Novice needs help. How can I keep a large bird bath clean and safe?

[BobFlowerdewAndChristineWalkdensLoveChild]

(Sorry for the username, wanted to make a new one to keep all Gardening threads under )

I've got quite a big back garden and the birdbath was looking pathetically tiny, so I found an alternative - pictured. It's a cast iron pig feeder, set on top of a millstone. It's huge, bigger than it looks in the picture. The outer ring is about eight foot across, so you can imagine the pig feeder is quite large, and it's also quite deep (hence the stones for small birds, insects). It is also, therefore, immensely heavy (took three of us to lift it in to place). I set it up a couple of months ago and it stayed lovely and clean initially, and I was topping up and cleaning out debris on a daily basis. But now that the weather has got hotter and sunnier (and thanks to visiting seagulls etc dropping nesting materials in it) it's getting a bit murky and algae filled. It is way too heavy to tip the water out of alone, in order to refill with clean water. I have set up a syphon system, which works quite well, but I think over the summer I will have to do that on a very regular basis to keep it pristine (in view of current guidelines regarding disease spreading). That would also use a hell of a lot of water, and in an area that gets a hosepipe ban every year.

It's been hugely popular though, bird visits have definitely increased, so I really want a solution.

So, is there anything I can put in the water, that will be 100% safe for visiting birds and insects, that will help to keep it clean? I don't mean a chemical solution, but maybe a natural solution? I am happy to top up and remove debris on a daily basis - and to fully empty and clean it on, say, a monthly basis. I'm also happy to maybe have it become almost a small pond - so maybe planting something in it might be the answer? I do still want it to be primarily for the birds so any advice/ideas on how to keep it clean and safe for them would be greatly appreciated.

Wow, that's magnificent.

You can get copper discs that you place on the bottom to inhibit algae growth.

Also a solar fountain to keep the water moving.

And anyway of adding shade? Even if just a patio umbrella.

I don’t think birds and insects are as concerned about algae and debris as you are. In fact that’s what probably entices them to use your bird bath.
No-one cleans the puddles, brooks and ponds that Mother Nature provides them with.

Perhaps you could put some pond weed in it.

I love your username @BobFlowerdewAndChristineWalkdensLoveChild 😍

I'm wondering if turning it into more of a pond would work, by adding the appropriate plants to keep it cleaner. I couldn't advise which plants though, maybe Canadian (?) pondweed.

Ah, crossposted with @FettchYeSandbagges - great minds 🙂

The only potential issue with turning it into a pond is that it is made of metal, so the water could become rather too warm and airless on very hot, sunny days.

@BobFlowerdewAndChristineWalkdensLoveChild how deep is the water?

Ooh - just had an idea. You can get little floating solar-powered fountains to aerate the water in small ponds. That would be fun. If it is tethered at one edge the birds could still drink and bathe.

Oh blimey, thanks, some good suggestions. Copper discs, pond weed and solar fountain are all brilliant ideas, thank you.
And yes, Knickerless, I am sure that is true, but I'm trying to be ultra careful because of the issues with trichomonosis. I don't want to try and make a bird friendly garden and accidentally make it lethal through lack of knowledge.
Can't shade it really, whole back garden is in extreme south facing, ultra hot spot.

Barley straw can be used to help reduce algae growth. I've used it in a pond by putting it in a mesh bag and weighing it down.

My DH is out, but he has a frog pond and has pond plants but also some kind of natural thing that goes in the water... I don't know how to describe it, but it's like a think wadge of hay in a hessian bag or something, shaped a bit like a rolling pin (I now wish I hadn't started this post, but I'm going to see it through!). It just floats around and does something useful for pond frog health. Might be suitable for a bird bath?

But also, it might be hard to do, but it might be worth getting a hole drilled to that you can just drain it as needed!

But bird disease mean you may have to drain it ? Monthly. Put just a couple of larger perching stones, so quicker to remove, then scoop out water and soak up with a towel just for that purpose.

i say this because there was a recent article on bbc news about stopping using bird feeders in summer and thoroughly cleaning feeders too reduce diseases.

Thanks for sticking with it dudsville 🤣!

Yes, keeping it clean because of the trichomonosis is a consideration too.

The problem with non-running water is that birds poo in it and then it doesn’t get washed away, hence passing on disease. Thats why most bird baths are small enough to regularly tip out and scrub.

Your specimen is magnificent. I wonder if you’d consider turning it into a sort of feature, with water bubbling up through the middle and running out over the sides? While the idea of a solar fountain is a good one to keep it aerated, it won’t cleanse the water of the germs which cause illness.