw and Paint: Acrylic Painting Techniques