DIY Bird Baths for our flying friends (2024)

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Making DIY Bird Baths are a caring gesture for birds (our flying friends) and other animals in summer that beautify our backyard (garden, outdoor area). I am going to share some beautiful and easy bird bath projects that are sure to inspire your love for decorating your outdoor surroundings. Include your kids in painting and decorating the bird bath projects, be sure to check out gardening with kids.

Best DIY Bird Baths

Find amazing ideas to make DIY bird baths using pans, clay pots, terracotta pots, planters, cans, saucers, trays and so much more. There are ideas to recycle old items into birdbaths as well.

1. Garbage can bird bath

Make Garbage Can Bird Bath using galvanized garbage can and lid.

2. Make bird bath with bowls

DIY Bowl Bird Bath using bowl and old china glued upside down on a copper pipe. You can substitute it with dishes, small candy dish or custard cup. Use E-6000 to stick the parts together. This is a great idea for using beautiful bowls and cups into making bird baths on a post.

3. Modern bird bath

Replace a cast iron bird bath with DIY plate bird bath that looks modern and chic. An inexpensive project to make an expensive looking garden art piece. You will need 3 wood dowels, stain and shallow dish or bowl.

4. Baking pan bird bath

Reuse baking pan as bird bath with stones and rocks. Place in a shaded areas to avoid pan from over heating. Add a hummingbird feeder nearby as well.

5. Flower pot bird bath

Make a homemade bird bath with terra cotta flower pots stacked up and terra cotta tray on the top. I love the use of art to involve kids into making a bath for our flying friends. Add a cute birdhouse nearby too.

6. Expensive DIY bird baths flip

A Unique Bird Bath Idea using wooden logs or twigs. Make sure to ground the twigs at least 12 inches to make it sturdy. Glue a bowl at the top and add water.

7. DIY Bird bath from flower pots

Here’s an affordable and tasteful way to make DIY Bird Bath from flower pots. Insert a smaller size urn into the large one and use it as bird bath. Plant bright flowers around to attract birds.

8. Planter bird bath

Spray paint planters to make bird bath. Arrange them and stack to make a pillar and add planter tray on the top for birds to bath.

9. Make a distressed birdbath

Make an adorable pink birdbath by painting clay pots and distress them from the sides with sand paper. Now add some artificial flowers and bird to decorate it.

10. Succulent bird bath

This is a bit different idea. But if your birdbath is broken and doesn’t hold water anymore, try planting succulents in it. You can also add a bowl between the succulents to make a tiny birdbath in succulent arrangement.

11. Fairy garden bird bath

Repurpose an old birdbath into fairy garden. Here’s one fairy garden I made for the front porch. You can insert a bowl in the soil if your surface is large to create a pool in which birds can enjoy cleaning their feathers and play.

12. Terracotta bird bath

Here’s a cute birdbath made with pots stacked together. Paint the pots. Use decorative tissue paper and white glue/ mod podge to affix design on the pots. Rub it with a sponge to remove tissue paper. Instead you can use ceramic dishes with designs and decorative colors as well.

13. Backyard bird bath

Spray paint clay pots in different colors to make a colorful birdbath for your backyard or home garden. Add a butterfly feeder as well for more magic.

14. Colorful bird bath

Add a splash of color to pots and make these cute project.

15. Clay pot bird bath

Use clay pots, spray paint and kwik seal to make this amazing piece. Start by stacking pots and sealing them together with kwik seal. Make the pots look like concrete by spray painting them with gray spray primer. Once it dries, use acrylic white paint and water it down and brush over the pots for white wash look.

16. How to make bird bath?

Encourage your kids to love nature by making a simple clay bird bath. Place it in your yard and see animals small and large come for a sip of water. Use paint to make the activity more fun for kids to complete.

17. Repurposed sink bird bath

Make a unique birdbath from vintage wall-mount sink. You will need drain plug to keep water in the sink. PVC pipe to act as pole for the sink and screws to drill the sink basin into the tree trunk for extra support.

18. Mosaic bird bath

Make a DIY mosaic birdbath with broken china or glass tiles. This looks expensive and difficult to make but is very easy. The height of the bowl is perfect to attract bathing birds. Set the tiles using water resistant tile adhesive. Then use outdoor penetrating grout to seal glass tiles in the terra cotta tray.

Birdbath Maintenance tips

Clean your birdbath by scrubbing it with brush or sponge and water. Use a cap full of vinegar or bleach to remove stubborn algae. Rinse thoroughly.
Reapply grout sealer once a year or two to prolong your bird bath’s life and beauty.
Prevent the birdbath from cracking and chipping by bringing it inside in freezing winters.

