My favourites feeder

4.0 out of 5

24

The sparrows went straight for this but then the starlings saw it (where they came from who knows?) and I have stopped feeding anything as the starlings eat the lot and no other birds have a chance. Spent loads of money on feeders either because they are too difficult to open and clean or the birds don't like them or now the starlings cotton on to how to cling to anything I hang up. Driving me crazy. The seed tips out easily too. Any ideas? Don't recommend.

Squirrel chewed the bottom tray within a few days. Metal would be better than plastic as now can’t use this

Firstly the one drawback with this feeder is the 'brittle ring', I have got round that by using hooks or small carabineers to connect ring to where you hang it.
I live in Edinburgh, it gets wet, these feeders have never failed me. The contents remain dry and always enough of the little drain holes on the bottom remain unblocked enough to drain most moisture away.
Once the birds have got used to it, I almost gave up after two weeks, the seed goes down, quickly.
It is a joy to see 3-4 birds on one feeder with others queuing to partake.
Favourites extra special blend goes down a treat.
This is my favourite feeder over the past two years.
If they redesigned the ring it would be near perfection.
One tip, if ring has broken off there is usually a 'ragged' bit of plastic left on the top. Wrap thin wire/garden string tightly around it and you can then use other end to make a loop and hang container that way. I did that for a year before splashing out and buying two new ones.

I was happy with this feeder until the plastic ring it hangs from broke. Unable to use it now.

There are a lot of negative reviews of this feeder, but my experience has been more positive, so I wanted to share it.

The feeder is incredibly popular with goldfinches and sparrows - I have seen a big increase in the number of goldfinches in my garden since I moved it to a more open position. Starlings occasionally try it but mostly give up. I have been really pleased to see how many smaller birds use it. (I fill mine with sunflower hearts.)

I have a number of other feeders of different types which are more popular with the starlings, jackdaws and rooks, so they mostly don't bother with this feeder and leave it to the little birds.

The biggest negative for me is that the seed tray is made of plastic, and the squirrels just gnaw away the edge of the tray to get to the seed more easily. So far it hasn't put the birds off, but I will have to buy a replacement sooner rather than later. A metal seed tray would make it more durable and squirrel-proof. Nothing will stop the squirrels from tipping it on its side to make seeds to fall out, but that's squirrels for you - you have to admire their ingenuity!

I think this feeder is probably best used alongside others so the big birds have other options and spend less time trying to break into this one!

I bought this because I thought it looked good and would not require filling as often as other feeders. It does look good and the small birds us it regularly. However refilling it is a nightmare. The hop is too wide to get any purchase on and the ring by which it hangs is just a loose fit and can not be used to gain any purchase on the lid. I have been trying for an hour to get the top off with out success . Needless to say the seed that was left in the feeder has now emptied everywhere in y efforts to get the top off. Very disappointed, clearly no thought has gone into the ergonomics of this item.

I agree that the holding ring is very weak although bought last year the ring has now broken. In an attempt to wrap tape round the gap more of the ring broke. It’s really too brittle I think, or becomes brittle with being outside. I wondered if the lid could be repacked but can’t see anyway way to remove that.

I bought the feeder because we were fed up with our other feeders being monopolised by jackdaws and magpies. The smaller birds used it and it certainly deterred the larger birds. Unfortunately the very wet weather meant the seed (bought with the feeder) became wet and clogged up. Now the small birds no longer use it unless we empty out the wet seed in the tray to allow the dry seed to be accessed. Very disappointed!

After using this feeder over several seasons I am very happy with it. It holds a lot of seed so does not need to be refilled frequently and the domed roof keeps the seed dry. The feeder design allows small birds like goldfinches and blue tits to feed by hanging from the lower lip. Larger birds like greater spotted woodpeckers also use it this way but starlings and wood pigeons don't seem to like it. Like some other reviewers I found the lid a little tricky to rotate at first but this problem has now gone away so I suggest persevering if you initially have this problem.

This feeder quickly atracted lots of birds when the birds saw it. The sparows have made a use of it because we put buggy nibbles in the feeder.

I have two of these feeders and put nyja and sunflower seeds in. It's odd how different people find the feeder! I am extremely pleased with both mine. Maybe I'm fortunate that my starlings are not interested in these feeders, they prefer the buggy nibbles in the nibbles feeder much more so leave the seeds alone. I have all sorts of small birds feeding from this feeder, I find it easy to take apart, clean and put back together. Excellent product. I would agree that it does take time for the birds to accept a new feeder but once they do, I have found, they come every day. I get the pesky Wood Pigeons in my garden and Magpies but they show no interest in hanging onto the feeders, the pigeons pick up anything that has been dropped. The Magpies will hang off the nibble feeders if they get the chance! No, I am very pleased with mine!

