You can make a bird bath that works just as well as those expensive ones. In fact, with one added accessory, the birds will love it more!

You can make these any style and use any types of materials as long as they are sturdy enough so they won’t topple over. I went to the dollar store and purchased a cheap metal flower holder which is about 12 inches high.  Then I purchased a plastic salad server. Make sure you buy one that is thick and not flimsy or it won’t last. The rest of the materials I had on hand but you can use whatever you have around the house. The base is an upside down oversized flower-pot. You can even purchase these at the dollar store.

Needed :

Base, large flower vase, bowl (plastic, glass, ceramic), sand, empty soda bottle 2 liter, plastic coated wire, decorative stones, Flat plate (optional), clear acrylic sealant (optional).

Preparing the materials:

The hardest part is getting all the stickers off of everything. I soaked the vase and bowl and the soda bottle.  I did a little bit of painting on the vase, just some leaves.  If you decide to decorate the bowl, only decorate on the outside as chemicals will hurt the birds. I left mine clear but was thinking that stained glass contact paper would look cool on the outside.  Any paint you use will have to be sealed or it may not last very long.

Assembling & Maintaining

After all the stickers have been removed, and everything is clean, if you are going to paint the outside this should be done first. Let it dry before you spray the acrylic sealant on it. Fill the vase with sand. I had sandbox type sand on hand.  If your plastic dish does not fit so that it sits flat, you can put a flat plate in between the bowl and the vase.  You can choose to secure these pieces if you want but you should use outdoor glue. I prefer to be able take them apart when I clean them. Fill your bowl with water and set it under a low hanging branch.

By the way, outdoor bird accessories (bird feeders etc.) should be cleaned once a month or so with bleach and water. If you don’t you may be to blame for birds that get sick or die. Make sure you are using washable materials.

Birds love this!

Now here is the best part of this whole bird bath project. We are going to create moving water with the soda bottle.  I had a lot of trouble getting all the paper and glue off the soda bottle but got most of it off.  Punch a few holes in the bottom of the bottle. Fill it with water and hang it over your bird bath full of water and the water will trickle into the bird bath. The birds will love this and hummingbirds especially love this. I used wire covered in plastic so that it wouldn’t rust and contaminate the bird bath water.  You should change the water every day and it may be empty in a day depending on how many holes you put in the bottle.