7 Best Feeder Wind Deflectors For Consistent Throws Old Farmers Swear By
Don’t let wind waste your feed. Explore our list of the 7 best feeder wind deflectors, proven by farmers to deliver consistent and accurate throws.
There’s nothing more frustrating than watching a perfectly timed feed throw get caught by a gust of wind, scattering expensive corn across a field where nothing can get to it. You spend time and money setting up feeders to manage livestock or attract wildlife, only to have the weather undermine your entire effort. Consistent feeding isn’t just about convenience; it’s about efficiency, cost, and training your animals.
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Why Consistent Feed Throws Matter on the Farm
Wasted feed is wasted money. When wind blows your corn or pellets outside the target zone, it either rots on the ground or feeds pests you weren’t intending to support. Over a season, that loss adds up significantly, turning a cost-effective feeding program into a financial drain.
Consistency also trains animals. Whether it’s deer for hunting season or goats in a back pasture, they learn to associate the sound of the feeder with a reliable food source in a specific spot. An inconsistent, wind-blown pattern makes them search and wander, defeating the purpose of a centralized feeding station. You lose the ability to easily monitor their health or predict their location.
A concentrated feed pile ensures all animals get a fair chance, reducing competition and stress within the herd. When feed is scattered too widely, dominant animals often chase subordinates away from the sparse offerings. A tight, predictable drop zone allows multiple animals to eat at once, ensuring your supplemental nutrition program actually works for the entire group, not just the strongest few.
The Eliminator Spinner Plate for Precise Drops
The Eliminator isn’t just a shield; it’s a complete replacement for your standard spinner plate. Its genius lies in its spring-loaded design that stays completely sealed when the feeder is inactive. This simple mechanism solves two of the biggest feeder problems at once.
When your timer kicks on, the centrifugal force of the spinning motor flings the plate’s arms open, allowing feed to broadcast. The moment the motor stops, it snaps shut. This action prevents wind from blowing up the funnel and trickling feed out between cycles. More importantly, it creates a raccoon-proof seal. Those clever varmints can’t hang underneath and spin the plate to steal your corn.
The only real tradeoff is its mechanical nature. If you’re using feed with a lot of dust or debris, like some cheaper protein pellets, you might get a jam now and then. But for standard corn or clean pellets, its precision and defensive capabilities are unmatched. It’s a true set-it-and-forget-it solution for protecting your feed from both wind and thieves.
Moultrie Feed-Gate: Prevents Wind & Varmints
Think of the Moultrie Feed-Gate as another smart solution to the open-funnel problem, much like The Eliminator. Instead of a spinning plate that opens, it uses two spring-loaded gates that are pushed open by the force of the feed hitting them as the motor spins. When the cycle ends, the gates immediately close, sealing the opening.
This design is particularly effective at stopping wind from gusting up into the hopper. It also does an excellent job of blocking varmints that try to get a free meal by spinning the plate. The seal is tight, and the mechanism is simple and reliable, with fewer small parts to potentially get clogged by feed dust compared to some other designs.
The main consideration here is compatibility. While designed for Moultrie feeders, it can often be adapted to other brands, but you need to ensure the motor shaft and mounting holes line up. If you’re already running Moultrie equipment, this is a seamless, highly effective upgrade that offers a fantastic defense against both wind and pests.
Sweeney Directional Hood for Targeted Feeding
Sometimes, a 360-degree broadcast is the last thing you want. A directional hood, like the one from Sweeney, is a specialized tool designed to throw feed in a specific, concentrated arc—typically about 20 feet long and 40 feet wide. This isn’t about general broadcasting; this is about targeted application.
This is the perfect tool for feeding along a narrow path, a creek bed, or a fence line. You can aim the feed exactly where you want it, preventing waste in thick brush, a pond, or your neighbor’s property. By focusing the entire throw into one direction, the feed has more mass and velocity, making it far less susceptible to being pushed around by crosswinds.
