How I Test and Score Heated Birdbaths

I purchase and install all the heated birdbaths I review. They’re set up in my yard so I can observe and evaluate their performance, ensuring they fulfill their advertised claims.

I invested time in designing my birding gear test and score systems, with the dual objective of saving you time, money, and potential frustration, while also maintaining fairness to the brands. Ratings are designed to simplify your choices.

I’d like to further explain how I test and score heated birdbaths…

Key Factors

I identified seven key factors to consider when testing each pole. Details about each key factor are in the next section.

1. Safe & Effective
2. Durable
3. Easy to Clean
4. Easy to Assemble
5. Warranty
6. Company

Scoring

I use a 5-point rating system to evaluate all key factors for each product. For each factor, I assign a score and then determine the overall score by averaging these individual scores.

Onto details of the key factors…

1. Safe & Effective

When you buy a heated birdbath you want it to be safe for the birds.

For the heated birdbath to be safe, it should have a built-in thermostat enabling it to automatically turn off once the ice has melted. The thermostat is non-negotiable – the heated birdbath must have it to protect the birds. Otherwise, the water will continue to heat to extreme temperatures and harm the birds when bathing or drinking.

The bowl should have an appropriate depth. Birds only need up to a couple of inches of water to drink.

Since birds vary in size, a sloping bowl is ideal for the smaller birds so they can comfortably hop from the shallow to the deeper areas without fear of drowning, and works for larger birds who may choose to drop right into the deep. Avoid bowls that are just too deep.

For the heated birdbath to be effective, it needs to have sufficient power to do its job of keeping the water from freezing up. Heated birdbaths come in power ranges from 50W to 150W.

Offer a perch-friendly bowl. In most cases, the birds are visiting the birdbath to drink. They will perch on the edge of the rim, bend over and drink. If the rim’s edge is not perch-friendly they will find this task cumbersome and perhaps fly away. Contoured rims are ideal for perching.

2. Durable

Avoid concrete, stone, or glass. As Birds and Blooms point out, these materials can crack if the water freezes.

Also, avoid a metal bowl since wet, frozen metal could be a disaster for wildlife drinking from it. (Ever licked your lips and walked into a frozen pole? I know birds don’t have lips .. but similar concept.).

When the wicked winds blow you want a heated birdbath that will stay put so pay attention to its weight.

• If it’s a pedestal-style heated birdbath the base should be heavy or can fill with sand or rocks to provide a strong base.
• If it’s a mounted style, use mounting brackets to secure it in place.
• If it’s ground-style, look for one made of heavy materials. Alternately, and if you don’t mind the aesthetics, you could place a large rock in it or several medium-sized rocks to weigh it down.

3. Easy to Clean

If you know anything about me, you know I’m a huge proponent of responsible backyard birding. It’s our responsibility to provide a safe environment for wild birds while they’re in our yard. This means providing fresh food and water and cleaning the bird feeders and birdbaths regularly.

When selecting a heated birdbath make sure it’s easy to clean – specifically, the bowl. Plastic materials are ideal for ease of cleaning. This is great since plastic materials are also ideal for durability (#2 above).

Proper cleaning of a birdbath entails scrubbing with a 1:9 bleach/water solution. For this reason, you should avoid porous materials such as wood.

4. Easy to Assemble

Nobody wants to spend hours assembling a heated birdbath. While instructions may be provided, they could lack clarity and illustrations that could be helpful with the task.

For complicated installations, detailed and clear instructions should accompany the birdbath. Bonus points if a video or step-by-step illustrations are included.

5. Warranty

Some heated birdbaths can exceed $100. To safeguard your investment, seek a robust warranty. Ensure any heated birdbath you purchase for over $100 comes with a minimum 1-year warranty.

6. Company

Quite a few brands have set the bar high in the heated birdbath market, sticking around for decades because they’ve mastered the mix: high-quality products, fresh innovations, and the kind of customer service that makes you feel like old friends. Here are just a few examples of reputable brands in the heated birdbath market (in alphabetical order):

• API (Allied Precision Industries)
• Farm Innovators
• JCS Wildlife
• Songbird Essentials

By narrowing the pool of products to the ones made by a reputable brand, you mitigate the risk of the item ending up on a garbage heap.  In other words, skip the generic and white-label products.