How To Install a Birdhouse Post

Updated: Jun. 23, 2023

Learn how to install a post for your birdhouse.

birdhouse post
Birds are a cheerful and entertaining presence in a yard. If you're short on feathered friends or would like more of them, a wood birdhouse could bring them your way. It's simple to hang one from a tree branch—if you have a tree, that is. When no tree is available, you'll need to install a birdhouse post and attach the house to it. Follow these steps to learn how to install a birdhouse post.

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The Project:

birdhouse post

If you built the birdhouse yourself or know your way around a woodworking studio, make the post from scrap lumber. If not, you’ll find wood posts at your local home-improvement store. Choose a post that will balance nicely with the proportions of the birdhouse and allow room for the brackets you’ll use to attach it. Installing the post is an easy weekend project if you follow these step-by-step instructions:

Tools & Materials

  • Wood birdhouse
  • Wood post
  • Large bucket
  • 25-pound package of easy-mix concrete
  • Cardboard concrete form (cylinder shape)
  • 2 to 3 quarts cold water
  • Wood or metal stirring stick
  • Old metal spoon or trowel
  • Cutting tool (such as a carpet knife)
  • Level
  • Electric drill
  • Safety goggles
  • Pencil
  • Screwdriver
  • Paint (spray paint, outdoor acrylic or latex)
  • Tarp for painting (optional)
  • 4 small mounting brackets and screws

Step 1: Dig a hole

dig a hole

Paint the birdhouse and the post. While the pieces are drying, dig a hole about 2 in. wider than the post. (Remember to call 811 before you dig.) The hole should be about 12 in. deep. Insert the cardboard cylinder into the hole and use the carpet knife to cut it about 10 to 15 in. above the ground.

Step 2:  Attach brackets to post

Attach brackets to post birdhouse pole

Use the pencil to mark each side for the placement of the metal brackets. Wearing safety goggles, drill the holes and screw in each bracket. If desired, paint the brackets to match the birdhouse pole and birdhouse.

Step 3: Mix cement and place post

Mix cement

Pour the dry concrete into the bucket, add water and stir it to a slightly mushy consistency. Follow the instructions on the concrete package for perfect results.

Fill tube with cement and insert post birdhouse pole

Pour about one-third of the concrete mixture into the hole, place the birdhouse pole on top and use the trowel or spoon to surround the pole with the remaining concrete.

level post birdhouse pole

Ensure the birdhouse pole is standing straight by aligning the level to one side and adjusting as needed. Allow the concrete to harden and cure for 24 to 48 hours.

Step 4: Drill holes into the birdhouse

Drill holes into the birdhouse

Set the birdhouse on the post and use the pencil to mark the remaining bracket holes. Drill the holes and screw the birdhouse to the post.

Step 5: Cut away the form

Cut away the form

Using the carpet knife, cut off any portion of the cardboard form that protrudes over the cement. Cover the cement and the surrounding area with dirt, then cover with pine needles or mulch.

Once the birdhouse post project is complete and your birdhouse is up, wait a few days for the new tenants to arrive. In the meantime, you can clean your birthbath so they’ll have a source of water. Hang a suet bell nearby and the fun will soon begin.