Tuesday 9 October 2018

Repairing the bird feeder

It has had its issues, but the bird feeder has survived weather, winds, and Junior bear! I reshingled it a few years ago.
2017

Bear bent the galvanized piping. There was nothing in the feeder in spring, as I knew better with bear coming around in his regular May search for new territory.


The mourning doves love this feeder.


I took the feeder down after the top section fell off. Aug. 1st:  A WASP story! Yes, bitten by a wasp. The August wind that liberated some shingles just flipped the feeder. It's just the nails that rusted, a bit of a flaw! Next, I hauled it over to fix it.


I cannot lift it all by myself. I took it away in two parts, then screwed it back together. It only had nails, and they have rusted. I really don't know how old it is (15 - 30 years?), but it has held up well, otherwise. I used some galvanized brackets. Here it is upside down on the wagon, under the shade of the trees, where I repaired it in the rain.


I prepared it beforehand. Removing the wind ornament for winter, I'll find another home for them in summer. Reinserting the frame base into the metal sheaths in the ground, it is quite crooked. 


I found a wee garter snake under the stone that was keeping it a bit more horizontal. Susie Snake was placed in some shelter, where it could find another stone. This was a really cold, single-digit day! Susie was a tad cold, too.

Traditional in cottage country: the kids help us put things away for winter. We put two chairs and the coffee table in the shed. 
 I had feline supervisors, too. This is from the trailcam!

The kids came for Thanksgiving. Young backs, you know. Grampa took photos from the back deck!



Voila! It's still crooked, and I need some more shingles to repair it, but the mourning doves love it. The birds returned that day.


Speaking of bird feeders... my respite client sits and gazes out the window at the birds who alight in the trees. After sitting there with her twice a week for 3 hours each, now in my third year, I had a thought. I took over a feeder to lend her, just to see if she liked the idea. She did!

Then, I looked and looked online, until I found one that had suction cups. The glass one (mine, above) is attached using a piece from a GPS dashboard system.

Google knew what I was looking for! I've been getting these ads all over! I will take it over to her today, and bring mine home.

3 comments:

William Kendall said...

The feline supervisors keep a close eye out on you.

Red said...

Feeders are a puzzle Okay making them from scratch can be tricky. Birds may not like what you produce.

Christine said...

It is creepy how Google knows what we are looking for, but so great that you got her the right feeder! Scary seeing that bear in your yard.