How Often to Change Your Hummingbird Feeder (Tips)

If you keep a hummingbird feeder in your yard or garden, you’re probably familiar with the process of filling and refilling it. Hummingbirds have voracious appetites, especially in warm weather, and you may find yourself washing and refilling the feeder multiple times a week. A common question many backyard birders have is this: generally, how often should the nectar in the feeder be changed?

There’s a lot of conflicting advice about how often to change the nectar in your feeder. This article covers a few of the most pressing questions hummingbird lovers may have.

Key Takeaways

• In hot summer weather, change out your hummingbird nectar at least twice a week, preferably every other day. In milder spring and fall weather, change it at least once a week.
• Every time you change out nectar, clean your hummingbird feeder.
• Keeping your feeder out of direct sunlight slows the spoiling process and helps prevent mold growth.

How often should you change your hummingbird feeder?

How often you change out the nectar in your hummingbird feeder depends on the season and climate in which you live. The Smithsonian National Zoo says to change sugar water in feeders at least two times per week in hot weather and one time per week in cooler weather.

Other sources, like various local Audubon Societies, suggest you change your nectar on a similar schedule. Cornell says:

at least every couple of days in hot weather or if feeders are in direct sunlight, and every 2-4 days when it’s cooler and feeders are shaded

These places recommend changing and cleaning feeders every other day as a baseline of care. The things you have to remember here is, there’s no exact schedule that everyone can follow.

It’s up to you to use the guide to check your feeder often and change the nectar when it needs to be changed. There are many factors that dictate how often you should change your hummingbird feeder nectar.

A general guide to go by is:

• Below 70 degrees: once per week
• 70-80 degrees: at least twice per week
• Above 80 degrees: change every 1-2 days or more and check often

Some people can get overly specific with how often you should change your nectar based on the temperature outside, but this isn’t as helpful as it may seem. There isn’t a specific amount of times to change your nectar between 71 degrees and 74 degrees, give me a break.

In the end you must check the nectar on your own, and check it often when it starts getting warm outside. Look for the following signs that it needs to be changed, and if it does then change it. When in doubt, change it.