How to Build a Stone Bird Bath
Birdbaths are an easy way to enhance birdwatching in your backyard. The sight and sound of one bird splashing in the water will draw others, increasing your viewing pleasure. Making a birdbath is a creative project with many options -- some builders may choose to use the base of a plant pot or a trash can lid as the bathing basin, while others prefer to design an elaborate work of art. A stone birdbath is an example of a project with a little creativity and plenty of functionality. Does this Spark an idea?
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Plastic tarp
- Sand
- Plastic sheeting
- Ready-mixed concrete
- Wheelbarrow
- Garden hoe
- Trash liner
- Spray bottle
- Assorted stones
Instructions
-
-
1
Line a flat work surface with a plastic tarp so that it covers an area of at least 3 feet in diameter. This will give you plenty of space to work.
-
2
Pour out a pile of damp sand, so that you have enough to fill an 18-inch diameter circle that's 3 or 4 inches high. One bag of playground sand will be plenty for this project. Mold the sand into a mound about 3 inches higher in the center than at the edges.
-
-
3
Cover the sand with thin plastic sheeting.
-
4
Mix 1/2 bag of ready-mixed concrete (without rock) with water until it has the consistency of thick pudding. Use a wheelbarrow with a garden hoe to mix it easily.
-
5
Mold the concrete over the plastic-covered sand mound, making the edges at least 1/2 inch thick so they won't chip later. Cover the concrete loosely with a trash-liner or something similar to protect it from the elements.
-
6
Dry the birdbath for at least 24 hours, then lift it carefully off the sand mound and invert it.
-
7
Mix the rest of the bag of rockless concrete until it has the mixture of thick pudding.
-
8
Spray the inside of the birdbath with a mist of water, then spread the concrete over the inside surface of the birdbath to a thickness of 1 inch.
-
9
Set stones into the wet concrete immediately and work quickly before the concrete hardens. Use varied types and sizes of rocks, so that the birds have little steps in the birdbath. Allow the rocks to set for one hour or until the concrete hardens.
-
10
Dry the birdbath for one week to harden it thoroughly, then set it somewhere in your yard, preferably under a tree where birds can rest after bathing.
-
1
References
- Photo Credit Thinkstock/Comstock/Getty Images
