How often do you clean your birdhouses? I never really thought about it but they do get pretty grungy after a year or so of use. I regularly clean the feeders but not the bird houses. I guess birds don’t really want to live in a mess either.
It’s hard to know when to clean but if you keep an eye on your birdhouses and when the most recent residents have grown up and flown the nest, it’s time to take it down and clean it.
You should clean your birdhouses at least once a year. If you can, clean it after every family leaves to help prevent the spread of disease and also to make them more inviting to the next little family of birds.
If you birdhouse is wooden don’t try to clean it after a rain. Give it a few days in the sun to dry out, this will make it easier to take apart because the wood will not be swollen.
To clean a birdhouse use solution of 10% bleach and 90% hot water. Make sure you wear a breathing mask and gloves to protect against any diseases that are found on birds or their droppings. Before cleaning use a plastic bag to catch any bedding material left from the last residents. Seal this bag and throw it away.
Do not clean birdhouses in your house because there can be parasites in the nesting material which will quickly invade their new indoor location.
Take the birdhouse apart and scrub it well, leaving it unassembled to dry in the sun. Once it is dry, reassemble and hang in your chosen location. The next tenants will be very impressed with their new, clean home, just don’t expect them to leave it in move in condition when they are gone.