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Posted: Sep/10/2009 8:06 AM PST
How do you Sanitize your bird feeders ?I use antibacterial spray disinfectant in a spray can.I spray as soon as the birds stop feeding at dusk and refill the feeder before morning.Before it gets below 32f i do it once a week after 32f i do it every couple weeks. |
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Posted: Sep/10/2009 9:12 AM PST
This is a first for me, never heard of spraying a bird feeder. I clean mine once or twice a year. Just spray it hard with water, sometimes soapy water then leave it open to dry. How about some of you other members? |
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Posted: Sep/10/2009 10:25 AM PST
I don't sanitize mine ~ never heard of it. It's my belief (and I could be WAY wrong) that all this obsession with sanitizing lately is well, for the birds. A healthy immune system needs germs to stay strong. I wash my hummer feeders with hot soapy water only because they get gross looking otherwise. My wood and metal seed feeders and houses only get washed as needed. Never seen any birds drop over yet ~ quite the opposite. Are we doing something wrong, Wolf?? We may need some enlightening here 
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Posted: Sep/10/2009 12:37 PM PST
I clean mine a few times a year because we get so much rain, sometimes the seeds start germinating and I have grass growing in them! I only use soapy water, and if they are really molded up, a little clorox in the rinsing. I don't do a whole lot to my birdbaths, either. They are concrete, and just too dang heavy for me to take off the stand to empty and scrub real good. I haven't seen any keel over dead, either, but maybe they're doing it somewhere else. Glad to hear I'm not the only one. |
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Posted: Sep/10/2009 12:52 PM PST
We've never sanitized ours either. Only hose them off if the seeds sprout after lots of rain--something we don't get too often; therefore, we don't clean ours very often. |
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Posted: Sep/10/2009 2:45 PM PST
I started to sanitized my feeders 2 years ago. Maryland had a problem with a house finch disease and it was recommended on a few bird watching web sites.Cant recall the problem but it had something to do with eyes. |
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Posted: Sep/11/2009 8:15 AM PST
Ah yes ~ I DO remember reading about that eye thing. The pictures were gross. I haven't seen it on any birds here. You know what I lose the most birds to? Windows. They all reflect the woods and sky and really confuse the poor birdies. |
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Posted: Sep/11/2009 9:21 AM PST
Windows are bad for birds i covered my one window to keep them away.I never saw any of the eye diseased birds but i wasn't taking a chance.Maryland is with in 50 miles of my birds. |
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Posted: Sep/13/2009 7:49 AM PST
Well I use a hand scrub brush to mine every other week. I dont use chemicals tho. Just good ole h2o. I dont know what birds that do this, but at least once a week I have a bird fly into my picture window, it may knock it senseless for a minute and then does it again.. Big birds, little birds I have seen them both. |
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Posted: Sep/13/2009 1:11 PM PST
I use a wooded feeder and to clean it, just use hot soapy (use dish detergent) water and scrub it good, then air it dry outside on the deck. I read somewhere where you were suppose to use bleach, but I don't bother with that. And, I'm not real diligent on cleaning it during the summer season, but at the beginning of the season (in spring), I always make sure I clean it thoroughly. |
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