19. Homemade bird bath

DIY homemade bird bath using glass bowl, patio painted wood slices, and vases. Fill vases with sand, glass beads and baubles.

20. Fountain bird bath

Use clay pots, clay saucers and glue to make a birdbath that looks like fountain. Use paint and clear acrylic spray sealer for outdoors or polyurethane. You can use liquid nails, silicone adhesive or heavy duty outdoor glue to seal pots together.

21. Stacked stones DIY bird bath

Stacked Stones Bird Bath using galvanized aluminum trays and rocks.

22. DIY bird bath

Another take on fun Mosaic Bird Bath.

23. Make your own bird bath

Make your own bird bath with terracotta pot, old brass lamp, and saucer. You can substitute lamp with candle holder or spindle.

24. DIY hanging bird bath

Make a hanging bird bath using faux nest or wreath as base for the bath. Place a glass bowl in the nest and use glue to seal it in place. Use string or burlap thread to hang it on the tree or patio roof.

I hope you enjoyed these inspirational ideas for making bird baths for your garden.

FAQs

What goes in a birdbath and never gets wet? ›

Q: What goes in a birdbath but never gets wet? A: The bird's shadow.

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What type of bird bath attracts the most birds? ›

The best birdbaths mimic nature's birdbaths—puddles and shallow pools of water in slow streams; they're shallow with a gentle slope so birds can wade into the water. Look for one that won't break and is easily cleaned.

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How do you make a bird bath out of recycled materials? ›

Plug the sink drain (if a sink is used). Paint it a matching color. If your light lens has a hole in it, caulk the edges of the hole and put a decorative marble or large bead over the hole to plug it. Fill with water and enjoy the birds.

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What's the best material for a bird bath? ›

Stone and Granite

These materials are incredibly durable, resistant to weathering, and maintain their appearance for years. Granite, in particular, is resistant to scratches and damage from the elements. Stone bird baths can be heavy, which makes them stable but difficult to move.

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Do copper pennies prevent algae? ›

To keep algae growth from your bird bath drop some pre-1982 copper pennies in. I have what I would call a normal size bird bath & I use 7 pennies. The reason for the pennies being pre-1982 is that before that year, the pennies contained copper, a natural algicide.

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What attracts birds to a bird bath? ›

Birds prefer to drink and bathe in cool, shaded areas, so providing a shady spot nearby can be a great way to attract more birds. Another way to enhance your bird bath fountain is by adding a mister or commercial dripper.

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How to make a cheap bird bath? ›

Stacked Stones

This one is a simple yet effective bird bath that does not require you to go to the shops, simply use what you have in your garden! Find a few similar medium sized flat stones and pile them on top of each other. You can place any fancy saucers or pots that will be able to balance on top and you are done.

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Why won't birds come to my birdbath? ›

The Birdbath Isn't in the Right Place

If your birdbath is out in the open, with no cover or brush nearby, it's too risky a place for birds to use as a rest stop. After all, they need to be able to duck and cover should a predator like the neighborhood cat comes near.

Should I put rocks in my bird bath? ›

Give Your Birds Perching Spots

If you happen to have a deeper bird bath, you can make it more appealing by adding in a few rocks in the middle or along the edges. This will give birds a place to land so they can splash and preen themselves in the water.

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How long does it take birds to find a bird bath? ›

Patience is needed when you add anything to the garden for birds, we installed another hanging feeder alongside our existing feeders and it took three weeks before we spotted our first bird using it. On average, it takes birds between 2 – 4 weeks to find a bird bath.

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What can I use as a makeshift bird bath? ›

Shallow plates with wide rims, pie-tins, gradually sloping sides on a very shallow planter, upturned trash can lids: these can all be inexpensive ways to make a DIY basin bath for your visiting birds.

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Can I use anything as a bird bath? ›

An old sink bird bath

Since you don't need plumbing, you can use a steel pole to secure and support the sink. (Assuming, of course, you use a pedestal sink.) If you don't know where to find an old sink, try a junkyard. Sometimes, thrift stores will sell these items, or at least know where you can find them.

Can I use a bucket as a bird bath? ›

Not a bucket, a shallow dish like bird bath. Place a few rocks in it so they don't drown if they are a bee or other small being. Change water everyday but all kinds of critters need a drink or bath. Something wider and shallower would be better.

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How do you make a bird bath attractive to birds? ›

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