Does pole mounted bird feeders squirrel proof really work? It is the most common question asked by almost every birder. Well, the answer is YES,” the squirrel proof bird feeders actually work pretty well if used correctly.
I’m using 32 of them at my farm, and believe me: no one has access to those bird feeders except me & BIRDS! And I also mention five of those squirrel-proof bird feeders in this article (Note: I’m not promoting any products here in this article, it’s just all about the experience I gained during bird feeding that I’m sharing here).
It’s quite troublesome to sort through all the options, only to determine which squirrel-proof bird feeder is best to use.
But to make it easy for you, I also rounded up everything regarding squirrel-proof pole bird feeders like, How to use it? Where to hang? How tall should a bird feeder pole be? How to make homemade bird feeder pole systems? Window bird feeders do they work or not, and more.
So you can make the right choice depending on your needs. Let’s sit-relax, grab a cup of hot coffee, and read till the end to obtain more information about bird feeders.
I bought 5-pieces of these squirrel-proof bird feeders in the year 2017! Four of them work pretty well, except for their color, as they all turn into a gray color due to high summer heat, and the fifth one gets stolen from my farm! I don’t know who took it, but yeah’ someone took it after a few weeks when I bought it. Who cares now!
The feeder is really great, but try to hang them into the shady area if you don’t want to vaporize its color. And make sure you place/hang these bird feeders a little high, at least 8 to 10 feet above the ground, as the weight of an adult squirrel automatically closes the shroud denying access to seed.
I newly bought 2-pieces of this bird feeder on Nov-2020, especially for the winter seasons, as I can easily attach a weather guard to it for providing birds a safe feeding shelter during the rainy days and at the same to keep seed dry throughout the season.
But the feeder doesn’t come with a (weather guard <- like this one), you have to buy it separately, or you can make your own weather guard at home with plastic trays.
I’m using 8 of them all around my farm, each working pretty well since 2015. It’s simple design allows small birds like wrens, chickadees, nuthatches, titmice to access thesuet cake while keeping squirrels out!
But there is one little problem with this suet feeder, which is rust. It looks rust-proof, but in my experience, it gets rusty in a few months, so to protect it, I usually paint it every year before hanging it out in winter for birds.
This one is the best squirrel-proof bird feeder I ever found. Yes Found! I never spent a single penny on this one, actually in the year 2013/14, I found this at my grandpa’s home in a basement, and that time I took it to my farm.
Since then, I never restore or paint it. This bird feeder still works like a charm. But it is quite heavy, almost 6 to 7 pounds, as compared to the new one. Maybe it’s made up of good quality metal.
It is an excellent pole mounted squirrel proof bird feeder! I have had it since mid-2012. It worked well for four years, but after that, it started to rust very often, so I always paint it once in the year before hanging it outside.
Plus, its overhanging roof and hopper keeps the seed dry and protected from the elements. It’s almost 10-years now, and with little care, the bird feeder still works ideally through all seasons.
Why I like it
Well design
Seed saver baffle
Worth the price (for me)
How tall should a bird feeder pole be
Typically, a bird feeder pole should be between the range of 5-7 feet from the ground, as it is pretty easy for everyone to refill, and birds also feel safe there from ground predators.
But still, it entirely depends on the birds that you want in your yard! That means if you want to attract birds like juncos, blackbirds, towhee, sparrow, dark-eyed, doves, jays, then the feeder pole should be between 5-6 feet from the ground.
On the other hand, if you want to attract woodpeckers type birds, then the feeder pole should be between 8-10 feet from the ground, as woodpeckers love to eat at the higher places, especially a suet cake.
I have 16-pole mounted bird feeders, almost in all shapes & sizes, and each of them is in between the range of 6-10 feet from the ground to attract distinct species. Also, I always buy poles separately, as I can easily customize them later, depending on the needs.
Here is a little tip for you if you have no problem with squirrels, then always try to place a pole feeder in a shady place like nearby shrubs or overhanging trees, as birds love shady-areas in the summer season.
