alernative to bamboo for the condos?

[fishintechnician]

Hello,

I am fairly new here but I love the site. I have about 75 buckets for the purpose of building condo like structures ,y only problem is I do not have access to any bamboo here in ohio. can anyone advise on a good alternative to boo? thanks

Fishintechnician
anson baldwin

[Bronson]

Cane (which is a smaller version of bamboo) would work well. You can use the bushy parts of the ends of tree limbs and put them where they will have an umbrella or mushroom effect. Crappie will definitely use them. The only problem is they don't last that long. Wooden stakes or scrap wood can be added but be careful since it will need more concrete to keep it down. PVC will last forever but it can be hard to find and takes a lot of initial work. Put it around wood or a drop where it is easier to find plus it will draw crappie to it that much sooner.

[TreednNC]

Split the buckets with a saw and duck tape around them a couple times each when you're ready to pour concrete, and use them for molds for weights and use hardwood. It's hard to beat hardwood!

[NIMROD]

Split the buckets with a saw and duck tape around them a couple times each when you're ready to pour concrete, and use them for molds for weights and use hardwood. It's hard to beat hardwood!

What he said! Use scrap stakes and board from local mills or use hardwood limbs. Some folks use scrap PVC pipe or scrap vinyl siding.

[rocket rich]

I just made some out of a truck bed liner, sawed it with a table saw . Haven't been able to sink them yet due to weather but they sure look good. the bed liner is ABS but we all need to be carefull that we aren't just build ing trash???

[Wildcatter]

If you are still wanting to use wood, try willow limbs. You can usually find them anywhere water is present.

[Ferdi]

Being a former Buckeye I know you have willow trees and cedar trees. The 10foot cedar bushes or the top 10 feet of a cedar tree would be perfect. Willow might be replenished every year or every other year. The cedar will last a lot longer. If you are placing them in lakes try to keep them away from the curent lines if possible. On a river you will have to replace them way too often so stick to lakes. From the Y bridge area, now in Texas. Ferdi aka Fred

Hello,

I am fairly new here but I love the site. I have about 75 buckets for the purpose of building condo like structures ,y only problem is I do not have access to any bamboo here in ohio. can anyone advise on a good alternative to boo? thanks

Fishintechnician
anson baldwin

[Creamlevel Kennels]

Just about anything can be used. If you trim your trees, you can use the limbs as a means of getting rid of them. As for the BEST, Baboo, Willow and Hard Woods are the best and last the longest. Cedar and Cane I have never had to much luck with, it usually needs to be rebuilt every 2years. The large trunks remain, but you will watch a 4'-6' cedar structure reduced to 1'-2' structure with in a year, or 2 at the outside. But with that being said, when I am cleaning my property and cut cedar, I take them to the lake and sunk them. Take them out in my boat, tie a Cyinder Block or 2 to it and roll them over the edge. I have a lot of Oak Trees on my place, and when I am trimming so I can drive my tractor under them, the Oak makes great structure. But Baboo is what I use the most due to having 2 large stands of it on our property. I have Hard Wood Structures and Baboo Structures that have been there for 5 years, and show little decrease in size.

But just take advantage of the things around you. I keep a watch on Graigs List in my areas for Cyinder Blocks, PVC, etc. Just went a couple days ago and got a pick-up truck load of scrap PVC a guy just wanted hauled off after do a home project. Everything was between 3' and 10' long. And 3/4" to 2" in diameter. Just prime for Structures. And the best thing it was free, just come and haul off. Keep you eyes and ears open, and thinking STRUCTURES. It is out there to be had, and FREE for those willing to do a little investigating, and put in a little effort.

Just My 2 Cents.



keith

[fishintechnician]

Thanks for the info, I knew almost any scrap would work just wanted to know what would last longer. My self and cousin have been building shallow piles for years on our local res that get drawn down 6' or more every winter but we have no deeper structure. On those shallow area we have to maintain them at a minimum every two years but usuaully every year just to add some "hair" to the larger structure. Dont want to be adding buckets every year.

When you talk about using a bucket for the form for the structures, just wait till its sets remove the duck tape and sink the structure and reuse the bucket? And i like the craigslist idea

[allan1986]

wild cherry, oak, and cypress limbs work well because they don't deteriorate very quickly. 1/2" pvc is pretty cheap if you cant find any scrap. Also you can weight limbs down with cinder blocks and concrete tie wire with a hole drilled through the stump end. Then you can use drink bottles tied to the top of the limb to keep them standing up straight. P.S. I have heard that PVC does not show up on a fishfinder, not sure if this is entirely true, because the fish still show up around it, but they definitely are more difficult to find. Another more cumbersome, but also more effective technique is to nail oak pallets together in a stack with 2x4's on the corners and about a foot of gap between pallets. these are a little harder to sink, but it can be done with some blocks on the bottom corners, however these and brush tend to hang hooks worse than the pvc, it's almost impossible to hang a hook on pvc pipe.