Any bird bath recommendations?

[TreasuredMim]

Looking for a bird bath that is attractive but, most of all, functional from the birds point of view.

Any tried and tested suggestions?

We have the usual stone style, but the birds prefer the large plastic plant tray that filled up with rain water in a sheltered part of the garden. We call it their swimming pool.
I’m now looking for a more attractive metal replacement for it.

I remember stone bird baths in traditional gardens looking very quaint but didn't get one here as we have hawks and kestrels and a bird bath obviously in the middle of the lawn or similar would be an easy target.
I have used a large plastic dustbin lid successfully.

Quince I did think about a dustbin lid. I’m hoping to come across something in an antique/ charity/ reclaimation yard type place.

make sure it is shallow enough - a lot of the ones in garden centres are too deep for little birds. And ideally have one that is easy to clean because you should scrub it out to stop it spreading disease among the birds.

Our birds don't use the bird bath since we put a pond in - they like the shallow gravel slope end of the pond.

Watched the crow this morning dipping stale bread he got from somewhere into the pond to soften it!

I have three bird baths in a row raised up on a couple of spare paving slabs laid on top of bricks.The first is a shallow bowl with a very pretty mosaic design , complete with a little bird decoration to show them what to do, bought from eBay, , the second is more of a terracotta plant saucer filled with pebbles meant for bees to drink from without drowning, , and the third is a four inch deep bowl that is either concrete or marble (hoping for marble, think it’s concrete) that I found abandoned in the street one day and somehow managed to get home as it is very heavy. They all get used indiscriminately by garden birds, the pigeons are the messiest, the blackbirds are the funniest and the sparrows treat them like communal jacuzzis. Other birds just nip down for a drink . The bees drink where they want so I spend a lot of time in the summer on lifeguard duty armed with lollipop sticks.

They do seem to rely on the baths so I do swish them out and fill them again on a daily basis .

Picked my ceramic plate for a £5 in a garden nursery, fill it with well water or rain water....they are not keen on my jack Russell tho' only use it when he is away in the house....

Meant to say we plonkedthe plate on three stacked big landscaping stones...

We had a "dripper" which clamped on the side of the birdbath and had an overhanging spout. It attached by a long thin hose to our outdoor tap. It had a flow adjuster and we turned the tap on just a bit. This kept the water cool and the birds liked to stand under it and drink the drops.

We put pretty rocks around the base and it made a lovely cool corner for wildlife.

Like this:
images.app.goo.gl/reCueJx9KYghC9B99

I have one of those large planter saucers and the birds love it. I always have fat pigeons bathing in it as well as little blackbirds. Its very popular

We have two a low one, which the neighbours cat like to drink from and one that is deep and raised on a pedestal, the birds seem to prefer the raised one.

I have a cheap resin one from eBay that stands on a pedestal. It seems popular with the birds, but I wasn't prepared for the level of filth they would bring. So gross, but I love watching them anyway.

We e got a big cheap resin one too. It's so well used and even the pigeons can fit in for a good frolic.