I’m taking a discarded bird bath and putting it back into service. I bought it for someone as a gift. It returned to me but is useless. Birds never went to it. I surmise that it is too deep and wobbles due to its light weight. One more thing; it’s made of plastic.

I’ve observed that birds love our sturdy concrete baths that feel solid. The most popular bath is shallow, about an inch deep with a round raised section in the middle. We get tiny nuthatches and chickadees and they love it. I’ve seen the American robin there also. Squirrels drink out of it. I’ve found that water attracts animals especially in dry weather. Not just water from the bath but a good sprinkling for my plants will send the birds into ecstasy and they come from all around darting back and forth. In my observations they are more playful and appreciative if that is possible.

It’s been several years since I looked at this useless bird bath and noticed it developed a crack in the center where water is sure to leak from. To seal the crack, I took caulking and smattered it along the crack on top and bottom. Then tested it with water. Granted the leak was reduced to steady drips but this is too much. I’ve learned if there’s a leak then the need to replenish the water is daily. The solution is to cement the bottom thus plugging the leak and at the same time raising the bottom.

How to – In the center I’d like to have a raised area for the birds to perch. They are a nervous bunch and want to know if there are any predators about. This will give them a place to land before setting into the water. I chose a large rock with a flat bottom.

Bird baths need to be shallow for little legs. The smaller birds don’t want to take a swim; they want to splash water onto their wings, head, and back, This requires a shallow bath. The water level needs to be 1″ or 2″ at the most. To accomplish this, I laid some pebbles and medium sized rocks on the bottom. The medium size rocks are about 2″ to 4″ only and placed along the perimeter. Here’s the key; most of us don’t want to mix concrete and plaster it on. That’s messy business. I take Quickrete mix and dry pour it in place. Don’t add water yet, just pour it on dry. Once in place apply water. Keep wetting it down about every half hour for a few hours. Some say this process weakens the concrete. For all my uses it’s fine. Not only that but it’s easy, quick, and there is no mess. The excess mix not used is placed in a buck with a black garbage back around the top to keep moisture out. I place a bungee cord around the top to seal the garbage bag like a lid. The mix will keep for years. Just store in a dry place like your garage or shed.