Wooden bird feeders - easy and quick to make. How to make a bird feeder with your own hands: original and unusual ideas Make a beautiful bird feeder from wood

Winter time is a serious test for birds. Every day it becomes more and more difficult to find food. Take care of the birds - hang a feeder made with your own hands from the simplest materials at hand, which we usually throw in a landfill. We have selected photos and original ideas for making feeders that do not require special skills or complex drawings.

Having accustomed the birds to the feeder, you will be able to observe the entertaining avian bustle and the secret life of birds.

Some of them defend their rights in fights with relatives, others enter into competition with other species, but without exception, all of them carefully look around so as not to miss the attack of a small hawk, which is very interested in visitors to the feeder.

A simple bird feeder will bring great benefits to birds

Materials for making a feeder can be very diverse, but there are some general design rules:

the feeder should, first of all, be convenient for the birds; there should be no difficulty in removing food;
The roof and sides will help protect the food from snow, rain and wind. Exposure to moisture can cause food to deteriorate and become moldy, which means it will turn into poison for birds;
It is desirable that the material from which the feeder will be made be resistant to moisture, otherwise such a design will not last long and a new one will need to be made;

The feeder must be safe: have no sharp sides and be located high enough above the ground

walls and corners should not be sharp or prickly;
feeders for small birds are made small in size so that larger and more aggressive species do not encroach on their food;
It is better to place feeders on tree branches or attach them to the walls of outbuildings at a height of about one and a half meters, so that cats do not offend the birds, and it is convenient to sprinkle food on your feathered friends.

Advice. Birds get used to a permanent feeding place and are ready to travel many kilometers to the feeder. Therefore, feeding must be constant, otherwise the birds may die.

Plywood bird feeder

You can buy a feeder in a hypermarket, or you can make it yourself in a few hours. A plywood feeder can be made open, with a flat or gable roof, and a bunker compartment can be provided if you cannot constantly monitor the amount of feed in the feeder. Of course, you will need drawings, fortunately, there are plenty of them on the Internet with ready-made dimensions of parts for cutting. Choose a design that you like, the drawing will make the work easier and guarantee that in the end you will get exactly what is shown in the photo.

Lightweight and durable feeder made from plywood sheets

When choosing a design for a future feeder, consider the bird population in your region. Jays, pigeons and magpies can eat all the food, leaving little titmice hungry. To prevent this from happening, make the size of the feeder openings such that large birds cannot reach the feed.

So, you will need a hammer, an electric jigsaw, nails of a suitable length, water-based glue, sandpaper, plywood, 20 x 20 mm timber. Let's look at a simple feeder.

Ideas and drawings of a bird feeder made of wood

Wooden feeders are attractive because they last a long time and keep their shape well - this is due to the properties and reliability of wood. To make such a feeder you will need at least minimal skills in working with tools and a drawing. The board for production should be 18 - 20 mm thick. Let's consider the option of making a feeder, which you can do yourself or take a photo as a basis for a drawing. We will need a beam measuring 4.5 x 2 cm for the racks, a square of plywood 25 x 25 cm for the bottom, two pieces measuring 35 x 22 cm for the roof, nails, screws and glue.

Feeder made of wooden beams

Such a feeder can be installed permanently on a dug-in post or drill two holes in the ridge, screw in a screw with a hook and hang it on a wire. Several birds can fly up to the feeder at the same time, the food is protected from the wind by the sides and roof, the feathered friends of the garden will love such a cozy dining room.

Finished wooden feeder

If you have a gazebo on your site, hang a simple feeder there without a roof. It is enough to make a side and a bottom. If you want to paint the feeder or open it with varnish, then use water-based compounds so as not to harm the birds.

Advice. To prevent the wood from splitting, you need to make the tip of the nail blunt, and drill a hole for the screw before screwing it in.

Making a feeder out of cardboard (suitable for children)

One of the simplest feeders. The cardboard version is interesting because it can be made in a place with children and at the same time have a great time with them. This would be a great craft for kindergarten or elementary school. There is a lot of room for creativity here. Cardboard is an excellent option; it is only afraid of direct water. But if you want to play it safe and make the feeder more resistant to moisture, then you can glue the external elements of the feeder with wide tape, especially its upper and lower parts. In a forest or park, such a feeder can easily last all winter and part of spring.

