Vinegar in the feed? Harmful? (1 Viewer)

[TheWaterbug]

I have been using this MoreBirds feeder for a few years:

and it's been great! I was cleaning and disinfecting it with vinegar lately, and I was wondering if it would be helpful, useless, or harmful to put a touch of vinegar in the sugar mixture itself.

I ask because I'm also an amateur beekeeper, and when we mix 1:1 syrup for our bees, we typically add a touch of acid, either via vinegar, ascorbic acid (e.g. Vitamin C), or some other dilute acid, to nudge the pH down a bit. This greatly decreases the incidence of mold. 1:1 syrup without some acid can sometimes start molding in a few days, whereas a touch of acid can retard mold for weeks. The bees don't mind because natural nectar is often slightly acidic.

Would this be good, bad, or indifferent for hummingbirds? My gut tells me it would be fine, because natural nectar is slightly acidic, but I thought I'd check here, first.

Thanks!

 

[Imhereforthehummers]

I have been using this MoreBirds feeder for a few years:

and it's been great! I was cleaning and disinfecting it with vinegar lately, and I was wondering if it would be helpful, useless, or harmful to put a touch of vinegar in the sugar mixture itself.

I ask because I'm also an amateur beekeeper, and when we mix 1:1 syrup for our bees, we typically add a touch of acid, either via vinegar, ascorbic acid (e.g. Vitamin C), or some other dilute acid, to nudge the pH down a bit. This greatly decreases the incidence of mold. 1:1 syrup without some acid can sometimes start molding in a few days, whereas a touch of acid can retard mold for weeks. The bees don't mind because natural nectar is often slightly acidic.

Would this be good, bad, or indifferent for hummingbirds? My gut tells me it would be fine, because natural nectar is slightly acidic, but I thought I'd check here, first.

Thanks!

Looking online I found this:

• Vinegar – Another easy, as well as natural cleaning method for your hummingbird feeder. Again, you can use many of the same steps as above, substituting the soap and water solution for two parts water and one part distilled white vinegar. Allow to completely dry before refilling.

Hopefully that helps!