How Heavy Rain Affects Hummingbird Feeders (And A Helpful DIY Solution)

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One of the best parts about the weather warming up each year is the anticipation of hummingbirds visiting your yard. With their beautiful feathers and interesting behaviors, hummingbirds breathe life into any backyard or garden. However, if you live in an area with heavy rain, you may have noticed that your hummingbird visitors are few and far between, even though you've taken the step to add more red to your garden and offer a variety of flowers. This is because of how rain can change the sugar concentration of your hummingbird nectar, turning what would be a delicious snack for these little birds into a missed opportunity.

The ideal nectar recipe for hummingbirds is 1 part sugar mixed with 4 parts water. This means that if you're using 1 cup of sugar, you'll need to mix it with 4 cups of water. However, if your hummingbird feeder is exposed to heavy rains, this can dilute your nectar's concentration, adding too much water for it to be effective at attracting hummingbirds. If this happens, you'll need to dump your hummingbird feeder and refill it — which can be a costly and time-consuming task if you experience frequent heavy rains.

To solve this problem, you can move your hummingbird feeder to a covered area. Or, if already existing coverage isn't available, you can get crafty with an easy hummingbird cover to keep the rain out.

While you can purchase a premade cover like the Beserie Bird Feeder Rain Cover Red Dome Baffle, you can also easily make a cover for your hummingbird feeder with only a handful of materials. If you're following the video from Robbie and Gary Gardening Easy's Youtube channel above, you'll only need a wire rack, cable ties, fabric like a flag or tablecloth, and binder clips.

To start with your DIY cover, use the cable ties to attach the wire rack. If your hummingbird feeders are hanging from a metal pole like those in the video above, you can attach your rack there; if not, skip the cable ties and instead purchase a hook to hang your cover above your feeder. For the next step, the content creator gets extra handy. Instead of purchasing additional materials, use the plastic wrapping that comes with your fabric as your first layer. Lay this across the wire rack, then top with your flag or tablecloth (the latter of which you can cut down to size). This extra protection will help ensure no rain can reach your feeder, keeping the nectar safe for hummingbirds.

Lastly, secure the plastic and fabric layers using the binder clips. This will hold everything into place. If you live in an area with heavy rains and winds, you may want to opt for more binder clips to help your cover hold up against poor conditions. Because this cover isn't directly attached to your feeder, it won't impact your cleaning routine for your hummingbird feeder.