Collage of a cardboard feeder. Photo livemaster.ru/topic/179659-delaem-kormushku-iz-kartona

The set of tools and materials is minimal, and if you don’t have something from this list, you can always find a replacement. So we will need these materials and tools:

A couple of sheets of cardboard (A4 format or more);
Ruler;
Scotch tape (for structural reliability);
Stationery knife;
A rope or piece of nylon rope to hang the feeder;
Pencil or felt-tip pen;
Cardboard glue or glue gun;
Hole puncher.

If such a feeder is going to take the prize as the best craft in your kindergarten, then you will have to work a little in terms of external design. Here our cardboard will give a head start to any Tetra-Pak (this is a milk or juice carton), you can beautifully draw on it and decorate it in every possible way. Undoubtedly, the prize from kindergarten will be yours!

Pumpkin feeder

But here, as they say, words are unnecessary - everything is visible in the photo collage. I would like to add that such a feeder looks very attractive and unusual and will be a real decoration of your garden, this is due to the shape of the feeder and its color, which looks great against the background of white snow.

This option is also suitable for making with children. And such a beautiful, bright craft will definitely not go unnoticed in kindergarten.

Bird feeder from a box (package) Tetra Pak) from juice or milk

You can make a feeder from a milk carton or a tetra pack of juice, like this. Even a child can do this. For this you will need:

clean juice box;
a piece of nylon rope or wire to hang the feeder;
adhesive plaster;
marker;
scissors or stationery knife.

Milk carton bird feeder

First of all, mark and cut holes on opposite sides of the tetra pack. To make it convenient for the birds to take food and fly out. We cover the bottom side of the window with adhesive tape for the convenience and safety of the birds. We poke a hole under the holes with scissors and insert the cardboard rolled up into a tube, which is left over from cutting the holes above. In the bent corners we make small holes for wire or rope. And we tie it to a branch.

The feeder can be attached to a tree trunk. Such a feeder will not sway in the wind. To do this, feeding slots are made not on opposite sides of the bag, but on adjacent ones. On the opposite side we fix the wire in the slot and screw it to the tree.

Horizontal feeder made of tetro pack

You can make a feeder out of two juice bags. We cut the first package along the narrow sides, leaving the top uncut. From the second tetra pack we cut off the third part and cut a hole on the front side of the bag - this will be the feeding board or the bottom of the feeder. We combine the bottom with the first package so that we get a triangle. The parts can be connected with glue, wrapped with tape, or by piercing the bottom of the sides and inserting straws for cocktails.

Bird feeder made from plastic bottles 1.5 - 2 liters

Let's look at some variations of making a do-it-yourself feeder from plastic containers.

Option #1. The simplest feeder

Symmetrically, on both sides of the bottle we cut out two holes: round, square, rectangular or in the form of an arch. There should be bridges between the holes. If you make a slot in the form of an inverted letter “P” and bend the plate upward, you will get a rain canopy. You can stick an adhesive plaster or fabric tape to the bottom edge of the hole - the edges will not be sharp and the birds will sit comfortably. We make symmetrical holes in the lower part and insert a stick - the result is a feeder with a perch.

A simple feeder made from a plastic bottle

You can attach such a dining room for birds to a tree by wrapping the jumper with tape, rope or other suitable material, as seen in the photo. If you make a hole in the bottle cap and insert the ends of the twine, and then tie them in a knot, you will get a loop that can be thrown over the branches of garden trees.

Be sure to make the edges of the plastic feeder safe - cover the cut areas with electrical tape

Option #2. Bunker feeder.

This design is rational to use because the feed can be poured in for several days. As the birds eat it, the food will automatically be added to the feeding area itself.

Hopper feeder made from plastic bottles

You will need two bottles of the same volume. We mark one bottle with a marker before cutting. We make holes at the bottom, as in feeder No. 1, and remove the top third of the bottle. We make two symmetrical holes at the top - a ribbon or twine will later be tied to them for hanging the feeder. In the second bottle we cut several holes at the narrowest part - food will pour out of them. Do not make large holes right away; it is better to expand them later. We pour food into the bottle, tighten the cap and insert the bottle into the first bottle, cut by a third.

