FEEDING HUMMINGBIRDS IN WINTER IN INDIANA

My personal preference is heat tape wrapped around a bottle feeder and kept in place with electrical tape.

The heat tape has a built in thermostat which will kick on at about 40 degrees F.  The heat tape can be

left in place overnight and throughout the day.  You don't need to mess with it very much compared to

other methods.  It is very important to have a feeder out after dusk and before dawn.  Using heat tape solves

that issue.

This is a feeder with heat tape wrapped around it.  A three-foot heat tape with built in thermostat can be purchased

at many hardware or plumbing stores as well as the big box stores (Menards, Lowes, Home Depot).  The heat

tape is secured with electrical tape.  Notice how the heat tape is wrapped around the ports to help keep them

unfrozen.  The water in the feeder will still be cold but hopefully be kept above freezing.  The ports will

probably freeze first when it get cold outside.  Changing the water can be tricky depending on your feeder. 

This photo was apparently taken December 10, 2004 in SW Indiana and that is a female Rufous Hummingbird

at the feeder and that is snow in the picture.  I did not rig this particular feeder up but the ones I have done look similar. 

Another choice is using a 150-watt outside floodlight in a clip-on utility light fixture.  If you are not handy, print this photo and take it to the hardware store

so they can set you up.  Make sure the light is for outdoor use and can withstand snow and rain falling on it when hot.  The two photos above show a heat

lamp in two different positions.   Place the light about one foot from the feeder.  The light can be turned off when temperatures are above freezing. 

This is a contraption dubbed the "hummingbird haven" by a resourceful guy in Lafayette for their Rufous

Hummingbird in 2002.  It is a plastic storage carton on its side with styrafoam on the bottom and on the sides. 

A hole was placed in the top so a heat lamp could be installed.  Aluminum foil was added at the top apparently

to help keep the heat in.  The hummingbird feeder was set on a food container turned upside down  so that

it would be closer to the heat lamp.

If someone is home during the day a combination of heat lamp or changing the feeder every few hours also works.  If the water is

changed frequently then it should be kept at room temperature so that it takes even longer to get to the freezing point.   Make sure a feeder

is out at least one hour before sunrise and one hour after sunset.  Again, my preference is to use heat tape or a heat lamp so that the

feeder can remain out overnight.  You would be surprised how late or early the bird will fly in for a drink.  If the feeder is not available

the chances of it dieing increases greatly since it will not have fat reserves to sustain it.

Also, check out Bob and Martha Sargent's webpage that covers this topic.