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Easy Bird Feeder Hangers

Winter is a good time to feed birds, but finding a place to hang bird feeders where they’ll be safe from predators but easy to see can be a challenge. Using flag-holder brackets and a piece of conduit, you can make an easy feeder hanger that will work in a variety of places. We use ours from our deck railing.

You’ll need:

Materials

  • A flag-holder bracket with screws, usually less than $5 at the hardware store
  • A paint bucket hook — check the paint section of the hardware store. These are made to hold a paint bucket on a ladder. You could make a hook yourself, but this works perfectly and is super easy.
  • A piece of electrial conduit tubing, 4 feet or less (don’t try to go
    more, you’ll probably end up levering out the bracket if you do) – if
    you’re intimidated by trying to cut a regular 8′ piece, you can often
    find pre-cut 4′ pieces at the hardware store.
  • Drill
  • Sharpie or pencil to mark holes
  • Bird feeder
  • A screwdriver

Decide where you’d like to put the feeers and hold the bracket against the surface where you’ll install it; mark the holes with a pencil. Use a drill bit that matches the size of the screws that came with the bracket, and drill the holes where you’ve marked. Use the screws to mount the bracket.

Mounting the bracket.

Clip the paint bucket holder to your bird feeder, and put the hook into the end of the conduit tubing. Slip the other end of the conduit into the flag bracket. When you need to refill the bird feeder, just lift it out again.

Using the paint bucket holder as a hook.

Here are the bird feeders hanging off our deck. We can easily see them from
the window, but cats and other four-legged predators can’t get to them.
It also helps prevent rodents from getting to the feeders, although I
do have to keep the tree on the left trimmed back. If you have lawn
that you care about underneath, use shelled sunflower
seeds….sunflower seed hulls will damage the grass.

Bird feeders hanging from the deck.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 18th, 2006 at 6:55 am and is filed under Birds and Birding, Hacks, Projects. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.



12 Responses to “Easy Bird Feeder Hangers”

  1. These feeders are super-easy to refill, and are far enough from the deck that the birds will often visit even if we’re sitting there watching.

  2. what keeps the hook inside the end of the conduit tubing?

  3. Hi Donna -
    It’s just the angle of the tubing and the angle of the hook. The end of the hook goes right into the tube and gravity helps hold it there.

    I’ve been using these for about three years. I had one come down in a strong storm; in that case, the whole tube came out of the flag holder and the feeder and tube fell to the ground. I haven’t had one of the hooks come off.

    -t

  4. Nice idea. Can squirrels not climb along the pole?

  5. Hi Jim -
    We don’t have a lot of squirrels, and only see them occasionally. I think that the slickness of the conduit and its angle would deter them, but I’m not sure I’d say it’s really been put to the test. I know they can be persistant!
    -t

  6. How about bird droppings? Do the birds make a mess of your deck?

  7. Hi Wendy -
    No, since the feeders hang out over our yard, any droppings (and spilled seed) land there…not on the deck.
    -t

  8. SUPER IDEA!

    I used large nails with large heads – hammered into deck and porch post 4 x 4s. Also, I used copper tubing. Cut with a tubing cutter – the most efficient and safe way to do it. Slipped the tube over the exposed nail and voila! Finished off with an “S” hook. Supports finch feeders and multi-bird feeder, too (I installed 3 in total). Gravity and cantilever effect support the weight of the feeders – no problem. Squirrels don’t seem to be attracted to the finch feeders and the bird feeder I have is somewhat lightweight & is squirrel-proof. I am looking forward to cleaner porch and deck areas!

  9. PLAN TO USE THIS METHOD WITH FLAG HOLDER AND HOOK. QUESTION IS – HOW HIGH FROM THE GROUND SHOULD THE FEEDING TRAY BE.

    WILL ATTACH FLAG HOLDER TO 4 X 4

    TX

  10. Hi Tommy -
    There isn’t a set height that I know of for how far off the ground. It depends on the kinds of animals you might be trying to keep away; the birds, of course, will do fine with it at any height. If you have bears that get into feeders, you might need to put it quite high (I think 10 feet is recommended for hanging food out of reach of bears).
    Have fun!
    t

  11. FIRST EXPERIENECE IN HANGING A BIRDFEEDER. ATTACHED TO A OVER HUNG ROOF ON A 4 X 4, ABOUT EIGHT FEET FROM MY HOUSE. BEEN A WEEK NOW AND HAVE NOT SEEN ANY BIRDS FEEDING, NOR ANY SIGNIFICANT DECREASE IN AMOUNT OF SEED. ANY SUGGESTIONS?

    TX,

  12. Thanks for this! What a great idea. We have fed a lot of deer and squirrels! We are always looking for new ways to hang feeders.

    jptheo