Are bird baths messy

Mess caused by a bird bath is usually due to birds dropping or damage caused naturally, although a bird bath water source will be the biggest concern health wise.

Bird baths are messy but its nothing to be concerned about. Focus cleaning up efforts in the water bowl while changing out dirty water as often as you can. Don't wait until signs of poor water quality, just clean it out. Unfortunately, birds can poop, debris can fall, and weathering can take hold in a bird bath.

While its been established bird baths are a bit on the messy side, let's not forget its only made to store water thus there's no need to be too concerned about an untidy bath.

Be concerned more about the quality of the bird bath water more than anything else, as there's a risk of poisoning wild birds if standards drop.

And the best way to keep the bird bath water clean is to clean your bird bath at least once a week - or twice weekly if you can find time.

What is going to cause a serious mess within your bird bath water bowl is the growth of algae. Now it isn't a mess per se but it can be an unsightly growth that if not doubt with, would become toxic to wild birds.

With that in mind you'd always have to keep algae out of the bird bath for birds safety.

While a bird bath continues to be a place to bathe or hydrate - water will be the biggest concern - as water itself can stain the bird bath interior and area outside the bird bath.

Worst than that is when the weathering effect kicks into any type of bird bath, although it has to be said weathering in a stone bird bath can be quite attractive.

Bird baths do have a knack for attracting an unwanted mess, as trash or natural debris tend to build up around the bird bath stand base - and that is if it a bird bath on a stand.

Despite small issues arising in due course, a bird bath is still a good idea as it provides many benefit to birds, all while helping you fill a void in your yard.

Bird droppings get messy

Unfortunately the biggest issue when owning a bird bath is that you must clean up bird poop quite often which is mainly caused by larger bird species.

Birds don't care where they go to the bathroom thus the rim of the bird bath bowl plus the once clean water will gradually build up with bird poop.

Not instantly, but if a bird bath is unkempt for a long period of time then poop will be harder to remove.

Small, common backyard birds who frequent a bird bath like American Robins will tend to avoid pooping in the bird bath far less than say the larger Cardinals.

What will ultimately be a biggest concern is when pigeons poop in your bird bath, so unless pigeons are kept off the bird bath as they do - then these birds that eat far more than smaller species - will sure make a mess of your bird bath.

I will say a bird bath that is frequently kept clean once or twice weekly can see bird poop washed off with ease - while causing no concern with hygiene.

To allow bird poop to remain in the bird bath water, it risks wild birds becoming unwell.

Quality of water kept hygienic

Bird baths are not so much a piece of wild bird equipment that stays clean, as naturally birds will poop in the water.

However bird baths can be kept sanitary if you continue to keep an eye on it throughout its entire use. I am not talking about checking on it once a week, I am referring to looking at it once a day to find anything out of the ordinary.

Quality of bird bath water is really only your concern at this time as dirty, bacteria ridden water will make birds poorly.

What you must be focused on more than anything else when looking after a bird bath is changing out the bird bath water as often as you can. I can say once weekly on average, but in truth, it really depends on your personal circumstances.

How to properly take care of a bird bath will be to always look after it by removing debris to checking on water quality.

You can't examine the bird bath water with scientific equipment thus there's no telling what lingers in the water.

What you must do then is always assume the water is in bad shape, so it will need cleaning out once or twice a week. Long before you clean your bird bath you'd still need to change out the water far more frequently.

Falling debris less issue

Less of an issue to deal with to stop bird baths becoming a little bit on the messy side, is to remove any falling debris.

Debris are a pain but they tend to be harmless, like leafs falling off the trees, the occasional moss which is a little more dangerous - plus grit or stones which is blown into the water in the wind.

Reserve your own scooper or reacher-grabber to lift all debris out of the bird bath water, while scrapping out anything that sinks to the bottom of the bird bath water bowl.

Where you place a bird bath in your yard can slow the debris issue, but wherever the bird bath goes - you'd still be hard pressed to stop it all together.

What you can do is deploy a way to keep your bird bath water moving, thus debris can be kicked out of the bird bath without your intervention.

One way to keep bird bath water moving is with a contraption called a dripper; drippers literally drip water into your bird bath while the water overflows - thus spilling water onto the ground. If a waters current is spilling over the sides then leafs or debris will follow.

Never a guarantee of success this, but on the subject of spilling water over the edges, this in itself can cause your bird bath to become messy.

Bird bath exterior weathers

What will happen to a bird bath in an outdoor environment is it will eventually weather due to damp, hot and cold conditions.

Now it will depend on what your bird bath is made of, although if its plastic then a little wear and tear will show.

Metal bird baths unfortunately can tarnish but will stay in prime condition for many years.

What material of a bird bath will show deep weathering is a stone, or what is called a concrete or cement bird bath.

Stone bird baths weather much like a grey stone wall or paving does in the yard, however that isn't a bad thing in my opinion as I do like a bird bath to weather - as it blends in better with my backyard landscape.

That being said, in certain material - including stone bird baths - the weathering effect can appear quite messy.

And if I am being honest it can look out of place which can spoil your landscape.

Once vibrant, bright color bird baths could see dark, rugged patches including blistering on the metal bird bath exterior.

Kept clean surrounding bird bath

While bird baths are messy at times which is really the responsibility of the owner, the bird bath surroundings can become untidy.

Often its easy to forget to clean up the area around a bird bath, and as a bird bath only stores water - there's really nothing to be to concerned about you might think...

Well it can be, because you see a bird bath sat on a concrete slab can cause a ring; which is much like when your drinking glass or mug causes a water damaged ring on your coffee table surface.

How you'd go about eradicating this issue before it develops into a ring is to always pull out your bird bath from its position, so you can sweep up any debris building up around the stand - all while washing off the foundation the bird bath sits on with hot water.

Its possible to keep water in the bird bath to prevent it building up on the rim, but in reality this is an issue that is unavoidable due to wet weather and all kinds of severe conditions that can accumulate on the outer rim and underneath the bird bath stand.

In the meantime, be sure to add 'to clean bird bath area' to your list of what to do when taking care of your bird bath.

Simply treat your bird bath like you do your bird feeders, by cleaning up the mess under the feeders - you can apply this to your bird bath to pick up debris, leafs, pebbles, soil - and of course allowing water to dry up if its trapped.

Conclusion

If you are going to take on responsibility of owning and operating a bird bath in your yard, its vital you understand your duties.

Bird baths can get messy thus its important we look after the birds well-being to prevent the risk of poisoning the water.

Mess in a bird bath water source can be due to contaminated water due to wild bird droppings, rotten bird food - and more importantly when birds pass on disease.

Bird bath water can get into bad shape due to algae rapidly developing in warmer days, so its vital the bird bath is cleaned as often as you can.

Long before you clean the bird bath and after, you'd have to make sure the dirty water is replenished with fresh water several times a week - even with no signs of dirt or debris developing in the water.

Debris can be picked out of the water if leafs are seen to float while anything sinking to the bottom can be scraped out.

While your bird bath can show signs of weathering in due cause, it can be complimentary to a made in stone bird bath - while a plastic or cheap metal bird bath can show ugly dark patches or a rugged surface.

With the area surrounding your bird bath, its vital you clean this up by sweeping away debris building up on the bird bath base - along with the potential for water to create a ring on whatever your bird bath sits on in your yard.

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