Squirrel-Buster Plus Bird Feeder: Does It Work?

Via Amazon.com

Confession time—I’m an animal lover but I don’t like squirrels. They seem more frightening to me than fluffy. I have several bird feeders and my backyard is partially wooded, which means we attract a lot of squirrels. I’ve tried using squirrel baffles (they actually chewed through the metal!) and pruning the trees but these critters always find a way. After working from home for months, and seeing the squirrels devour the birdseed for the millionth time, I knew I needed a squirrel-proof feeder. So I ordered the Brome Squirrel Buster Plus bird feeder. My mom, also fed up with the hungry squirrels in her yard, ordered the same one. The feeder is designed so that the bottom section, or shroud, will close under the weight of a squirrel, blocking access to the seed.

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Brome Squirrel Buster Bird Feeder Review

I’ll be honest, the price was somewhat daunting. I’ve never spent that much on a bird feeder before. But I read dozens of user reviews that convinced me the feeder would be durable and offer the best solution to my squirrel problem. When it arrived, my first impression was, “Wow, this is huge!” It’s easily twice the diameter of my old tube feeder.

I followed the instructions to set it up, which took me a few minutes, but it’s not overly complicated. The trickiest part was attaching the cardinal ring, so larger songbirds can perch. Next I filled it with black-oil sunflower seed. This feeder holds A LOT of bird seed. The description says more than 5 pounds, and I believe it. Then I hung it up outside and waited. And waited.

From previous experience, I know it can take birds a few days to find and try a new feeder. For instance, goldfinches were slow to warm up to my finch feeder. Even so, I couldn’t help feeling like something was wrong. Maybe I should try a different type of seed?

I called my mom and she said lots of birds were using her Squirrel Buster Plus bird feeder. On Mother’s Day, I saw house finches and pine siskins eating from it. I hadn’t seen a single bird use mine in over two weeks. My husband claimed he saw a bird on ours once, but I was skeptical.

Check out the best cardinal bird feeders and window bird feeders.

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Troubleshooting the Squirrel Buster Plus

I started watching more closely and saw cardinals and other birds fly toward the new feeder and then fly away, without landing. Clearly, there was an issue. So I took the Squirrel Buster down and filled my old tube feeder with the same sunflower seed. Within the hour, I saw cardinals, red-winged blackbirds and rose-breasted grosbeaks eating. Unfortunately, the squirrels also came back. At this point I was seriously considering returning the Squirrel Buster bird feeder.

I reached out to Brome’s customer service team and they responded quickly, offering to troubleshoot with me over the phone. Before doing that, I re-read the instructions, which say you should initially use the factory setting for the closing mechanism. Clearly that wasn’t working for my birds. So I rotated the interior cartridge, which increases the amount of weight required to block access to the seed. I moved it to the lowest, or least sensitive level, refilled the feeder and put it back outside.

Game changer! I’m happy to report success and now give it a full endorsement. My feathered friends love their Squirrel Buster Plus bird feeder, and I haven’t seen a single squirrel go near it. My mom also says ,”I haven’t seen any squirrels, but we do have a large variety of birds.” I also like that the feeder is easy to disassemble for cleaning. Now I just need to find a way to keep grackles off of my peanut feeder.

Where to Buy the Squirrel Buster Plus

This feeder is available from Amazon.com, Walmart.com and Lowes.com.

Next, check out the best-selling bird feeders of 2021.