Introduction
If you have a birdbath outdoors, you'll want to make sure the birdbath is sanitized, clean, and filled with fresh water often. If you keep your birdbath manageable and in a good condition, it is more likely to attract birds. Cleaning is necessary because a dirty birdbath and polluted drinking water can cause infections, diseases and death in some species of birds.
Things You'll Need
Gather the following required materials: clean water, chlorine bleach, a scrub brush, and rubber gloves. You probably already have all of the above mentioned materials in your home, so it should be quite easy and very inexpensive for you to successfully clean your birdbath.
Steps
- Get Rid Of The Old Water: The first step to cleaning your birdbath is to get rid of all the old, dirty and polluted water. All you need to do is rid the birdcage of all water, you can simply dump the old water outside as it will not harm any other animals or human beings
- Remove Dirt: Secondly, youll want to remove any left over bird seed, feces and debris from the birdbath. You will want to wear gloves for this step as you do not want any contaminants getting on your skin. You can throw all the dirt into a garbage bag and tie it up after your done. Place the garbage bag in a spot where other animals cannot get to it.
- Scrub: Use a solution of half clean warm water and half bleach to scrub the entire birdbath. Scrub the basin, lip and all other parts of the birdbath to ensure ultimate cleanliness. It is suggested you let the solution sit for a good ten minutes, so it can completely disinfect the entire birdbath.
- Rinse and Dry: You then will want to rinse off the solution from the birdbath. You can use a garden hose or simply just use clean water from a bucket to rinse it off completely. After that, youll want to let the birdbath dry completely before adding in the clean drinking water and seed.
Tips and comments
For the best results when cleaning a birdbath, youll want to do a full cleaning at least twice a week. Like any animal, birds need somewhere clean to rest and eat. You may also want to consider adding enzymes to your birdbath as these can eliminate any algae growths that may occur. Make sure that the enzymes are approved for wild life consumption though as you do not want to poison the birds.
If using a hose to rinse out the birdbath, use the hose on its most strong setting, such as a jet setting or pressure setting as this ensures youre rinsing out all of the contaminants. It is also important to change the water daily in a birdbath, as like humans, birds do not like dirty water. The whole process of cleaning your birdbath should take no longer than twenty minutes per clean. It is a fairly quick task and chore. Following these tips will ensure that you have a great oasis for all different species of birds.
