Heath Outdoor Products PH12 Plastic 12 Room Purple Martin House

First, this is a nice little easy-to-build birdhouse (some comments that complained about how difficult it was to assemble simply baffle me. I read the instructions and it just...worked.). It's light, fairly big and adaptable to other poles. I went to the local big box store and got some conduit pipe (1.5" and 1.25" diameter). The 1.5" went into a hole in the ground secured with concrete. I buried it 3' in the ground and let it stand 5' above ground. Then I slid 8' of the 1.25" pipe into that and drilled holes for bolts to go through both and secure the pole.The 1" slipped up inside the birdhouse and the provided clamps (designed for Heath's pole which I think runs $60-$70) fit even though the pole was slightly smaller than what was required. I drilled another hole in this to mate it to the 1.25" pole.Now, I raise the 1.25" pole up, secure with a bolt and the bird house can go from 5' - 10' up. If I want I can raise it up further with a longer pole. I've read Martins will nest anywhere from 10-20' up.The only downside to this house is two-fold. First, the compartments are the old-school 6x6 blocks. Most people agree today that the birds need a longer cavity to keep the nest and young away from the entrance should a predator attack. So I closed off the holes on one side of the house, making 4 large chambers (6x12). I simply drilled a hole though the middle wall in each "room". The middle rooms are blocked by the pole running through the house so they aren't really useful but we'll see what happens.the other problem I have with this house is it doesn't have starling resistant entrance holes. That's easy enough to fix, though, just order some or make some and attach to the house with the appropriate glue/epoxy. If those things were fixed, this house would be 5 stars in my book.As it is, we have suffered through a few vicious thunderstorms here in WI and just two days ago had 75 mph straight-line winds. The pole assembly and the house shook a little in the wind but everything survived just fine. It's been installed now for a month or so and while I know it's a little late in the season, we have had a few visitors, including a wren and a bluebird. Sparrows and starlings have tried to make nests in it but I have religiously pulled them out (about 7 each now) and after the starlings lost some eggs, they moved on. The sparrows disappeared when the starlings arrived and even though the starlings haven't been seen in two weeks, the HOSPs are gone too! Now just need some martins...

First I looked at the instructions to get ahead of the delivery with the pole. I read 1-1/4 pipe and bought that pipe. The outside diameter (OD) is 1-1/4 not 1-1/4 pipe so I had to return my materials to get what was needed. The plastic sitting in the box vertically has a tendency to warp the walls a little bit making assembly (when you are 12' in the air on a ladder) a bit tricky to get the alignment for the 2nd floor to fit up to the walls. It does spin well on the pole so that I was able to work around the house without moving myself but just the house like it was on a turntable. We have had some good wind and rain storms and it has not come apart or shifted. Once assembled it was pretty snug pushing it up which is good from a stability standpoint but again working on a ladder makes it a bit awkward. Very clever hiding the clamp in the chimney as you push it up and then cap it off. Overall very good, again just the pipe size issue and the warping but would re-purchase another one, which I am thinking of doing. I already had a 14' 4x4 post in the ground so I attached the pipe to the side of that pole but feel that a pipe 100% of the way would be great also.

The assembly of the entire house is based on how tight you can compress the roof into the base - like a sandwich, using 2 clamped brackets on the end of the pole (the house roof and base) you are mounting it to. Only with the help of a friend were we able to get the pieces tight. I probably made it harder then it needed to be. Each 6x6" nesting spot has a very slippery floor - which is not recommended by the Purple Martin Association. This is easily fixed by adding epoxy and several broken tooth picks to the floor. You just don't want they bird's legs to get spread from a young age. Maybe a good coating of sand and some adhesive would work too. Though the nests would be very easy to clean, since the front panel opens up, it doesn't snap shut securely enough to keep the nest closed. I added 2 small plastic clips, glued to the floor, that will hold the door in place. I just hate to multiple fudge things.I made this martin house work but am not pleased since I needed to "add" so much to the product. I also made tunnel doors out of thin plastic. I copied them from S&K Manufacturing (http://store.skmfg.com/basket.asp). With polystyrene and quick set polystyrene glue, I was able to add depth to the nests and also add protection from other birds. You get what you pay for and I don't think you will be happy with this at all unless you are willing to add and adapt things.Also, you will have to pay to have it shipped back. The company doesn't stand behind their product like most. I kept mine since the cost of shipping it back was not worth it.

I purchased 3 of these to hide security cameras in in our large property. Overall, this is a good value for the price, but several of the tabs the slide into slots were broken off. These parts do not come individually wrapped inside the box, so these plastic pieces are very susceptible to breaking when the shipper tosses them around. This is not a big deal though, because the pieces slide into keepers and the entire house is held tight together by the pole up the center and screw-together flanges at the top and bottom.Worked perfectly for my purpose, and the birds still use it too.

I was very happy with the birdhouse it seems like a lot of birds have been looking at it but I don't have any in there yet it seems sturdy and I will think it's going to be easy to clean that was a big concern and the fact that the pole goes up the chimney gives it a lot of support so I'm really pleased.

We bought 3 of these as a gift. 1 had a few broken pieces. We emailed the manufacturer to get it replaced but to this day still have not heard from them. The plastic construction is not ideal. We have bought metal in the past and recommend the metal over the plastic.

The manufacturer seems to assume I am using a post, when I am actually using a platform from a previous purple martin house. I has to drill some holes, and because a slight torsion, not all pieces line up...but it looks good overall and has survived some windy nights

This was very difficult to assemble. It took my husband and I over an hour, mainly because as you got one part in place, another one came apart. It seems very flimsy and since it will be used on the shores of a Great Lake I'm worried that it's going to collapse in a strong wind.

The box was open and the hardware package was opened when it arrived. The pole and contents of the hardware package were both missing from the box.

Love my new birdhouse!! Can’t wait to put up in April!!

Was hard to assemble. As in it didn't stay together too well. And the fact that I have my own pole caused some serious issues. But I overcame that and it's up. Sadly too late for the Martins. Hopefully next year.