Option #3. Feeder with spoon

We make a hole in the cork and insert twine for hanging. Then we make two holes symmetrically the size of the spoon. We cut a hole in the bottle above the bowl-shaped deep part of the spoon, slightly widening it so that the birds can take the food. Fill the feeder and hang it up.

Feeder with spoon

Advice. Using a hot needle or small nail, make several holes in the bottom of the feeder to drain moisture that gets inside.

Bird feeder made from a plastic bottle 5 liters

Probably in every home there is an empty five-liter plastic water bottle. Making a feeder in one evening to feed birds in winter from this material is very simple. Such a container will hold much more food than a smaller plastic bottle, as can be seen in the photo. Several holes will allow several birds to feed comfortably at once.

Feeder made from a five-liter plastic bottle

This is a very simple and quick option, invite your children or other family members to take part in the manufacturing process: find a ribbon or wire to tie the finished feeder to a tree branch, prepare a treat for the birds. Prepare a clean bottle, a sharp knife, pruning shears or a utility knife.

We cut the hole based on how we plan to secure the container to the tree:

horizontally - cut a wide hole from the bottom of the bottle and the same from the neck;
vertically - at a height of 5-7 cm from the bottom of the container, cut several square holes or three rectangular ones.

Materials needed to make a feeder

It is convenient to tie the bottle by the neck to a branch with wire or twine. If the feeder is made in a horizontal version, then use a knife to make two holes on the wall through which you pass the twine for tying. To prevent the feeder from swaying in the wind, place a quarter of a brick on the bottom to weigh it down, and load a treat on top.

You can also build a bunker feeder from a five-liter bottle. To do this you will need a five-liter bottle and two 1.5-liter bottles, a marker, a stationery knife and a rope.

You can place the feeder under the roof to make the birds more comfortable

With a little ingenuity, you can use the simplest plastic bottles to create unusual dining rooms for birds that will decorate your area.

Shoebox bird feeder

Everything is simple here. Take a thick shoe box with a lid. We make a round hole in the lid. The hole needs to be moved slightly from the center to the bottom edge of the box (a little different in the photo), this is necessary so that the birds can reach the food, which will lie at the bottom of the box.

We make a small hole in the top of the box and insert a tourniquet or rope through it. We tie an old pencil or stick to the end of this rope. We will then tie the other end of the rope to the branch of the tree on which we plan to hang the feeder. Then you can wrap the box with wrapping paper, but this is for aesthetic purposes, you don’t have to do this.

We make a roof out of ordinary cardboard and put it on glue. Next, we glue the lid to the box itself with tape, as in Figure 3, 4, and also thread a rope through the lid.

At the moment when we hang the finished feeder on a tree, the roof may come unstuck from the box, but this is not scary, it won’t be able to get away anywhere, because it will be held in place by a rope.

And in the picture below is an even simpler version of a shoebox feeder. But there is no need to explain anything here, everything is already visible in the photo. The entire box is simply wrapped with tape, which, by the way, is very practical. And in our opinion, it turned out to be original and unusual.

Cardboard bird feeder

To make a bird canteen with your own hands, the simplest material will do, which is stored in abundance on the balconies of most families: boxes of electrical goods, cardboard packaging of food products. Choose thicker cardboard with a laminated coating; laminate will slightly increase the service life of the feeder. Although, as written above, you can use wide tape for these purposes. The advantage of this design is that there is already a bottom, walls and roof of the future feeder, which needs to be slightly modified by cutting square or rectangular holes on the sides.

Even a schoolchild can make a cozy feeder from a mailbox with his own hands

You will need a nylon cord, scissors or a stationery knife and tape. Since cardboard is a very short-lived material and is afraid of moisture, a finished feeder wrapped with tape will last until the next season. Having cut the side holes and secured the cord, you can hang the feeder and fill it with treats for the birds, which will not keep you waiting long. Place sand or some pebbles at the bottom so that the structure does not sway too much in the wind.

If you cover a cardboard feeder with paints, it will last longer.

