Create A Bird Bath Birds Will Love Out Of An Unexpected Kitchen Item

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The sounds of birds singing and water trickling don't just soothe the soul — studies show they can reduce stress and lift your mood, too. Luckily, you can enjoy both blissful sounds by adding a bubbling bird bath to your yard. Premade bird baths are available in an array of prices and styles, but creating a DIY bird bath is a fun way to personalize your yard while repurposing household items. One unique, perhaps surprising, item you can transform into a bird bubbler is an old kitchen crock. 

These stoneware canisters were widely used between the 18th and 20th centuries in the U.S. for food storage and fermentation. While still used for practical purposes, like keeping kitchen utensils organized, crocks have also become vintage pottery pieces displayed in houses and yards as Americana decor. 

It only takes a few tools and accessories for a crock to become a custom-built bird oasis, as demonstrated by DIYer Compass Acres. Besides a crock, you'll need a drill with a diamond-tipped bit, a solar pump, a terracotta pot, and several large rocks, including a flagstone rock. The size of the crock doesn't particularly matter – birds generally prefer baths that are low to the ground since it mimics a natural body of water – but make sure it's in good condition, as cracked and dirty crocks can harm birds.

With your crock all clean and dry, start by putting your solar pump at the bottom and securing it in place with large rocks. Next, drop the terracotta pot in the crock with its opening facing down. This will serve as the pedestal for your flagstone rock, so you may need two terracotta pots, depending on the height of your crock. From there, feed the solar pump's plastic tube through the pot's drainage hole. The Antfraer Solar Fountain Pump comes with a 4-foot tube, which is more than enough for most crocks.

The next steps are to drill a hole in your flagstone rock, thread the plastic tube through the hole, and place the rock on top of the terracotta pot. You can make a tiered bird bath by stacking rocks of various sizes on top of each other. This provides more landing spots for birds to perch on and helps water pool up in certain areas. Just don't forget that any additional rocks must be drilled so the plastic tube can pass through them. You might also want to use landscaping glue to keep the rocks secure if they aren't heavy enough to stay in place on their own.

Unfortunately, it's best to store your DIY crock bird bath indoors during the colder months. Crocks are typically made from ceramic stoneware, which can crack if it's repeatedly wet and frozen. Throughout the rest of the year, however, many bird species in your area will thank you for access to tranquil bathing and drinking water.