How to use & Where to hang the pole mounted bird feeders squirrel proof
Here’s what you need to know!
First, you have to determine the area where you want to place it in your yard, as feeder location matters the most!
Always try to put the feeder in a shady place during summer between 6-7 feet from the ground, as birds feel safe there. And in winters try to move it to the place where the sunshine is most of the time.
Change the feeder location once a month to check where birds feel safer.
Make sure you don’t fill the feeder full, only fill it half or enough for the day so that birds can’t drop seeds on the ground.
Only fill the feeder 4-days a week so that birds can also find more places to feed themselves, which means if you are on holiday and the feeder is empty so they can effortlessly fly to another location.
If you have problems with squirrels and your squirrel baffles not working, try to pour/spray a small amount of vegetable oil on the feeder pole! It will stop the squirrel activity on your feeder.
Try to use a backyard glory birdbath near the bird feeder, as warblers, hummingbirds, and many other types of birds love to take advantage of clean, fresh birdbaths. So try to add it definitely.
If your feeder is away from the window, try to attach fruit tree netting outside windows to deflect birds from the glass for protecting the birds from collisions into windows.
How to make homemade bird feeder pole systems? (Easiest DIY)
To make it, you will only need a handful of the things that are effortlessly available in the home garage, such as; black plumbing pipes, joints, and some tools. That’s It!
Here’s the exact material that we need
1/2 inch end caps (volume two)
1/2 T-section joint (volume one)
2′ long, 1-inch diameter pipe (volume one)
10′ long, 1/2 inch diameter pipe (volume one)
15″ long, 1/2 inch diameter pipe (volume two)
Nut/Bolt/Screw, large & small washers, S-hooks (volume two each)
First, after cutting pipes in each size as specified, make sure you make threaded at the end of them to attach all the pieces unitedly.
Now screw the T-section on top of the (10′ long, 1/2 inch diameter pipe). And tighten it well with the help of wrench/Pliers.
When it tightens well, now screw both (15″ long, 1/2 inch diameter pipe) at both sides of the T-section and tighten them well with a wrench.
It’s time to use a drill machine! Take both (1/2 inch end caps) and drill holes through them, big enough to screw the nuts.
Now tighten both the end caps at the end of (15″ long, 1/2 inch diameter pipes).
Now use nut, bolt, or screw & washers to secure the S-hooks to the ends of end caps.
Your bird feeder pole is ready, but you have to place it on the ground; to do that!
First, take a 2′ long, 1-inch diameter pipe and rape it with plastic film to protect it from rust.
Now use a sledgehammer to pound the (2′ long, 1-inch diameter pipe) directly into the ground, and make sure you leave it a few inches above the ground.
It’s time to slide your feeder pole into the base pipe, which we buried into the ground.
If your feeder pole wobbled a little, then try to use plumbing tape or regular tape on top of the base pipe so the feeder pole will fit nicely on it.
That’s how you can easily make your own first DIY bird feeder at home with minimum effort while having a fun moment with kids!
Window bird feeders do they work
Yes,” they do; in fact, window bird feeders also protect the wild birds from collisions into windows. Birds tend to fly into clean windows when they see a reflection of the sky.
In my opinion, using window bird feeders is a great idea. I’m also using two of them, one at my kitchen’s window and another at the bedroom’s window, here that I’m using.
Window Bird Feeder with Strong Suction Cups and Seed Tray
This window bird feeder helps me a lot, to see many shy bird species at my kitchen window like Orchard Oriole, Spot-Breasted Oriole, Scott’s Oriole, etc.
This window bird feeder makes bird-watching fun from the comfort of my own home. I’ve been using it since 2014, and it still works wonderfully.
Why I like it
Very easy to clean
Lifetime suction cups guarantee
Perfect for all seasons & weather
How to hang a bird feeder outside a window
For hanging a window bird feeder outside a window, you have to use two things, suction cups & chain/rope. Most of the time, a suction cup is enough to hold the weight of a bird feeder! But in some cases, like putting too many seeds into the bird feeder, or” even birds’ weight can end up falling the bird feeder onto the ground and even on somebody’s head.
