Green Living
7 DIY Recycled Bird Feeders
Before you throw away that empty soda bottle, wine bottle, or milk carton, think about turning it into a bird feeder.
These seven DIY projects show how to reuse common household items to make useful backyard wildlife stations. There’s something for everyone, whether you’re crafting with kids or have experience with tools. Whenever possible, choose glass instead of plastic. Experts say glass bottles last longer in the sun and are easier to clean than plastic.
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1. Soda Bottle Bird Feeder
The soda bottle bird feeder is a classic project that’s easy for anyone to make. Start by saving a 1- or 2-liter soda bottle from the recycling bin. Then, find two wooden spoons, dowels, or sturdy twigs from around your home or yard. These will serve as perches for the birds.
To make one, follow the instructions from Gardening Know How: mark two sets of holes at right angles, insert the spoons or dowels, fill the bottle with birdseed, put the cap back on, and hang it up with string or fishing line. If you’re working with young kids, adults should handle the cutting.
If you prefer not to do DIY from scratch, you can buy soda bottle bird feeder kits. Just attach the tray and wire to your own bottle.
2. Milk Carton Bird Feeder
Making a bird feeder from a milk or juice carton is just as easy as using a soda bottle. The Audubon Society even has a version that’s great for kids. Cut a large opening a few inches from the bottom on one side, add a stick underneath for a perch, make two small holes at the top for hanging, decorate it, and fill with birdseed.
Keep in mind that milk cartons don’t last as long as plastic or glass feeders. Watch for signs of wear and replace your feeder when needed. Remember to recycle the old carton.
3. Tray Bird Feeder
If you have leftover wood from a home project, you can make a simple tray feeder using Birds & Blooms’ instructions. You’ll need cedar or pine scraps, an aluminum screen for drainage, panel nails, eye screws, and some chain for hanging. You should also be comfortable using a drill and hammer.
You can also reuse old windows, picture frames, or other wooden items from around the house to make a tray feeder. One Instructables tutorial shows how someone built a feeder from the wooden backing of an old bronze award.
Tray feeders bring in many types of birds, like cardinals, chickadees, woodpeckers, and mourning doves. However, they don’t keep out squirrels.
4. Floppy Disk Bird Feeder
If you have some old floppy disks lying around, you can turn them into a retro bird feeder using an Instructables guide.
You’ll need to take apart three disks, remove the magnetic film, cut a window for the seeds, put the pieces together to form a cube, and attach a string for hanging. Use tape or a hot glue gun to hold it together, then add birdseed inside.
5. Self-Refilling Glass Bottle Bird Feeder
This gravity-fed feeder is a smart upgrade from basic designs. Remodelaholic’s wine bottle bird feeder tutorial explains how to build a simple wooden platform with a notched holder that keeps an upside-down glass bottle just above the seed tray. As birds eat, gravity refills the tray with more seed.
You need only a recycled wine bottle (or any narrow-neck glass bottle) and some wood for this project. The screw-based mount makes it easy to remove the bottle for refilling. Use a low- or no-VOC wood sealer to protect the frame.
6. Plastic Bottle Hummingbird Feeder
Want to bring hummingbirds to your yard? Try this Instructables guide for making a hummingbird feeder from recycled plastic containers. It uses a pop bottle and a deli container lid, like the ones from grocery store takeout, with milk bottle caps glued on as feeding ports.
Fill the bottle with hummingbird nectar. The International Hummingbird Society suggests mixing one part white sugar with four parts water. Don’t use food coloring, honey, or artificial sweeteners. The red parts of the feeder attract the birds, not the nectar itself.
If you want something sturdier and easier to clean, Birds & Blooms offers instructions for a glass bottle hummingbird feeder that uses copper wire and a commercial feeding tube. This version takes more effort to make but lasts much longer.
7. Glass Soda Bottle Bird Feeder
This is a step up in craft and durability, and a good reason to save that glass Jarritos or Mexican Coke bottle. Birds & Blooms’ glass soda bottle feeder tutorial pairs a recycled glass bottle with a chicken feeder base for a sturdy feeder that holds plenty of seed and will last for years.
The most involved step is drilling a hole in the bottle’s bottom using a diamond drill bit under running water to keep the bit cool so the glass doesn’t crack. A steel rod threads through the bottle and into the chicken feeder base, locked in place with a washer and wing nut; a G-hook at the top completes the hanger. To refill, simply unscrew the base, add seed, and reattach.
This DIY project requires comfort with a drill and patience with glass, but the result looks intentional and well-made, not like a weekend craft project. For the nectar-recipe and feeder-cleaning guidance that applies to all glass bottle builds, the International Hummingbird Society’s feeding page and Birds & Blooms’ black oil sunflower seed guide are solid references depending on what you’re trying to attract.
To find out where to recycle glass bottles in your area, check the Earth911 Recycling Directory. Most curbside programs don’t accept them, but many drop-off sites do.
Tips for Bird Feeders
- Clean your feeders every one or two weeks to stop mold and bacteria from harming birds.
- Hang feeders at least five feet above the ground and away from bushes where cats might hide.
- Black oil sunflower seeds attract the most types of birds.
- For hummingbird feeders, change the nectar every two or three days. In hot weather, change it even more often.
- Plastic feeders break down faster than glass ones in sunlight. Check them regularly and replace when needed.
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Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in 2014, and was most recently updated in March 2026.
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