One of my least favortie hummingbird feeders

The fact that this is one of the most popular hummingbird feeders on the market is mostly due to its wide availability cheap price and gaudy styling rather than its quality. I used these feeders for years before discovering better designs and I came to hate them. The first thing I noticed was that they're hard to clean with too many small parts and hard-to-reach tubes and crevices. It takes way too long to take the feeder apart get all the parts clean and reassemble it.



The next thing that became apparent is that the "bee guards" really don't do a very good job. Honeybees and wasps can't reach the solution through intact guards but some long-tongued bumblebees can and tiny bees just crawl right through the guards (and often right into the bottle!). They're also bright yellow the same color as many bee-pollinated flowers (what was the manufacturer thinking?). The insects really swarm around when the solution oozes out as it's prone to do on warm days (particularly if you refill the bottle with refrigerated solution).



It didn't take long to discover that this feeder is also not very durable. The plastic parts don't hold up to exposure to sunlight becoming brittle and loose over time (more quickly in sunny or high-elevation areas where intense UV light seems to deteriorate the plastic more quickly). The hardened glass bottle is actually the most durable part of this feeder while the bee guards are the first parts to break down. The size is okay though if you've only got one or two hummingbirds visiting you won't want to fill the feeder completely.



The best hummingbird feeders cost about twice as much as this model but they will last at least 10 times as long. The feeders I use most now are the Hummzingers from Aspects and the Droll Yankees LF both saucer-style feeders. For high-traffic times such as late summer I switch to the Nature's Best bottle feeder. I never use anything in my feeders except the solution recommended by all hummingbird experts: sugar water made from 3 to 5 parts water to 1 part white table sugar (do not add food coloring!). This is much more economical and probably also healthier (and tastier) for the birds than overpriced chemical-laced commercial mixes such as Perky Pet's "Instant Nectar." The solution should be changed every 2 to 4 days and the feeder cleaned thoroughly at least once a week no matter what kind of hummingbird feeder you use.More detail ...

Love It!I

I have had a couple of these for several years one got broken and have been looking for them in retail stores to no avail... and the price was at least 2 to 3 times more. I love to watch the birds as they feed we have Cardinals Finches Chickadees Titmice to name a few... they seem to like this feeder.Our grandkids love to watch them too! So I bought a couple of extras for them... great item..More detail ...

A hummzinger of a feeder

This is a great feeder no doubt. It is the easiest to clean and refill that I've seen. And the bright red makes the hummers go crazy. Mine have become more territorial and they feed more often now.



Initially I had some concerns that the feeder would need to be almost completely full in order for the hummers to be able to extract any nectar (the feeder is rather deep). Turns out the little guys have pretty long tongues so they can reach far into the feeder even when it is close to being empty.



Can't beat the lifetime guarantee.



My only gripe is that small ants can still get inside even with the nectar guard tips in place. In my case the ants are pretty bad even more so than with my last feeder which had basically no protection at all.More detail ...

Fine ... as long as it doesn't rain

Hi folks. I don't have spare time to review every product I buy here with over 250 orders in the last year. However I do feel obligated to mention or warn others when a product fails under normal ordinary conditions.



This bird feeder looks very nice it holds plenty of bird seed and I have no problems with the funky lid or filling the feeder. (I don't like the flimsy plastic glass)



I wondered "WHY are the birds completely ignoring this feeder when I clearly see it's still half full of seed? They used to like it. What's the deal?" Hummm.



I quickly discovered the problem. What happens is; every time it rains the bottom area (tray) gets filled with water and saturates the seed turning it into a thick muddy paste. At this point the birds have no interest. After examining the feeder I noticed the "tray" has little tiny drain holes - not quite the size of lead in a pencil. These drain holes are obviously insufficient. I doubt I can drill the plastic holes larger without breaking the tray.



In summary I find it surprising that no other reviewers mentioned this problem. Ultimately my recommendation is to only buy this feeder if you hang it in a dry area such as in a pavilion under an eave or a similar location. For me it's time to go bird feeder shopping once more.



Be well

JeffMore detail ...

Squirrels are smarter than the makers of this feeder.

No maybe squirrels can't get inside the feeder but they don't have to. All they have to do is shake it or set it to swinging and seed goes all over the place. Then they take what seeds they want out of the resulting mess and leave the rest to rot. They can trash a feeder's worth of seed within a week. I'll be looking for yet another feeder as soon as I can afford it.More detail ...

You can't buy a better feeder

This feeder is the best I've had and I have had a bunch. It has a huge capacity so you don't have to fill it very often. It is almost impossible for squirrels to stand on and if they manage to get a foothold their weight closes the feeding ports so they can't get anything. You can adjust it to exclude large birds such as starlings and grackles. When it needs to be cleaned you just put it in the dishwasher. When an especially crafty squirrel tried to chew it's way in to my feeder I informed Brome about the damage and they sent me a replacement part for free! Squirrel busters have a lifetime warranty against squirrel damage. I have had mine for about 3 years and couldn't be happier with it. If you only have one bird feeder in your life this should be the one.More detail ...