Making a Bird seed block that doesn't fall apart when it rains! (2024)

FAQs

Making a Bird seed block that doesn't fall apart when it rains!? ›

If your block is sheltered from rain and moisture, it should last. Manufacturers use something hardcore called edible glue, something not in my pantry. A bit like making macarons or egg white cookies, take seed and enough egg white (beat slightly, but not until foamy) to bind only and not lose shape.

Empty 1 package of unflavored gelatin into a bowl with 2 tablespoons of cold water. Let this sit for 1 minute. Add 1/3 cup of boiling water to the gelatin, stirring for a few minutes or until the gelatin is dissolved. This is the binder that keeps seeds together.

Grab yourself a large bowl and add: 3/4 cup of flour, 1/2 cup of water and then mix them together. Add your unflavored gelatin and mix again. *Be sure to mix well to get rid of all lumps. Using a plastic knife, add the glue to the roof of your bird feeder.

You only need two long wooden boards, nailed at a 90º angle and two triangular wood pieces are nailed at each end to hold the seed in. A couple pieces of ropes to act as slings on either end. Hang from the porch roof, just inside the roof edge to shelter the seed from the weather.

Use peanut butter instead! Equal parts peanut butter and flour will create a sticky substrate for your birdseed to bind to. This combination of ingredients will also allow you to skip the chilling step that gelatin requires.

Seed guards, the little mesh netting placed on the outer perimeter of the cage, have been around years and they can be pretty handy at stopping those annoying little seed hulls from floating out of the cage whenever your bird flaps his or her wings.

Pour seed into large mixing bowl, lightly spray your container for easy release later. I like to put gloves on at this point because this step is very sticky. Pour slightly cooled melted gelatin over the bird seed and thoroughly mix to coat all seeds. Return coated seeds back to lightly sprayed container.

The only type of glue that is safe for your feathered friends is Elmer's non-toxic glue. Hot glue and Gorilla Glue can be harmful to birds and other wildlife if ingested.

Most glues are perfectly safe when fully dry. Even the ones used for plastics, once fully dry and there are no residual odors detected they are fine. We like to use simple white or tan wood glues for wood toys.

You can use Elmer's glue.

Is there a rain proof bird feeder? ›

Rain Away™

As well as cutting the risk of rainwater entering the feeder ports, it provides shelter for birds as they perch. Fits most 2.5” diameter feeders including Ring-Pull, Ring-Pull™ PRO, The One, Lifetime and Bird Lovers™.

Birdseed that gets totally water-logged is not desirable to birds and just goes to waste. If you provide suet, you don't have to worry whether it gets wet or not. Since the first ingredient in suet cakes is beef fat, rain water sheds right off of the suet.

Birds love energy-rich fat balls, which give them all the calories they need to get through cold winter days and nights. You can buy them in the shops but they're easy to make at home. Simply mix kitchen scraps such as cheese, cake crumbs and dry porridge oats with melted lard or suet, and set in the fridge overnight.

In general, no-melt suets contain less fat and greater quantities of flour, oats, cornmeal, or other absorbent components that will help bind the fat together without melting. A top no-melt suet recipe is: 2 cups quick or rolled oats. 2 cups ground cornmeal.

mail. Seed cylinder, cakes and bells contain seed, fruit, nuts and/or insects held together by an edible gelatin. Some varieties contain hot pepper, to discourage squirrels while still attracting birds. They're simple to hang, long-lasting, and less messy than loose seed.