I was dead wrong about cheap bird feeders, just saying

I bought a $12 tube feeder from the hardware store last fall figuring it'd fall apart in a month. It's still hanging there after snow and rain, and I've seen goldfinches and chickadees on it every single morning for 6 months straight. Anyone else had a cheap piece of gear surprise them like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

jones.blake11h ago

Honestly, I thought the exact same thing when I grabbed a cheap suet cage at the grocery store. I figured it would bend or rust after a week, but it's still out there two years later and the woodpeckers love it. That thing about the goldfinches sticking around for six months is wild though, have you cleaned that tube feeder at all since you hung it up? I've heard with cheap plastic ones they can get mold inside pretty quick if you don't take them down and scrub them. Just curious if you've had to do that or if it's somehow avoided it.

iris_jones8910h ago

Nodded along reading this @jones.blake because I've been in the same boat. That suet cage sounds exactly like mine, made it through two winters looking like a crumpled soda can but still hanging in there. As for the tube feeder, I'll admit I haven't cleaned it once in six months. My excuse is that the goldfinches empty it fast enough that mold doesn't have time to grow, but honestly I'm just lazy and keep forgetting. Probably should get on that before I end up running a bird flu outbreak in my backyard.