You can do it a little differently. We glue the lid of the box perpendicularly so that the lid serves as a stern stand, and the second part of the box serves as a side and a roof. We glue the structure with tape. We make two hooks from wire: we bend a piece of wire in half and pierce the “ceiling” of the feeder with the ends, twist it and bend it from the inside. By connecting the hooks, you can hang the feeder on a branch. As you can see in the photo. Now pour in the food and wait for the guests.

Window bird feeder (with suction cups)

Such feeders are a very interesting option for the general development of children, and adults too :). The feeder is attached to the window, or rather to the glass, using suction cups. Usually such feeders are also made transparent in order to fully enjoy watching the birds. If you have suction cups, you can make such a feeder yourself, for example, from the same plastic bottle, but you must agree that it will still not be as aesthetically pleasing as the ready-made version from the store. Children will probably start taking pictures of all this, and photos with yellowed, cloudy bottles will, to put it mildly, not be so hot. The purchased options look very nice.

Wild animals and birds that live in nature cannot count on someone helping them in the winter just like their domesticated “brothers.” However, many people understand this and try to provide all possible assistance during the winter cold.

Benefits for both you and the birds

Caring people understand well how difficult this time is for our little brothers, since starting in late autumn, it is becoming increasingly difficult for many of them to find food. Of course, with all the desire, it is not so easy to help those of them who live in the forest or in remote areas. However, if you live in a city, town or village, then everything is within your power. Today we will talk about bird feeders. It is quite possible to make them, and we are talking about using improvised means, old packaging and containers, as well as other materials that, in any case, would most likely be thrown into a landfill.

By the way, having “accustomed” the birds to your feeder located on the site, in addition to the feeling that you are helping them, saving them from hunger during a difficult time of year, you receive some kind of additional “bonuses”:

Birds will get used to your site and will begin to live in and around it more often. Thus, they will constantly delight you with their games, bustle and chirping, filling the surrounding space with vital energy.
Quite often it happens that in the summer birds return a kind of debt to you, destroying numerous insects and pests that live in almost every garden or vegetable garden.

Wood is a reliable material!

In today's article we have presented photos of many options that will help with ideas on how to make a bird feeder with your own hands. As a rule, in order to implement a project for such a feeder, you do not need complex designs and drawings.

Attention! You can feed birds not only in winter, but also in summer, especially if you live in a country house or in a private house.

Before we look at the basic ideas for making feeders, let's talk about some of the features of choosing the material, as well as the places where you can hang or attach such a homemade structure.

Selection of material and installation location

Before choosing a place for a feeder, it will be very useful to learn the most common types of birds that live in our latitudes.

1. Nuthatch; 2. pika; 3. small spotted woodpecker; 4. crossbill; 5. jay; 6. nutcracker or nutcracker; 7. bullfinch; 8. waxwing; 9. common grosbeak; 10. goldfinch; 11. siskin; 12. common oatmeal; 13. greenfinch; 14. great tit; 15. blue tit; 16. tufted tit; 17. Muscovy tit; 18. long-tailed tit; 19. titmouse.

It is traditionally believed that a bird feeder should have the shape of a kind of house, which would be somewhat similar to a birdhouse. And in fact, this configuration is optimal for organizing a place for feeding birds. Let's consider the advantages of this form:

The roof allows you to create protection from rain and snow.
This design, made of plywood or wood, is strong, durable and reliable.
It will not look alien, since we are talking about landscape design and the visual appeal of the entire site.

However, you should not be limited only to this form, and also to the fact that only wood can be used as a material. In fact, both the configuration and the material can be completely different.

The main thing is that the feeder meets the basic requirements:

The material from which the feeder is made must be stable and not deform over time. In other words, a birdhouse made of cardboard or similar improvised means is not suitable. It simply will not withstand difficult weather conditions: rain, sleet, etc.
At the same time, you can, as a last resort, make a small feeder from juice packaging or dairy products (kefir, milk, etc.). Tetra Pak and similar cardboard packaging are to a much greater extent, compared to ordinary cardboard, adapted to the effects of moisture. However, such structures cannot be classified as durable. On the other hand, they are quite suitable as a temporary solution, which, under favorable circumstances, can serve you throughout the whole season. At the same time, it is necessary to understand that a feeder made from a milk carton is suitable only for small birds, since large ones simply will not fit in it.
From the previous paragraph, by the way, the following conclusion follows: the material must be strong and stable, since it must withstand not only autumn-winter bad weather, but also the weight of the birds themselves, some of which are quite massive. In addition, keep in mind that wear will also occur due to the constant impact of their claws, since they will, as a rule, sit in a cut-out opening (“window”).
By the way, since we are talking about a window, an entrance (this technological hole can be called, in fact, whatever you want), then we need to understand that its edges should not be sharp, because, otherwise, birds can injure their paws on them.

