Another hummingbird problem, really "ME" problem

depglass · ‎03-10-2010

This has been quite the year for hummingbird problems. We are now up to about four hummers at one time, not the usual 15 or 16 we would see at this late time in the season. Yesterday I forgot a batch of syrup on the stove and was reminded with a terrible smell and a house full of smoke. Now I have a ruined pan full of puffy stiff black syrup stuck to the pan. Is there any way to save it? It is a non-stick Circulon heavy aluminum pan.

fthunt · ‎12-24-2010

On subject but a different slant..........I tried cooking the mixture on the stove and hummers stopped visiting.

Went back to making sugar water like jell-o.....no more boiling

Got me to thinking........ by cooking it - it's like making boiled frosting (for cake - sticky)

The pan? Soaking it perhaps?

Icegoddess · ‎03-19-2010

You might try Dawn Powewash on it. You let it sit to work. Of course, that is made more for grease I think, but I use it on my Ninja grates which get marinades stuck on them. I do have to scrub with their silicone style brush so as not to scratch the non-stick coating, but it all comes off.

i have let my hummingbird water boil dry a couple of times, but that's not as messy as doing it with the sugar in it.

I don't boil my sugar water. I bring the water up to a boil, pour the sugar in, stir, and turn the heat off and let it sit. I know some say to let it boil for a minute, but I don't do that. It always seems cloudy after that.

jackthebear · ‎03-11-2010

@depglass wrote:
This has been quite the year for hummingbird problems. We are now up to about four hummers at one time, not the usual 15 or 16 we would see at this late time in the season. Yesterday I forgot a batch of syrup on the stove and was reminded with a terrible smell and a house full of smoke. Now I have a ruined pan full of puffy stiff black syrup stuck to the pan. Is there any way to save it? It is a non-stick Circulon heavy aluminum pan.

cream of tartar and warm it onthe stove

BoopOMatic · ‎06-08-2021

We don't cook anything. 4 parts water to 1 part sugar. They love it.

depglass · ‎03-10-2010

Cream of tarter added to shopping list, thanks.

On It · ‎03-15-2021

Back when we fed hummingbirds we heated the water and sugar on the stove stirring constantly. As it approaches the boiling point the sugar "vanishes" into the water and the liquid is clear. Remove immediately from the heat source. The idea is to cause a physical change to the sugar. It becomes a part of the liquid. It is not just a solid suspended in the water.

That is also how we make sweet tea. Just stirring sugar into a glass of tea makes it sweetened, not sweet. The sugar and water will separate. I would think the same would happen with hummingbird feeder liquids that are not heated.

I have no idea how to clean the syrup from the pan. Good luck getting it back to original condition.

cookie16 · ‎02-21-2012

Evidently, my hummers love my "cooking." I have more this year than in the past and they are very active. I have always made their happy juice the same way and they love it. This year I am filling the feeder every other day. I put 4 cups of cold tap water in a measuring cup and microwave it until it boils. I then add 1 cup of sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves completely and cool it then pour it into a lock n lock that has a pour spout. I refrigerate it and also keep what is left over in the fridge. They are little happy campers. Don't use the red liquid that is sold.

LuvSoCal · ‎07-18-2010

@BoopOMatic wrote:
We don't cook anything. 4 parts water to 1 part sugar. They love it.

@BoopOMatic My SO is in charge of feeding the hummers and uses the same water/sugar ratio. He just mixes it up in a big glass measuring cup and puts it in the micro for

a few minutes. After it cools he fills up the two feeders and they immediately swarm around them. They entertain us from morning until evening.