Category: Hummingbird Feeders

How quickly the nectar will spoil in your hummingbird feeder depends on what the temperature is outside.  If the temperature is 80 degrees or over, you will then need to change the nectar solution and refill the feeder every three to four days.  If the temperature reaches 90 degrees or above, then that may need to be done every two days or so.

If your nectar solution appears cloudy then the solution has spoiled and must be changed.  You will also need to change the nectar solution and clean the feeder if it appears to have black mold in it. 

Maintaining a hummingbird feeder is a simple and easy way to attract hummingbirds, but doing so comes with the responsibility of properly maintaining the feeder.  Do so and you will help ensure the heath and safety of the hummingbirds as well as also being able to continually enjoy the birds’ presence in your yard for sometime to come.

Never put hot homemade nectar solution in a hummingbird feeder!  That is a common sense statement, right?  Well, apparently not everyone knows this, because I myself have been asked about this numerous times.  The nectar solution must be cooled before placing it in the hummingbird feeder.  Here’s why.

If the nectar solution is too hot when you attempt to fill the hummingbird feeder, there is a good chance that this will cause the tank of the hummingbird feeder to break and this could cause serious injury to the person who is attempting to fill the feeder.  They may either be cut as a result of the broken glass or they may be burned as a result of the hot liquid getting on them. 

An unsuspecting hummingbird could burn its tongue on the hot liquid.  This would cause harm to the hummingbird and probably cause the birds to no longer trust your feeders as a reliable and safe food source. 

Making homemade nectar solution is a simple and easy way to attract hummingbirds, but I hope you now understand why it is vitally important to let the nectar solution cool completely before filling your feeders.

I recently asked a good friend why she hadn’t yet put up her hummingbird this season.  You see, she is an avid hummingbird enthusiast and normally does so faithfully.  Her response surprised me.  She said she couldn’t do so because she was going to be leaving on vacation soon and that because she wouldn’t be here to refill the feeder the hummingbirds would starve to death.  This simply is not true!  Let me explain.

Think of the nectar solution in your hummingbird feeders as an energy drink for the hummingbirds.  It will give the birds a quick boost of energy whenever it is needed, but nectar is not how hummingbirds get the majority of there nutritional needs met.

The hummingbird gets a great deal of their nutritional needs met by eating things such as aphids, mosquitoes, fruit flies and gnats.  These things are all vital sources of protein to the hummingbird’s diet and the hummingbird must have this to ensure their survival.

Lastly, plants, flowers and bushes are excellent sources of nectar for hummingbirds.  Even if your feeder should become empty while you are on vacation, the hummingbirds will have plenty of natural sources of nectar on which to feed while you are gone. 

Hummingbirds are very resourceful and therefore will not stave just because you have gone on vacation for a brief period of time.  Don’t let your upcoming vaction stop you from hanging your hummingbird feeders!  Hang it now and enjoy it before you leave and then also upon your return from vacation.