Location

In addition to the material, as well as manufacturing technology, you need to understand that the place in which you install or hang the bird feeder is also an important point. Thus, if possible, it is necessary to avoid installation in places where birds will have difficulty accessing. We are talking about dense branches and other similar places.

In addition, pay attention to ensuring that the feeder is located in a place that is difficult to reach for cats, which, as you know, are excellent hunters, living in large numbers in villages, dachas, as well as in cottages and private housing estates.

Advice! Place the feeder in an open space, in places easily visible to birds.

Popular ideas

Let's look at the basic ideas on how best to make a bird feeder with your own hands, looking at “live” examples of how many people have implemented their projects. There can be many feeders, and there are countless options for making them. However, they are all made for the same purpose. So, here are the main types of structures of this kind.

A dispenser is a very useful device for feeding birds. In addition, the bottle can be hung vertically “upside down”

Wooden house

It is quite possible to make such a design yourself. There is no need to have any specific skills or knowledge. As a rule, in such work, improvised or unnecessary boards, pieces of logs and many other wooden elements are used. Taking planks or veneer as a basis, the main task is their strong connection.

By the way, wooden bird feeders can be used not only for feeding yard birds. Similar designs are also used in chicken coops, when feeding chickens and other poultry. However, this, as they say, is a completely different story.

Plywood feeder

This design can be made with your own hands right at home. You don't need any special tools or conditions for this. In this case, of course, you will have to find drawings of the feeders. On the other hand, you can make a drawing with dimensions yourself, since there is nothing particularly complicated in its development. For additional ideas, we recommend that you familiarize yourself with photos and examples of finished work.

Hopper feeder

This type of construction, so to speak, “migrated” from agriculture. One of its main advantages is that it allows one to exclude “discrimination” of some bird species by others. You yourself have probably noticed that often a flock of birds, for example, sparrows or tits, takes an advantageous position in the immediate vicinity of food (seeds, bread crumbs, grains, cereals, loaves, etc.) or even in the feeder itself and strives to prevent other birds from accessing such a valuable resource.

Therefore, limiting the area where feathered friends can feed becomes an important task. Therefore, in such cases, homemade bunker feeders, also known as anti-passerine feeders, can be useful.

Feeders made from plastic bottles

A canister feeder is also a great option.

This type of design is extremely simple, so everyone, including children, can make it themselves. In order to make it, you just need to cut one or two holes in the bottle in order to pour bird food inside, and, in fact, so that the birds have the opportunity to get inside. Of course, you need to be careful in doing this, since the holes should be as even and symmetrical as possible.

Interesting! If you have the time and desire, you can further decorate the feeder with natural materials or apply inscriptions.

Let's take a closer look at the features of carrying out work when there are bottles of different sizes. The fact is that the most common starting materials in such cases are:

So, if you use the first option, then you can choose two types of structures. In the first case, we are talking about making holes in both sides of the bottle. They can have different shapes: round, rectangular or square.

In the second case, you can make a special canopy that would cover the hole, protecting it from snow. In order to make it, you just need to cut a U-shaped hole, leaving one side (top). After this, this section of the bottle is bent upward, thus forming a kind of visor. This, by the way, can also be done on both sides.

To make it more comfortable for the birds, you can make two small holes under the main openings and insert a long stick into them for them to perch on before getting inside. As for the lower edge of the main holes, for greater safety it is advisable to cover it with adhesive tape or several layers of electrical tape. A cloth adhesive plaster will also work. In this way, you can make your own feeder from plastic containers of relatively small volume.