I got this to replace a previous one. This one is larger and all but impossible to open. I eventually managed after using WD40. I agree with previous reviewers the birds do not seem like this feeder although they had no problem with the previous one.

Impossible to get the lid off to refill. Friends couldn't manage it either - there's nothing to grip in order to turn it and remove it.

1. It is difficult for me to open for filling as I have very small hands.
2. The larger birds eg jackdaws pigeons magpies hang from the feeder and shake it until the seeds fall out and they just fly down and eat them off the ground.

I bough this specifically to curb the starlings at the feeding station. However they love it! They managed to empty the feeder in a morning. The little birds seem to like it once they learnt how to hang on. Took them a few hours. However the starling are hanging on it about four at a time, queuing on the roof and beating the little guys up. Grrr...

I have just ordered my third of this style of feeder in 10 years. I managed to drop the first one and the loop snapped off. The second one was hugely popular with Blue, Coal and Great Tits, Chaffinches, Goldfinches, Robins and Sparrows, but it also proved to be irresistible to the local pair of Grey Squirrels who in their usual problem solving way discovered that by chewing off the tabs holding the tray to the seed store would result in the tray dropping off and all the seed landing in a pile on the ground for their delectation. I rigged up a cage from a wire coat hanger to hold the tray in place, but the squirrels and a Jackdaw have found that they can get a lot of the seed out by shaking the whole contraption so the time has come to shell out on a new one. We'll see how long this one lasts.

I bought this so the small birds had a chance to feed without being bullied by pigeons and crows. They soon got used to it and the tits and sparrows seem to like it. Problem is I have only filled it twice and cannot now get the top off. If you hold the hook it’s just turns round and round. If you bold the base the plastic flexes so much it feels like it will break. I have tried holding the top and bottom parts and turning in opposite directions but it will not budge now completely useless as I cannot fill it.

I was a bit dubious about buying this feeder again as the first one [accidentally] fell to the ground with the hanging hook breaking right off. Well, it's just happened again. PLEASE can you change this design so that the hook could be unscrewed or detached ? Apart from this I think that it's a good feeder. Many thanks.

We have used this feeder for years. It got dropped recently and therefore needs replacing. It is brilliant for small birds, sparrows and tits particularly, and after a slow start, the birds love it especially in the cold weather. It is a safe space for them to feed away from bigger birds.

A very good feeder. Not top quality, but it wouldn't be at this price, and we've had it for about 2 years with no signs of wear or damage. Goldfinches and other small birds love it, and it keeps out pigeons, crows, jackdaws etc. It also very easy to clean.

I have now had this bird feeder for just 14 days at first very disappointed but persevered and now i cannot believe it the birds seem to love feeding from it
I will only give it 4 stars because the base needs redesigning to allow a better perch as it does apear to be difficult for the bird feed

I brought this feeder while on holiday in Wales, as thought it'd solve the problem I have. I love feeding the little birds, but the pigeons have learnt how to feed from all of the other feeders I have, and this looked like it may solve that problem. I don't mind the pigeons eating whatever the little birds drop, but don't want to actually feed them, at 1 point I had 30/40 pigeons in my garden, so I had to stop putting feed out.
It works so well, that I'm about to order another one from the website. So far I've had no problems with water leaking in to the top.

RSPB response: Thank you for your review. We are pleased to hear how this feeder has helped you with your pigeon problem and that you have had no issues with leakage!

I bought this feeder so that the sparrows could feed while the starlings were dominating the other feeders. Sadly , the sparrows ignore it and the starlings guzzle from it!

I feel guilty!
I was using an aging seed feeder with big perches around the tray but doves and pigeons scoff everything and swing around as they hold on, which also scatters the seen everywhere.
So I swapped to this feeder a couple of days ago. It is great for blue tits, great tits, coal tits and goldfinch, though some look as comfortable as the birds in the product description photo and some are clinging rather more desperately, curled around underneath. It is well made and smart. I suspect it might be a little awkward to take the top off to refill with cold hands (it is quite wide to get a good turning grip). I just watched a grey squirrel fail to feed from it.
The thing I feel guilty about, is that the greenfinch and chaffinch hover in frustration. Some sometimes manage to grab a seed. I hadn't intended to exclude them so I'll have to put the old feeder back up to cater for these.