hi everyone, new to site with questions

[Dawgmanx2]

Hi, I'm dawgmanx2 (Barry). I've checked out this site many times and have found it to be the best I've seen for crappie info. I have a question concerning placement of crappie PVC structure. I have built over a hundred of these so far and started putting them out not knowing the best way. I'm using 3 gal nursery pales (getting for free) and placing paper from sack Crete to cover holes in bottom. Putting about 20lbs Crete(buying for $3.00 per 80lbs) in each and then putting 7 pieces of 2' PVC in each one. 6 around the perimeter and the last in the center. The center PVC has the coupling at top so i can slide a 10' piece into it marking where it is as I'm placing the others out. I am putting a 3" outdoor type screw in the last 2" of PVC after pre drilling small hole in each to anchor in Crete. I have used 3/4 and 1/2 inch PVC conduit, but now buying 1/2" form Lowe's for $1.07 in 10' lengths. I fish on Kentucky Lake between Eva and Cypress. The water depth in winter pool averages around 6' where I'm putting the structure out. I'm placing 10 pales per spot approx. 4' apart, 2 to a row and 5 rows making a rectangle. Total cost per bed approx. $20.00 (10 pales per bed).
First question; Is this a good way of making the structure?
Second question; Is this enough for each bed or to many?
Third question; Is the shape of a rectangle best design?
Fourth question; How far apart should the beds be from each other?
Last question; Should I bait the beds while putting them out, if so what and how and how often?

Sorry for all the details, but wanted to cover all bases. Don't want to go through all time and effort if better way to do it.

Thanks for any and all help!!!

Dawgmanx2

[shipahoy41]

Welcome from Alabama. I am "Bumping this back to the top so you will get more responses.

[Dawgmanx2]

Hi, and thanks for your help, Lord knows I need all I can get.

[Darryl Morris]

It all sounds good to me. The only thing I can say is keep after them and always tweek and adjust to improve your efforts to make habitat for your crappie. It's truly a never-ending process, a way of life. FISH ON.

[sac-a-lait]

someone move this to the crappie structure forum...

I find, the less I handle the structure the less TIME I have in it. At this point all I pay for is cement and labor. If I put one bag in each TOP, that's spprox $3.75. I bought about 10,000 feet of broken and damaged PVC. I place 9 "pieces" per TOP. I make/cut the pieces anywhere from 3 feet up to a max of 7 feet. THen I use a 18 qt dishpan that we reuse over and over and we make 10 whenever we pour. We usually place all 10 in a crappie highway. that's 10 TOPS equals 90 PVC pieces and 10 bags of cement.

[Dawgmanx2]

Thanks for your response sac-a-lot. I made the first 50 or so with 80lbs in 5 gal. buckets. Then found the 3 gal. pales from the nursery's and went to about 20 lbs. each. I hope that this is enough weight for the area's I'm putting them in, about 6' deep. I still don't understand when you are putting yours out how far apart they should be and what type of configuration you make with them. Is 4' between them enough, or to much? And is a rectangle the best or some other type? Thanks again for your help.

[SMITTY 58D]

Rick is that a 40 LB bag of cement and how many of those can you fit on the boat at a time? I've got 4 made so far and am looking to make 2 more today to inplace this weekend.

[sac-a-lait]

no, those are 80 pound sacks in the bases. I put 5 in my boat and my partner puts 5 in his.

Here's 6 on my boat. I think it's 6...

[KCBALLER]

good lookin stuff

[SMITTY 58D]

How do you get them overboard? You just toss them or do you use another metod. I have 7 made now and am thinking of making three more and implacing them this weekend.