And just how many municipal water systems are dumping ammonia in the water
supply to purify it? How many pool supply retail outlets are pushing ammonia?
Sorry - bleach is the extremely economical and effective disinfectant.

zxcvbob wrote in message ...
wrote:
For goodness sake! Why the hell are you bleaching your bird feeders?

You garden organically, but happily slop bleach around your yard? Use
soap. Better yet, just water. Or even better, just leave the silly
thing alone. The birds don't care, and neither should you!

Like humans, birds transmit diseases to each other. Unlike humans,
they also poop where they eat, exacerbating the problem. Diseases like
Conjunctivitis are easily transmitted through contaminated feeders.
Here's a quote from the Wild Birds Unlimited website:

4. Keep feeders clean - Clean and disinfect feeders regularly. Use one
part liquid chlorine household bleach in nine parts of tepid water (a
10% solution) to disinfect. Make enough solution to immerse an empty,
cleaned feeder completely for two to three minutes. Allow to air dry.
Once or twice a month should do, but weekly cleaning may be needed if
you notice sick birds at your feeders.
But thanks for your concern.

-Fleemo



There are better disinfectants than bleach. Quaternary ammonia is a
great hospital disinfectant and will kill germs, viruses, and parasites.
A 0.1% solution would probably be about right for this use. I buy it at
Fleet Farm as a 10% concentrate called "Steramine" in the dairy supplies
aisle. You would use about 1 1/2 ounces (3 Tbsp.) per gallon of water.

Best regards,
Bob