Even easier, you can make a feeder from a 5-liter bottle. The fact is that the walls are often straight, which allows you to cut a more even hole. Plus, more seeds and crumbled loaf can be placed in such a container, and it is more convenient for birds to fly inside. To make this you will need a knife or strong scissors.

If the plastic bottle is attached horizontally, then holes can be cut in place of the bottom and neck. If you plan to fix it vertically, then you can cut 2, 3 or even 4 holes on different sides if you are working with a bottle that has a square or rectangular cross-section. This, by the way, will allow several birds to fly in and feed at once. For round bottles, you can cut 2-3 holes. By the way, based on a large bottle with a volume of 5 liters or more, you can also make a bunker feeder.

On a note! It is advisable to cut the holes at a height of at least 5 centimeters from the bottom, maybe a little more.

Attaching such a feeder is quite simple: you can tie it either by the neck or by the handle, which is an integral part of the lid, using twine or thin wire. This is if we talk about vertical options. When fixing horizontally, it is best to make 2 parallel small holes (they can be made using a knife or other sharp object), passing the wire or rope through them, which is necessary for fastening.

In any case, this option is very affordable, since almost everyone has unwanted 5-liter water bottles at their disposal. Example photos show various options for how this can be done.

Bird feeder made from a milk or juice carton

5 minutes - and a new feeder from a juice bag is ready

Everyone has juice or milk boxes. We usually throw them away. The manufacturing technology is extremely simple, and in some ways resembles the previous one (with plastic bottles). So, if you want to make a bird feeder from a juice or milk carton, your sequence of actions could be as follows:

We outline future holes using a pen, marker or felt-tip pen.
Carefully cut them out using scissors or a sharp knife.
Cover the bottom side of the opening with tape or adhesive tape.
We make small holes for the rope or wire at the top of the bag.
We hang the resulting feeder from a tree branch, lilac or other places.

The easiest and fastest option from a milk carton

By the way, in some cases you can put a weight on the bottom or attach to it in the form of a piece of brick or something similar. This will minimize swaying in the event of strong winds. This applies not only to paper boxes, but also to plastic bottles.

Remember! In some cases, you can attach the feeder to the wall.

Using a shoe box

By the way, a bird feeder is made from a shoe box in a similar way. Of course, the fact that it is made of cardboard does not allow such a feeder to be durable. On the other hand, some boxes are made of fairly durable and moisture-resistant cardboard. Moreover, you can additionally cover the cardboard with tape, which will further increase its protection from the effects of bad weather conditions. This will increase the life of the feeder to some extent, although, in any case, it will not be as durable as its counterparts made of wood, cardboard and even plastic.

The manufacturing technology itself is extremely simple and does not require any special instructions. You just need to make the necessary slits on the sides of the box and also secure the lid. This can also be done using tape.

Other options

Of course, all these types of feeders are the most common and popular. However, it makes sense to talk about alternative options. The first of these is a feeder made from tableware.

By the way! You can also make a drinking bowl from the dishes, which is also very important for the birds.

Such original products are made from cups and saucers. If you add a deep plate, you can make both a feeder and a drinker at the same time. Some craftsmen make feeders from old buckets, usually plastic. They turn out to be large, which somewhat limits the possibilities for their installation, which, of course, is a certain disadvantage. The advantage is the same: the size of such a product is quite large. This allows you to pour in more food. In addition, several birds can feed at the same time. We must not forget about the strength of this design.

Bird feeders can be seen in yards and parks. If you want to design something special, extraordinary, then we will tell you how to make a bird feeder yourself.

An easy way to give food to birds

A feeder can be made from available materials, for example, take a piece of board, plywood or any flat and durable material at hand and place it higher from the ground. This way the food will remain available to the birds.

This is a temporary measure, as precipitation may fall or the feed will simply be blown away by the wind. But such a feeder can save birds from starvation.

We use plastic bottles

From a plastic bottle you can build both a very simple and a multifunctional dining room for birds. Let's take a closer look at some feeder ideas and their implementation.

Hastily

If we cut a hole in the side of the bottle, we can say that we have done half the job. Near the neck you need to make 2 holes with an awl, insert a wire and secure the feeder to a branch of a tree or bush. If you pour food on the bottom, after a while you will be able to see birds flocking there.

