Six Dollar Family

Six Dollar Family

  • Home
  • About
  • Thrifty & Frugal Living
    • Personal Finance Tips
  • DIY & Crafts
  • Family Recipes
  • Homesteading
    • Green Living Tips
  • Learn to Blog
  • All Posts
You are here: Home » DIY & Crafts » How to Make a Milk Jug Bird Feeder

June 18, 2019 By Stacy Williams

How to Make a Milk Jug Bird Feeder

Filed Under: DIY and Crafts, Upcycling IdeasTagged With: DIY & Crafts for Kids

This post may contain affiliate or referral links that help keep this site running. For more information about this, please see our Disclosure Policy. As an associate of Amazon.com/Amazon.uk/Amazon.ca/and other websites, I may earn a small commission whenever you click through a link from this site. This commission helps to support this site and keep it running. Six Dollar Family is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com/Amazon.uk/Amazon.ca.




My mom almost always had an milk jug full of iced tea in the fridge when I was growing up. She knew she could repurpose empty milk jugs, but it wasn’t really her “thing” to find too many ways to use empty milk jugs. For her, they were simply a way to store a drink. For me, they are another way to save money and a way to keep something from getting tossed. Even though we drink raw milk, the farmer we buy it from uses milk jugs which means I still have them on hand usually. One of my favorite uses for them is this milk jug bird feeder.

Looking for a way to repurpose milk jugs? Make this milk jug bird feeder! This upcycled craft is easy to make and sure to attract beautiful birds looking for a snack!

I confess that when I first heard the idea to make a bird feeder from milk jugs, I wasn’t too convinced. It seemed a whole lot more complicated than it really is and frankly, I’m not too big on much of anything that is too complicated. I like easy. I’m too busy to deal with complicated. That’s the real reason these milk jug bird feeders is one of my favorite upcycled crafts. In fact, reusing milk jugs in one of my favorite things to reuse at home period.

After I took the time to make these milk jug bird feeders, I was convinced though. They’re super easy so I will just have to admit I was wrong and move on with my life. 🙂 They are a perfect companion to my terra cotta pot bird bath. The birds love them!

How to Make a Milk Jug Bird Feeder

This milk jug bird feeder is perfect for anyone who wants to attract birds to their garden without spending much money on a bird feeder. If you wanted to attract hummingbirds, you could use a non-toxic paint to paint your milk jug bird feeder red.

Also, know that when you make a bird feeder from a milk jug, it won’t be very deep. This won’t affect the function of your feeder at all. All it will mean is you’ll probably have to add bird seed more often if you plan to keep it filled. You can modify the design if you wish, but keep all sharp edges in mind. When you cut into a milk jug, the edges do get quite sharp. I’m certain you wouldn’t want to harm one of our fine feathered friends with a sharp edge.

Why You Should Find Ways to Upcycle Milk Jugs

Milk jugs are one of those items that almost every home has in their fridge on any given day. Most don’t even bother finding ways to upcycle (Six Dollar Family) milk jugs and instead they are simply thrown away. It has been estimated that 3.5 pounds of milk jugs are thrown away each year.

Per person.

Considering a milk carton ways 1 ounce that is a whole lot of plastic going into the dump. Crafts such as this one can help find different uses for milk jugs so that amount of trash is reduced.

Steps to Making Milk Jug Bird Feeders

You Will Need: Each set of supplies makes one milk jug bird feeder.
  • 1 empty milk or juice jug with lid
  • 2 paper straws
  • Colored duct tape
  • Scissors 
  • Bird Seed
  • Small piece of yarn

How to Make a Bird Feeder From a Milk Jug

To begin your milk jug bird feeder, wash and dry your milk jug fully. If you are having an issue getting any smells such as orange juice out of the jug, add a bit of original Dawn dish soap and 1/4 cup white vinegar to a full jug of water. Shake well and allow it to sit for a few hours. Rinse it very, very well and allow it to dry fully.

Once the jug is fully dry, cut the jug open on all four sides. Make your cuts below the handle making sure to leave a thin strip of the jug in tact as shown in the photo above.

Looking for a way to repurpose milk jugs? Make this milk jug bird feeder! This upcycled craft is easy to make and sure to attract beautiful birds looking for a snack!

Next, use the Duck tape to cover the edges of your jug. We used green duct tape for ours, but you can use any color you wish as long as it is bright enough to attract attention. Make sure to cover all the edges since they’re sharp.

If you want to reinforce your feeder, you can also place a layer of tape across the very bottom of the jug. This isn’t necessary though unless you want to do it.

Your bird feeder needs to be balanced so that it will hang correctly. Otherwise, it will lean to one side and dump the bird seed. To balance it correctly, make a hole through both the “lip” that is left on the jug and the tape.

Run a paper straw completely through each side to form an “x” in the center of the jug. They should be secure enough to stay, but if not, secure the center with a piece of tape. I don’t recommend taping it though since it is the area where the bird seed will go.

To finish the feeder, use the scissors or a nail to put a hole through the lid. Run a piece of yarn through the hole. Tie the ends together to create a way to hang the milk jug bird feeder.

Looking for a way to repurpose milk jugs? Make this milk jug bird feeder! This upcycled craft is easy to make and sure to attract beautiful birds looking for a snack!

Replace the lid and hang outside on a tree in your yard. Fill the bottom area with bird seed then sit back and watch your feathered buddies come in for a snack!


Previous Post: « Why You Must Be Self Sufficient to Truly Live Frugal
Next Post: How to Save money on Your Electric Bill with Extreme Frugality »

Primary Sidebar

Looking for Something?

Bio of Stacy Williams, blogger and authorI’m Stacy - 1/4 of the Six Dollar Family. I'm on a journey to become a six figure family and I would love if you came along with me! We'll kick off our shoes, sip sweet tea, eat loads of goodies, save some money and maybe even learn a thing or two along the way! Six Dollar Family Bio

Order your copy of the Six Dollar Family Book

Footer

From Six Dollars to Six Figures

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
© 2011-2020 Six Dollar Media | All Rights Reserved. | Disclosure Policy | Privacy Policy
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.AcceptRead More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.