Build your own hedgehog house – winter housing for your garden

And off we go! First, saw the birch trunks into 50cm long pieces using the AdvancedCut 18.To do so, mark the desired length with a pencil.Then, clamp the birch trunks to your workbench so that you have more control when sawing and, most importantly, can work safely.

The trunk pieces are then notched on both sides. When notching wood, a recess is made into which another notched piece can then be inserted – this wedged effect then produces a stable connection. First, mark out 5cm for the respective depth on both sides and then mark another line for the middle of the trunk. Notching is easy to do by hand with the AdvancedCut 18.

To make sawing out the multiplex panels especially easy, sketch out the shape of your hedgehog house on the multiplex panel beforehand using a template. Print out two each of the templates for the front, back and inner wall of the hedgehog house. Then glue them together in the middle so that they form a semi-circle. The red marking is the position for the middle wall. Also glue together the template for the inner wall.

Please note: the recess for the door is on the right or back side of the house. This means that dogs or other larger animals cannot get into the separated area of the hedgehog house. To ensure that the hedgehog can hibernate undisturbed, place the house directly into the hedge so that it cannot be overturned.

You can also sketch the hedgehog house parts freehand on the multiplex panels and design it individually. It is important that you draw an entrance to the hedgehog house on the front through which an adult hedgehog can pass. Did you know that a fully grown hedgehog can grow up to 30cm long and 20cm high?

But be careful: do not make the opening larger than necessary because this would mean larger animals such as cats or martens could disturb the hedgehog's hibernation.

Now use your Universalsaw 18V-100 to saw along the marked cutting lines and cut out the shape of the front and back. Remember to also cut out the entrance door when sawing out the front. The curved saw blade makes it easy.

Before starting to saw out the door, first grab your 15mm Forstner drill bit and use it to drill through the nose of the sketched hedgehog, which later forms the entrance to the house. This will make it much easier for you to saw out the entrance later.

After sawing, the cut edges and surfaces should be sanded with the PSM 18 Li.

The base frame of the hedgehog house is now assembled. To do this, screw the three wood elements together using the AdvancedImpact 18 and the brackets. Attach the middle wall with two brackets each on the front and back of the hedgehog house with 4x 17mm screws. The hedgehog house base frame is done!

As soon as the base frame is screwed together, the roof construction begins. Now lay the processed birch trunks on the house one by one. First, drill holes from both sides with a wood drill. Trunk by trunk, attach the birch trunks on the base frame. Use the AdvancedImpact 18 and the 4 x 50mm screws to screw it all together.

As soon as the hedgehog house’s roof is affixed, you can fill the small gaps between the trunks with moss. This properly seals the roof so that the hedgehog stay really cosy through the winter

In order to make it super comfortable, you can place the rest of the moss and leaves into the house. And the cosy winter housing is complete. Pop it in the garden and keep your eyes peeled for the new resident. But always remember: hedgehogs should never be disturbed during their hibernation.