Customer Reviews

Heath Outdoor Products WF140 Deluxe Window Feeder

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4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Easy and Convenient: Heath Outdoor Products WF140 Deluxe Window Feeder

I gave this to my wife for Christmas. We have had it installed for two days and haven't seen any birds. But, there are not many birds around here in winter. We have no reason to expect there won't be numerous birds once warm weather gets here.

The plastic viewing surface is a "one-way" mirror. During daylight, if you look into it from the outside, you see what appears to be a perfectly mirrored surface. You cannot see anything inside the house, even with the room lights turned on. The plastic is not crystal clear, so when looking out from inside the room, the colors are slightly muted. We don't expect that to decrease our enjoyment of the product. As seen from the outside, the mirror acts like a magnifying cosmetic mirror. Any bird on the food dish will see its own reflection magnified in the vertical dimension. We think that might scare the birds at first, but we think they will get used to it.

During night, the situation is reversed. If the room lights are on, you can see into the room from the outside. We drape a towel over it at night. The towel serves a second purpose. The plastic is not a good insulator and becomes a source of a cold air draft. The towel helps mitigate that.

The unit opens up for access from inside the house. That's great, as we can bring the food tray inside at night so we don't feed any nocturnal creatures.

Installation was a little complicated as our window sill was too wide to open the unit enough for access from inside. This was solved with a two by six board placed between the sill and the bottom of the bird feeder. The board had to be notched in the corners to make it fit well. There is a plastic panel for each side of the bird feeder. These have to be cut to the correct size to fill in the space between the bird feeder and the sides of the window. Measure carefully; if you cut it too small you will be out of luck. The unit needs about 15 inches of clearance from the window pane to open fully. We had to move furniture to accommodate that, which was far more work than installing the bird feeder into the window. A hacksaw and utility knife were needed for installation. The unit is of light but adequate construction; I was worried while handling it that I might damage it. Once installed in the window, it seems sturdy enough. The viewing surface was protected with a plastic film on both sides.

The only thing missing was a bracket to screw into the side of the window to prevent it from being opened.

Update: We have had cardinals feeding. They were completely unaware of our presence.

Second update. This morning there was a knocking sound coming from the bird feeder.
It was a female cardinal fighting with her reflection.

Third update: the cardinal spent the entire day fighting with her reflection. And started up again this morning; I had intended to sleep late. Later a squirrel got into it. I gave him a near heart attack my thumping the feeder. He was back in 15 minutes.

Forth update: At night we put some paper in it to obscure the mirrored surface so that we don't wake up to the thump thump thump sound of a bird fighting with its reflection.

This bird feeder was extremely difficult to install. My parents had to have their contractor install it for them. The worst problem is that you cannot fill it from indoors. It is advertised as being able to put the birdseed in the feeder from inside of the house, but the opening is less than a half-inch and impossible to fill. When my parents called the company to tell them this, they responded to this with "What do you want us to do about it?" My father suggested that they not advertise it in the manner that they have been. Since my parents are elderly, it is a burden to have to go outside in the wintertime to fill it.

We were so excited to buy this birdfeeder as a gift this year, but were highly disappointed when it arrived. The materials were not sturdy, it was impossible to assemble and install, not only because of the odd size, but also because pieces needed for installation were not included. Though it says it can be filled from the inside, it cannot. This item was not at all as described and was a total disappointment, especially taking the price into consideration. Had to return it and hope to purchase something more well-crafted and functional instead.

I've been enjoying similar window feeders for years, and bought this one because it seemed like an upgrade. It does seem to be very well made, and fits into our window better than ones we've had in the past -- but the one-way mirror is WAY too dark! From the outside, it's too bright, so the birds seem scared of it. In the week since we installed it, only two adventurous doves have found their way in, as opposed to a constant parade of sparrows, cardinals, and blue jays in years past. From the inside, on the rare occasions when I do have birds, I can barely see them. To the reviewer that found the "muted colors" acceptable, there are other feeders that show the birds so much better ... and they still can't see you! Unfortunately, I bought this a long time ago, so not sure I can return it. If I can, I will.

Everyone loves to watch the birds (and Squirrels) through the magic window.I think window installed bird feeders are over priced. It's probably not a good idea to use them in cold climates ( Maine) given the energy issues today.The lexan (?) on the feeder is a bit dark to view but probably due to the mirrored design so the birds can't see you watching them. The idea of having one of these is fun but these feeders can be better designed and much more energy efficient than they are.