Customer Reviews

Farm Innovators GBD-60 Heated Birdbath with Deck Mount - Green, 75-Watt

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

We have had over 40" of snow so far this winter. I feed the birds and had tried to put water out for the in the past but it would turn to ice so fast.
What a wonderful idea! Within a day, I had many birds flocking to my heated bird bath! There a few that tend to sit on the rim all day to keep warm too! It seems very easy to clean and set up. My only suggestions would be to keep in mind that they only made the cord VERY short so be careful on where you place it AND that I wish it was a little larger but overall I am VERY happy with this product.

I Purchased this item last winter and found it to be too shallow - just over inch or so. With evaporation and usage, be prepared to fill it a few times a day. It is made of plastic, and if it runs out of water the center may bulge upward from the heat of the element - as mine did. I ended up purchasing a separate heat unit for my concrete bath. It works perfectly. Putting it on a timer so it shuts off at night will save on the electric bill.

The electrical cord for this birdbath is 8.5 inches long. The instructions say "Do not use with extension cords." Now, this is a deck rail mount birdbath--how many people have an electrical outlet within 8.5 inches of a deck railing?

I like the product, except that the container for the water does not seat onto the metal rim. It fits like a plastic container that the lid became warped in the dishwasher. You think it is seated, then it pops up. It seems that the heating element works....notice steam on cold mornings.

Before buying this birdbath we'd previously tried one of those heating units you put into your regular bird bath, and while it worked ok it was unattractive and a nuisance to clean. This birdbath has worked out much better. It's attractive, doesn't use much electricity, and since the heating element is built it it's VERY easy to keep clean.

The water depth is less than our regular birdbath but seems adequate. We need to refill it 2 or 3 times a week. If your birds splash around a lot you might have to refill more often, but in the winter our birds mostly just drink.

I agree with the others that the cord is short, but the warning another person mentioned -- "Do not use with extension cords" -- is just standard legalese their lawyers made them put in the instructions. Just use common sense and use an extension cord made for outdoor use.

API 650 Heated Bird Bath with Mounting Bracket
I've installed 2 of these bird baths. The bath part is great, though some animal, either a possum or a raccoon, enjoys nibbling on the rim. The bracket does allow easy dumping of the contents. However, as other reviews have mentioned, the bracket is cheap junk. The bracket is made of steel that bends easily. In order for the bracket to function as fully intended spring steel that holds its shape is required. The top bracket has a small tongue that's supposed to engage a cut out in the bottom bracket to prevent the unit from tipping unless it is deliberately released. However, on both our units, the "tongue", doesn't protrude far enough to engage, the paint covering this part contributes to the problem. For the catch to work, you have to bend the "tongue" further out. This can be difficult. In addition, because the metal is so bendable, it's easy to bend the bracket when tightening the two bolts that hold the bottom bracket to the deck railing. If the catch side of this bracket is bent, the "tongue" won't engage. The unit will work even if the catch doesn't engage, but it's annoying. The bracket is intended to work on deck railings with a wide top, 4" to 6" surface. If the railing top is narrower than this, you'll have add something to make it wider. Finally, no directions came with our second unit. I'm not sure if directions came with the first unit, now several years old, or not. It took me a while to figure out how to set up the bracket on the new unit. Since the new unit is at my mom's, I couldn't look at the older one as a reference.

I could not use the stand provided since I did not mount to a deck. I made a wood base, placed the bowl inside my summer bird bath and weighted it down with a rock in the center. Directions say "do not use extension cord", which is ridiculous since the cord provided is only 12 inches long.
It does keep water from freezing, and the birds like it. It is very shallow, and requires refilling every day or two.

We used the Farm Innovator heated birdbath, ground mount, this winter and it worked great. We had some low tempetures down to -19 degrees F. below and the water did not freeze. We have a concrete birdbath about 35 feet from our house. We put the heated birdbath on top of the concrete one and connected the short plug to a 40' outdoor extension cord and it worked fine. We used a Farm Innovators Cord Connect Water-Tight Cord Lock - Outdoor Green to connect the extension cord to the birdbath to keep the connection water-tight. The birdbath is shallow but this is what birds like. Also, we like the fact that only 75 watts are needed to keep the water ice-free. We had to add water once a day but if this is a big deal for some people, then don't buy this unit. For those who want a great heated birdbath that only uses 75 watts and works in sub-zero temperatures, this unit is for you.

While we have this bird bath with the stand and I can't comment on
the mounting issues others have had...this product is fantastic.
We have had it for two years (stored in the summer) and have never
had a problem, today we had 40+ mph winds and it is still standing.

At around $40, this is a great buy for keeping water available for birds in the coldest weather. I bought two - one with short legs for my pedestal bath and one wih a clamp for rail mounting. I unplug the units at night to save electricity but even with morning temperatures in the teens, the ice is melted within 2 hours after turning them back on. My only criticism is the depth: 3/4" is a bit shallow and requires topping up at least every other day. Let it get too dry and the center will buckle upward from the heating element, though when this happened to one of mine, it did flatten out when water was added and still works fine.