Don’t mistake this for an all-purpose wind solution. It’s a tool for a specific job. If you need to feed in a circle, this isn’t for you. But if your feeding strategy relies on creating a "line" of feed to guide animal movement or accommodate a specific terrain feature, a directional unit is exponentially more effective than a standard broadcaster, especially on a windy day.
All Seasons V-Groove: A Simple, Tough Shield
The V-Groove is old-school simplicity at its best. It’s a stationary, v-shaped piece of heavy-gauge steel that bolts on to protect your spinner. There are no moving parts, no springs to break, and no electronics to fail. It’s a brute-force solution that just works.
Its primary job is to block wind from hitting the spinner plate from the side. This prevents that common issue where a steady crosswind turns your nice, circular feed pattern into a long, thin oval stretched out 50 yards from the feeder. The V-Groove forces the feed down before the wind can carry it away, resulting in a much tighter, more consistent drop zone.
This isn’t a complete seal, of course. It won’t stop raccoons from spinning the plate, and a strong updraft can still cause some feed to scatter. But for its intended purpose—deflecting wind—it’s incredibly effective and durable. If you want a bombproof, no-maintenance way to improve your throw consistency in moderately windy locations, this is a fantastic choice.
Boss Buck Shark Teeth: Cuts Through High Wind
The Boss Buck Shark Teeth spinner plate takes a different approach. Instead of blocking the wind, it’s designed to power right through it. This isn’t a shield or a cover; it’s a high-performance spinner plate engineered for velocity and a flat trajectory.
The plate features serrated edges and angled fins—the "shark teeth"—that grab the corn and throw it with exceptional force. This aggressive design sends the feed out low and fast, minimizing the time it hangs in the air where wind can affect it. It’s the difference between tossing a piece of paper in the wind versus throwing a rock.
This is a specialized piece of equipment for chronically windy properties. It does nothing to stop varmints or prevent feed leakage. But if your number one problem is a powerful, persistent wind that makes other solutions ineffective, the Shark Teeth plate can deliver a tight pattern when others fail. It’s a pure performance upgrade focused on one thing: defeating the wind.
Iron Trough Baffle: Heavy-Duty Steel Design
Sometimes, the wind is the least of your worries. If your feeders are in a pasture with cattle, horses, or hogs, your biggest threat is the animals themselves. The Iron Trough Baffle is less of a delicate wind deflector and more of a suit of armor for your entire feeder motor assembly.
Made of heavy-duty steel, these baffles or cages are built to withstand being rubbed, pushed, and abused by large livestock. Their robust, conical design naturally doubles as a decent wind shield, keeping direct gusts off the spinner. The primary function, however, is protecting your expensive motor and spinner from being destroyed.
This is a heavy, and often more expensive, option. Installation can be a two-person job. But if you have livestock, it’s not really a choice. A standard plastic feeder kit won’t last a week against a curious cow. Consider the wind protection a welcome bonus to the essential job of protecting your investment.
Scatter-Shield Universal: Easy-Install Option
If you’re looking for a quick, affordable, and surprisingly effective fix, the universal Scatter-Shield is the answer. This is typically a simple, flat metal disc that mounts directly to the motor shaft, sitting just above your spinner plate. It takes about five minutes to install with basic tools.
The shield acts like a little roof over the spinner. It deflects wind that blows downward or sideways, preventing it from getting into the funnel and causing feed to trickle out. By keeping the spinner area calm, it allows for a cleaner, more predictable throw, even in a light-to-moderate breeze.
This is not a high-security device. It won’t stop a determined raccoon, and it won’t do much in a gale-force wind. But for the price and ease of installation, it provides a remarkable improvement over an unprotected spinner. It’s the perfect "good enough" solution for someone who wants to reduce wind-related feed waste without replacing their entire spinner assembly.
Ultimately, choosing the right wind deflector comes down to identifying your primary problem. Whether you’re fighting constant wind, clever raccoons, or destructive livestock, there’s a tool designed for the job. Investing in the right one doesn’t just save feed; it makes your entire management strategy more reliable and effective.
