How to Make a Recycled Bird Feeder

Last Updated: March 12, 2023 References

Bird feeders are a great way to attract birds to your garden for bird watching. While you can buy handcrafted or manufactured birdhouses and feeders, it’s fairly easy and inexpensive to make your own out of recycled materials. Use plastic bottles to create a feeder with multiple perches to attract small birds; repurpose used milk cartons to make a feeder that replicates a birdhouse, or create a suet net to attract woodpeckers to your yard.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Repurposing Plastic Bottles

1
Prep the bottle. Wash it out and remove any labels. For this craft, use any size plastic bottle as long as it still has its lid. Rinse out the bottle with warm soapy water. Remove the label from the outside of the bottle, and scrub away any residual glue. Let the bottle dry completely before you proceed.^{[1]
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- If the bottle is not dry, the moisture can cause the bird feed to get moldy.
2
Use a thumbtack to create 2 holes near the base of the bottle. Place the holes opposite each other about 1 in (2.5 cm) from the bottom. Press hard on the thumbtack to puncture the plastic completely.^{[2]
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- Using a thumbtack is safer than using a knife and reduces the chance of accidentally cutting yourself.
- These 2 holes will create the space for the first perch.
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3
Widen the holes with a pair of scissors. Place the tip of the scissors into each hole and twist them to widen the holes. Whether you’re using pencils, dowel rods, or any other stick, make sure the perch can fit through the hole.^{[3]
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- Avoid making the holes too wide, or the perch will slip out of place when it’s in use.
4
Create a perch for the birds. After you’ve created and widened the holes, take a dowel rod, a pencil, or something similar, and push it through both holes. This creates the first perch on your bird feeder. Make both sides of the perch equal so that the bird feeder will be balanced.^{[4]
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- Wooden chopsticks work well for this part of the project.
5
Add one perch 2 to 3 in (5.1 to 7.6 cm) above the first. Make the next set of holes at 90° to the first, so that it forms a cross shape. Push the thumbtack through the bottle then widen the holes with scissors. Insert a dowel to create the second perch.^{[5]
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- If you’re using a large bottle, add 2 to 3 more perches. Just make sure to alternate the angles so that there is enough space for the birds.
6
Put in draining holes. Pierce the bottom of the bottle 3 to 4 times with a thumbtack to allow water to drain out of the container. After sticking the thumbtack in, wiggle it around so that the hole is larger than it if you just pushed it in and removed it.^{[6]
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- Avoid making the drain holes too big or the birdseed will fall through the holes.
7
Cut out feeding holes for birds to access the feed. About 1 to 2 in (2.5 to 5.1 cm) above each perch, use your scissors to cut out a small ¹⁄₂ to 1 in (1.3 to 2.5 cm) wide hole. Depending on the bottle size and the size of the birdseed, you may be able to make these holes a little larger.^{[7]
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- It’s okay if the circles aren’t perfect. Just make them big enough for a bird’s beak and enough to keep the birdseed in.
8
Create 2 holes at the neck of the bottle. Place the holes opposite each other using a thumbtack. With scissors, slightly widen the holes enough for twine to pass through them.^{[8]
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- With a large bottle, make 4 holes so extra twine can be used to hang the bottle up.
9
Make the hanger. Thread 2 feet (0.61 m) of twine through the top holes. Then, knot the ends together.^{[9]
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- Anything that can hold the weight of the bird feeder can be used instead of twine.
10
Fill the bottle with birdseed. Choose seeds or mixes for smaller birds like nuthatches, tits, chickadees, and sparrows. You don’t have to fill the bottle completely, but fill it so that the topmost holes are covered. Keep the cap on the bottle to deter birds from sticking their heads inside. Hang the feeder up from a medium-height branch or a pole. You can position these feeders closer to your house to get a good view of the birds feeding.^{[10]
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- If you don’t have a yard, you can still put out a bird feeder. Simply hang it from a hook or pole outside a window so you can enjoy bird watching.
- Sunflower seeds are loved by backyard birds, like chickadees, finches, jays, cardinals, sparrows, doves, and goldfinches.
- Nyjer seeds have a higher oil content and are great to put out in winter.
- Avoid mixes made for larger birds, like ducks, quail, or turkeys. These are ground-feeders and won’t be able to access the plastic-bottle feeder.
EXPERT TIP

Kathryn Kellogg
Sustainability Specialist
Kathryn Kellogg is the founder of goingzerowaste.com, a lifestyle website dedicated to breaking eco-friendly living down into a simple step-by-step process with lots of positivity and love. She's the author of 101 Ways to Go Zero Waste and spokesperson for plastic-free living for National Geographic.