That’s why you have to need a chain/rope to tie it up for added safety. I wrote an easy method to hang a bird feeder outside a window. But before you check that method, you have to know what type of window glasses are best for hanging window bird feeders.
One-way window glass: This type of window is a fabulous choice to hang a window bird feeder, as birds can’t see through it! That means you can easily observe different beautiful bird species very closely without even scaring any of them.
Tempered window glass: This type of window is also an excellent choice, as birds can’t break through it during fights or when big birds’ flocks arrive at your window feeder.
Do not use window bird feeders on any Textured Glass type, as the suction cups wouldn’t stick on textured glass. If your window doesn’t have any plain glass, then you have to hang the feeders to a metal bracket on the window frame.
Suction cups are the best in all, as they easily hold the feeder in their place. But not everything is perfect in this world, so how to hang a bird feeder outside a window?
To hang a bird feeder first, clean the suction cup & window glass with water and dry them properly to ensure all dirt particles are-cleaned.
Now fix the suction cup on the window glass and confirm if they stick perfectly; try to pull them out! If the cups come out effortlessly, that means dirt particles are still there in between cups and glass, or maybe the suction cup has some nanoholes. In that case, you have to use a new pair of suction cups.
And if the cups are hard to come out, then you are good to go.
If you want to reduce the falling chance of bird feeder, always try to use extra suction cups rather than a product recommendation. As I’m using 6-suction cups, but the advice on the product is only for 2 to 3 cups.
Using a chain/rope for more protection is a brilliant idea! I’ll tell you how? One day I was repairing my dishwasher in the kitchen and then saw large birds’ flocks arrive at the window feeder; as they all sat on that, just in between 2-minutes, the bird feeder fell onto the ground.
Since then, I’m also using a chain to hang it up with a window bracket, as it’s always better to take some extra safety precautions rather than believing in myths.
Advice
Why only birds! Try to feed all your backyard animals like raccoons, squirrels, chipmunks, groundhogs, gopher, opossum, etc. Sometimes they’re unable to find food for themselves that’s the reason why they jump on bird feeders.
Show little sympathy toward them and feed them too. You don’t have to do too much, only do one thing, put an open platform feeder on the ground away from the bird feeder full of unsalted in-shell peanuts, that’s it!
This little kindness will also help you to keep those unwanted visitors away from the bird feeder while feeding them too. Also, make a water source/birdbaths for birds and those visitors, especially during summer, to keep them hydrated.
Thanks for reading so far! I hope this article of the best pole mounted bird feeders squirrel proof will help you understand everything about squirrel proof bird feeder!
Frequently Asked Question
How to keep bird feeder pole straight?
That’s a common problem, and there are two methods to solve, first use an in-ground pole stabilizer to circumvent the feeder, and the second is to keep the pole quite deep inside the ground. Both methods work like a charm even after many years.
How to mount a bird feeder on a pole?
If you have made your own DIY feeder pole with a pipe, then you can easily mount a bird feeder on top of it with the help of a flange or mounting bracket! First, screw the flange on the bird feeder, and now tighten the flange with a pole.
How to hang a bird feeder with a pulley?
To hang it, first, attach the pulley with rope/cable/s-hook to the tree branch where you want to hang the feeder! Now thread a rope/cable through the pulley and tie one side with the bird feeder and another side with a tree trunk/branch.
How to hang a bird feeder without a tree?
There are three ways to hang a bird feeder without a tree, use a pole system, use a window feeder, and you can also use a metal bracket in some places like window frames or garden deck ceiling to hang the bird feeder.
How to hang a bird feeder between two trees?
It is simple to do (like a hanging traffic light) first, tie a cable/rope between two trees side by side, and then directly hang your bird feeder with the help of an S-hook or pulley. And, make sure you use a sturdy cable that holds your feeder’s and bird’s weight together.
