Problem: Article: You can use any small, pointed object, such as a toothpick or a pin. Make the hole wide enough that liquid inside the egg can flow out but not big enough that the egg cracks. Be sure to do this over a bowl or cup to avoid making a mess! Wiggle your toothpick or pin gently from side to side. Make sure your toothpick or pin is long enough that it reaches at least halfway inside the egg. You may need to repeat this step if you have trouble getting all of the egg out of its shell. If you get any of the liquid on your hands, do not touch your clothing or near your mouth. Raw egg can carry bacteria called Salmonella that can make you very sick. It is generally best to blow on the more pointed end of the egg. Try to get as much of the egg's contents out as you can. Be careful not to let your lips actually touch the shell! Under no circumstances should you attempt to suck the egg out. Remember that raw egg can make you sick! If you are gentle enough, you can hold the eggshell under a faucet and allow water to flow through the shell. However, an easier alternative is to hold the eggshell in a bowl of warm, soapy water. Be sure to wash your hands and disinfect anything the raw egg may have touched! The next step will be easier if you tape the bottom. Any type of tape you happen to have should be fine. Don't use too much tape or your smoke bomb won't explode properly! You may need to widen the hole for the funnel to fit. If so, use the same tool you used to make the hole to gently chip a little more shell away. Be very careful not to crack the egg! You have a few relatively safe choices for your filling. The easiest is plain white flour or talcum ("baby") powder. You can also make more colorful smoke bombs using dyed flour or crushed sidewalk chalk. If you have trouble with this step, ask someone to hold the egg upright for you while you hold the funnel and pour. The harder you throw, the bigger your smoke cloud will be. If you don't want to use your smoke bomb right away, it can be stored for later use. The carton your eggs came in can be a convenient container!
Summary: Poke a small hole on either end of an egg. Stick your toothpick or pin deep inside the egg through one of the holes to pierce the yolk. Blow into one hole to gently force the liquid out of the egg. Rinse out the now empty eggshell and let it sit to air dry. Tape one end of the eggshell shut. Roll a sheet of paper into a funnel and stick it into the eggshell's remaining hole. Pour the filling into the egg with the funnel and tape the remaining hole shut. Throw your egg bomb onto a hard surface!

Problem: Article: As you likely stock your feeder with nectar, make sure to remove that before cleaning the feeder. You should simply pour the nectar down the drain. Once birds have fed in the liquid it will contain mold and other contaminants so do not save unused sugar liquid from inside of the feeders. You can make more nectar later with simple sugar and water or restock the feeder with store-bought nectar. If your buy nectar from a store choose the colorless kind, not the kind that is dyed red. Birds are attracted to the red feeder parts and do not need to ingest unnecessary petroleum dyes. The birds prefer cane sugar over beet sugar and you should never use anything except cane or beet sugar. You may need the manufacturer's guidelines to disassemble your feeder. However, disassembling a feeder is often self-explanatory. You can usually see the knobs and screws that must be undone to take the feeder part. If you are at all unsure, however, you should consult the guidelines to make sure you do not damage your feeder. If you lost the guidelines, you can type the name of your feeder into a search engine. You may be able to find a copy of the guidelines online. Some feeders, though, recommend using soap. Soap is not effective at removing black mold and soap is hard to remove without leaving residue that will harm the birds' stomachs. Usually, bleach is not necessary unless there is black mold in the feeder. For the most part, weaker cleaners like peroxide and vinegar work best as they're less likely to leave behind harmful residue. Unless you see mold, opt for white vinegar or 3% hydrogen peroxide as your cleaner. Vinegar should be diluted with water. Use two parts water to one part vinegar. You can also use simple dish soap. However, you should boil your feeder in a large pot of water to remove all soap residue because even a small amount of soap damages the stomach lining of the birds by attacking the stomach cells. If your feeder can't be boiled without deformation then don't use soap or use very little and soak the feeder in a large pot of water, stirring occasionally. Then rinse it very thoroughly. Fill up your sink with your chosen cleaner. Allow your feeder to soak for several hours. This will remove any toxins and make it easier to scrub off any grime. You will need a thin bottle brush to get into the various nooks and crannies of the feeder. Scrub the interior of your feeder with the bottle brush. You want to remove any nectar or sugar residue, as this can spoil and contaminate new nectar. Boiling the feeder, if it can be boiled without deforming, is a way of removing sugar residue without scrubbing. If you prefer not to scrub and have some mold, you can soak the feeder in an active chemical bath like vinegar or hydrogen peroxide. If soaked long enough, all biofilms (mold and such) should be destroyed. Remember that scrubbing does not always remove microscopic material. After being soaked, residue should come off easily. You should not have to scrub with too much force. Rinse the feeder under hot, running tap water. Rinse each part of the feeder until the water runs clear. It's very important to rinse the feeder completely in order to keep harmful residue from getting into hummingbird nectar. Set the feeder in a dry, safe place in your home. Allow it to air dry completely before reassembling it and putting it back in place. How long this will take depends on the humidity of your region. It can take anywhere from a few hours to overnight.
Summary:
Pour out all the nectar. Disassemble the feeder. Select a cleaner. Soak your feeder. Scrub down the interior of your feeder. Rinse the feeder completely. Allow it to dry completely.