Kathryn Kellogg
Sustainability Specialist

Congratulate yourself on repurposing and reusing! A lot of times we jump straight to recycling. But when it comes to sustainability, it's important to reduce what we use, then reuse what we have, then recycle what's left.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Making a Milk Carton Bird Feeder

1
Select a milk carton. Wet a paper towel and wipe down the outside of the milk carton. Fill the carton partway with warm water and shake well to clean out any leftover milk. Pour out as much of the water from the interior, and dry off the exterior of the carton.^{[11]
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- You can use a juice carton if you don’t have a milk carton.
2
Paint the milk carton white before you decorate it. This is an optional step—you don’t have to paint it. If you do, painting the milk carton white gives it a nice, clean background. Use non-toxic acrylic paint. Coat the entire carton in paint, and allow it to dry for 20 minutes before moving on to the next step.^{[12]
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- You can paint the carton a different color depending on what you’d like to do. The idea is to add a base coat to the carton to cover up the original label.
3
Cut out a square from the front of the milk carton. Use an X-ACTO knife or similar crafting knife. Cut a parallel line about 2 inches (5.1 cm) from the base of the carton. Next cut out a 4 to 5 inches (10 to 13 cm) square, leaving 1 in (2.5 cm) of space on the left and right sides. The top of the square can be a straight line, or you can round it out to form a doorway arch.^{[13]
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- If you’re crafting with kids, complete this part of the project for them so that they are not working with sharp tools.
4
Design a bird feeder house using paints. Paint your bird feeder whatever color you’d like. Create windows and edge the area around the “door” with white paint. With black paint, outline the windows and door and to add any fun details like chimney smoke or a house number.^{[14]
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- Feel free to get creative with this process! It’s okay if your bird feeder doesn’t look like a house as long as you’re having a good time making it.
5
Create a ledge. Set the carton on its back so you can easily access the bottom. Hot glue wooden craft sticks along the bottom to create a ledge with the ends extending out 2–3 inches (5.1–7.6 cm) in front of the “door". Keep the sticks close so there are no gaps between them.^{[15]
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- Purchase wooden craft sticks at your local craft store. You can get a pack of 150 sticks for about $2.
6
Form the hanger. Position the hole in the middle of the lip so that the feeder hangs evenly. Use a knife to make the hole wide enough for twine to pass through easily. Take 2 feet (0.61 m) of twine and thread it through the hole and tie the ends together.^{[16]
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- After making the hole with a knife, use scissors to widen the hole. Simply insert the tip of the scissors into the hole and twist them back and forth to make the hole bigger.
7
Fill the carton with birdseed until it reaches the bottom of the hole. To attract smaller birds, choose mixes or seeds like sunflower seeds, nyjer seeds, millet seeds, and safflower seeds. To attract larger birds, look for mixes containing cracked corn or milo seeds. Take the birdseed and pour it into the milk carton. Stop filling once the birdseed reaches the bottom of the “door”.^{[17]
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- You can buy birdseed online, at pet stores, and at many home improvement stores.
8
Hang up the bird feeder outdoors and enjoy! For smaller birds, hang the feeder from a medium height branch or pole. For larger birds, hang it from a low branch, or prop it up next to a tree. The main risk is that creatures, like squirrels, can get into the feed.^{[18]
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- If you don’t have a tree to hang the feeder, use a pole or an adhesive hook on the outside of a window.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Creating a Suet Feeder in a Produce Net

1
Mix suet with birdseed to make a tasty treat for the birds. Use 1 cup (125 grams) of suet and 1 cup (135 grams) of mixed bird seed. Combine them in a bowl until all the bird seed is incorporated into the suet.
- Suet is the hard white fat that is found in animal meat. It is used to make pastries and puddings, but it is a healthy and tasty food for birds.
- Find suet at your grocery store, or ask your local butcher if they have any available.
- You can make suet cakes to use in the produce netting.
2
Place the suet inside a produce net. Whenever you grocery shop, save the produce nets that contain lemons, oranges, potatoes, onions and other similar items. Take the suet and birdseed mix and place it inside the net.
- It’s okay if the suet is a little loose—the netting holes are small enough that it won’t fall through.
3
Form the hanger. Thread 2 feet (0.61 m) of twine through several holes, or simply tie the twine around the top of the netting.
- If you don’t have twine, use something that won’t break easily.
4
Hang the suet feeder from a branch. Find a spot for the suet bag. It needs to be high off the ground so that animals, like dogs, cannot reach it. Place it on a sturdy branch in a tree so that the birds have somewhere to perch while they’re eating.
- Suet can attract animals, like dogs, cats, and other creatures, so keeping it high off the ground will keep it safe.
5
Refill the suet when it is empty, or make a new feeder with another net. Depending on the condition of the original net, you can either refill it with new suet, or discard it and make a new feeder.
- Suet attracts woodpeckers, nuthatches, juncos, chickadees, and other beautiful birds.

Community Q&A

Question

Would lard or Crisco be OK?

T. Chinsen

Top Answerer

Crisco is made from vegetable oils, and is less likely to attract any animals that can smell lard or suet that comes animal fats. It is a suitable substitute for the suet used in the article.