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Water Wiggler?
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Posted by hgalindo 8B Houston (My Page) on Mon, Feb 28, 05 at 12:26
| I'm setting up a garden in my small urban backyard. Got a birdhouse and a feeder up. I think I was a bit late on the birdhouse so it's unoccupied as yet, but I do have a pair of house finches who are voracious little eaters at my feeder every day and hopefully will attract more birds as time passes (it's only been a couple of weeks). I've now added a birdbath, but I want to be sure it's not ignored. I really don't want to hassle with a dripper or mister because the water supply is pretty far away, so I'm looking at this "Water Wiggler" that a lot of bird supply sites have. Has anyone tried this for attracting birds? Seems like it would scare them off more than attract them, but what do I know? I'm not a bird! :-)
Anybody have experience with these? Or should I just suck it up and get a little dripper. My bath is this one from Smith and Hawken, so whatever I do, it would have to work with that.
Thanks! |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| You know, if only for its anti-West Nile possibilities, it looks like a great idea. I have a regular old bird bath without moving water, and the birds come to it anyway. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| I use a milk jug dripper so that electricity is not a problem. The water wiggler looks cool, but I don't know how long the batteries last, which would be the biggest potential drawback. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| Did you decide on the Water Wiggler? I'm thinking about getting one and wondered if anyone's had luck with one. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| Yep, I happened across one at Wild Birds Unlimited and snagged it. I feel mediocre about it. On one hand, it is doing a great job of keeping the water from getting stagnant and skeetery. On the other hand, it's not doing much to attract birds, but I think that's the fault of the bath's shape and nothing more. It's more of a big bird bath and all I get are little birds. I would say, if you have a flat bird bath (like a large saucer for a pot), it would be great because you could put it off to the side and it would leave plenty of space for birds to splash around. But if you have a saucer shaped bath, it has to sit in the middle and birds can't do much more than sit on the edge and drink the water. I think if you can find a way, the dripping jug approach is better. I just don't have a discreet way to do that because my garden is small and the bath is the focal point and is under bamboo, which wouldn't support a jug full of water. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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hi hgalindo--
so please educate me, what't the dripping jug approach?? i was thinking about the water wiggler too, but i don't want to get it if the birds won't like it. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| Misquito dunks are sold for cheap. They kill mosquito larva and don't harm birds, frogs, fish, etc. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| Jillmcm mentioned it above. I'm guessing you just put water in a milk jug, put a pinhole in it so that it just drips, and hang it over the bath. At least that's what I envision. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| You don't NEED a drip. It just helps draw notice the of the birds. As long as you change the water once a day there shouldn't be any mosquito problems either. incubation of mosquito eggs is 2-7 days. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| Here is something from Duncraft. I actuallu wish I had found this to use in a traditional bird bath before I bought the one that I have. Hmm, well, then again I can always have two baths, right?? ;) |
Here is a link that might be useful: Duncraft
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| Oh, that's cool. If only they'd make one that you could hook into your low voltage lighting system... |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| I Googled Water Wiggler and this post showed up. It seems like the "wiggler" isn't getting good enough reviews here to merit the $39 price. It's made of plastic primarily and doesn't seem to be worth the high cost. To me the Duncraft solar power fountain seems like the best deal, but I'm hesitant. We were talking to the owner of a large garden shop. He said he hasn't found a solar pump yet that's a good one. Most of those he purchased for his store were returned cause they didn't work. Sorry to be a wet blanket. I'd LOVE to find a quality solar pump similar to the Duncraft one. Anybody found one that's reliable?????????? |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| As to the question on battery life, two "D" Cells will last from 2 to 3 months. Regarding the deep birdbath, the solution to that is simply a pile or two of small river rock in the birdbath. This will give the House Finch and other small birds a safe place to stand, bathe and drink from. All in all, I've had very good luck with the Water Wiggler as it is the easiest way, without chemical, to solve the West Nile Virus issue and with my County already having had two deaths from WNV, I'll do anything to control it. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| I have sand, a couple rocks, a big mussel shell and a ceramic toad in my bird bath. When I am hosing out the bird bath, I can direct the sand to one side of the dish, making it beach like on one side and then deeper on the other. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| i bought the water wiggler at the local farm supply store for $14. the batteries last about a month. i don't think it was designed to actually attract birds. the purpose is to keep the water moving to avoid a mosquito problem. |
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| I was looking for more information on these water wigglers. Specifically any more feedback on how long you can reasonably expect the batteries to last. Also, are they of any value for keeping the water from freezing up in moderately cold temperatures? (I assume that for hard freezes it would not work well at all.) |
Here is a link that might be useful: Water wigglers
RE: Water Wiggler?
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| The water wigglers work ok. The battery life is very long. Mine uses two D batteries. I use rechargeable batteries. Solar is the best option (although expensive) to keep the water moving in your birdbath. You can either use a solar insert into an existing birdbath or get one that is built in. The good ones that are built in have reservoir that holds extra water so you don't have to fill it as often. |
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