How to Clean Your Bird Feeders

Keeping feeders clean is an important part of feeder maintenance. Clean and sanitize your feeders on a regular basis. This can be every few weeks or more frequently.

Here is a video to help explain visually, too: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h42IxVJNBp8

List of supplies needed to clean your bird feeder:

  • Gloves
  • Tubs/Containers
  • Dish Soap
  • Tube Feeder Brush
  • Scrub Brush
  • Rag
  • Bleach – regular household bleach
  • Measuring Cup

Steps to Properly Clean Your Bird Feeder:

  1. Discard old food and debris from the feeder
  2. Fill tub/container with hot water and some dish soap
  3. Thoroughly scrub the feeder with brushes and/or rags.
  4. Be sure to really scrub the insides of the feeder and the perches. Brushing is important to dislodge any biofilm the bacteria might create to protect itself...
  5. Thoroughly rinse all parts
  6. Use a tub/container to create a bleach solution of nine (9) parts water to one (1) part bleach
  7. Soak feeder for 5-10 minutes rotating it to submerge all parts
  8. Remove from bleach solution and thoroughly rinse all parts
  9. Let the feeder dry completely