To prevent moisture from spoiling the food if precipitation gets inside the bottle, drainage holes must be made in the bottom of the container.

Complicating the design

You can make a feeder with a “dispensing window” from a plastic bottle. Having selected a container of suitable size, cut a small hole on one side and pierce the bottle with scissors on the opposite side. Insert the wooden spoon with the handle forward so that it fits tightly into the pierced hole. The spoon should be positioned so that the grains roll into it as the birds peck at the food. The number of spoons involved may vary, but most often there are two.

To hang a bottle, you can pierce the cork with an awl (or nail), thread a nylon thread through it, and tie a knot inside the cork.

How to decorate a gray, unsightly bottle? If desired, you can make the feeder a decoration for any garden.

Glass feeder

You can make a simple design from a plastic bottle, which will be attached directly to the glass using suction cups. The design of such a feeder is very simple, and to make it you will only need 1 container and 2 suction cups.

A small square or rectangular hole is made with a construction knife. Using a soldering iron or a nail heated on gas, you need to make 2 holes on one side of the bottle into which the suction cup heads will fit tightly. In our case, the suction cups had hooks, so we first removed them, and then secured them with them, inserting them into their places, but inside the bottle.

The positive aspects include the fact that you can watch the birds by getting almost close to them. A significant disadvantage is that the birds defecate near the feeder, so the glass and tide will be unsightly.

Video: making a feeder from a plastic bottle

Use of glass

Glassware can be used to distribute food to birds. The container must be securely fastened with the neck down at a short distance from any platform. Pour food into this container and place it in place (holding the hole with your finger so that the grains do not spill out). As the feed is consumed, the food in the bottle will be released onto the site.

Video: glass feeder

Other materials at hand

It won’t be difficult to come up with a lot of ways to feed birds.

Tits love not only grains. You can feed such gourmets by hanging a piece of unsalted lard wrapped with rope or wire on a branch.

If you buy products packaged in nets in supermarkets, then this container can also be used by pouring nuts into it.

You can form a ball from small bulk food (adding flour and water) and also hang it in a net. In frosty weather, the food can be mixed with vegetable oil. Milk or sour cream is not suitable for these purposes, since the bird’s body does not accept such food.

In order to protect the food from precipitation, you can build a roof from plywood.

Pumpkin

A pumpkin feeder can be called a waste-free production, since the birds first eat the food, and then the edible “dining room” itself. All you have to do is cut holes in the pumpkin and remove the core.

You can cut the pumpkin in half and thread a rope through both halves with a knot tied at the bottom. To fix it in a disconnected state, you need to install spacers made of twigs between the halves. As a last resort, you can use pencils as stands. The top edge of the rope threaded through the pumpkin is tied to a branch, and the feeder is ready to receive feathered guests.

Video: pumpkin feeder

Sofa spring

Things and items that usually have nowhere else to be used can be used.

If you have a spring left over from an old sofa, you can also use it by holding pieces of bread between the coils. This feeder can be hung both vertically and horizontally.

Car air filter

A metal mesh feeder can be seen on a store counter, but a similar structure can be built from a used paper car air filter.

To make it, you need to cut off the top part of the filter and remove the paper filling (you can do it together with the inner or outer mesh if you don’t plan to put food between them). Outside the filter, to the top of the mesh, a wire is tied, which will serve as a loop for hanging the feeder on a tree. Suitable food is poured inside, and the cut off upper part of the filter can be used as a lid.

To reduce feed loss, you can glue the lid of a plastic bucket to the bottom of the feeder with hot glue. You can make a canopy from the same cover.

Teapot for brewing

If you have an old kettle and it would be a pity to throw it away, but it can no longer be used for its intended purpose, then you can make a feeder out of it. How to hang it? Drilling a hole in a piece of earthenware is a very thankless task, so you can use hot glue. If there is a hole in the lid, then you need to insert the ends of the rope into it and make a knot inside. To be on the safe side, it is better to tie a small washer. Now the lid can be glued to the teapot, the neck of which will now serve as an entrance for the birds.

Looking into a barn or pantry, you can find things that are “hard to carry, but a pity to throw away.” This category includes an old metal bread bin. You don't need much imagination to place it - just tie a rope and hang it on a branch.

You can use an unnecessary plastic container in a similar way.

Using different boxes

It will also be easy to make a feeder from a juice or wine box.

One or two windows are cut out in the box so that there is a small bowl at the bottom for food.

When cutting out a window, you can take care to protect the food from precipitation. For this, a small visor is left, but to prevent it from falling down and blocking the entrance, it can be secured with a nylon thread in the open position.

To make a large cardboard feeder you will need a large box. Using a construction knife or scissors, a window of the required size is cut out. If the box is very large, then you can cut out a smaller product from it and wrap it with tape. It is important to realize that such a feeder will only last until the first rain.

Tin box

Manufacturers often sell products in tin boxes, which can also be used to make a feeder.

In addition to the jar itself, we will need:

metal or plastic chain – 2 m (4 pieces of 0.5 m each);
split ring (used for keys);
small cotter pin – 8 pcs. (you can get by with knitting wire);
awl;
alcohol marker;
wire cutters or metal scissors;
ruler;
pliers.

Now let's start manufacturing.

As accurately as possible, you need to mark 4 points on the jar and transfer the same marks to the lid.
Using an awl, you need to make holes according to the marks so that the cotter pin fits through them.

Using wire cutters, cut the chain into four pieces of 50 cm each.
Having threaded the cotter pin through the outermost link of the chain, insert it into the hole and use pliers to push its ends apart from the inside of the can.

Having measured 15 cm of the chain (starting from the can), thread the remaining 4 cotter pins into it and secure the lid with them.
Now we will pass a split ring into the ears of the free ends of the chain.

After hanging the feeder on a branch, look in which direction the box slopes, and pierce it with an awl in the bottom (from the inside) - this will be a drainage hole.

Branches

You can assemble an original feeder from large branches. To complete the job you will need an axe, a hammer, nails and a little imagination.

Plywood

Plywood products are quite durable, but are susceptible to moisture.

A simple version of the feeder consists of just a pallet with sides, two pieces of plywood that serve as a roof, and a rope connecting all the parts. To fix the bottom and roof in the desired position, knots are tied on the rope.

If you have the desire and a jigsaw, you can design a more complex feeder using one of the presented drawings.

Log

When preparing firewood, logs with rotten cores are encountered. This piece of trunk will serve as our base. You need to remove the core. Windows are drilled into the hollow trunk or its longitudinal part is cut out. The ends are closed with selected “plaques”, sawed off from other trunks. A tree trunk feeder can be found in both horizontal and vertical versions.

For production you will need:

self-tapping screws;
small nails;
slats.

To make the roof and bottom, you can use plastic or HDF (whatever you can find, since this material is sold only in large sheets).

When making any design, it is convenient and practical to use drawings that indicate the dimensions of the parts. We will also use the drawing to cut all the blanks to size.

They can be lightly sanded.

First, we will assemble the narrower part of the future feeder, hammering 3 nails on each side.

Then the entire frame is assembled in a similar way. If the nails are short, then you can use 5 pieces each.

We will install the frame on the prepared bottom and outline the outside with a pencil - this will give us a marking according to which we will need to cut out this part and then nail it.

In order to fix the top slats, we use 4 self-tapping screws - 1 pc. for each attachment point.

From the remaining slats we will make the upper part of the feeder, fastening the parts with self-tapping screws. The final stage will be marking, sawing and securing the roof. The junction of two sheets of roof sheathing can be hidden by nailing an angle strip on top.

There are some points that need to be taken into account when making and determining where to install the feeder:

You should not underestimate cats, because they can get to the feeder, and then the birds will fly away or become prey to a domestic predator.
The feeder needs to be made with a large roof, then a lot of precipitation will not fall into it.
The entrance to the feeder should not be small, as fear may be stronger than hunger, and the birds may not take advantage of your hospitality.
It is better to make the structure from moisture-resistant material, then it will last a long time. Other materials must be treated with water-repellent compounds.
If the feeder is too light or has a large windage, then a gust of wind can turn it upside down. Even turning over for a short time will result in all the food ending up on the ground. The lightweight structure needs to be weighted down.