I put a lot of PVC out over the last 3 years and so far I am dissapointed . The wood seems to out produce by a big margine. Anyone else have the same results? This is what I have been using with 4 pieces to a pile.
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I put a lot of PVC out over the last 3 years and so far I am dissapointed . The wood seems to out produce by a big margine. Anyone else have the same results? This is what I have been using with 4 pieces to a pile.
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I would think those would work out good. Are your concrete blocks breaking apart when they hit bottom?
thehines,
The structures are staying together fine. They fish great and look big on the graph but for some reason they will not hold fish. I thought over a couple of years the algae would build up and they would mature but it has not happened. I usually put out wood and they will hold fish in the same bay. I have several test plots close together with similar size beds and wood wins everytime. Take care.
Maybe it is the white PVC. Ever try the black stuff to see if it makes a difference? I would still expect wood to outperform anything artificial simply because it is not foreign to the fish and will start supporting food items a lot faster.
I always try to sand down the pvc before I put it in. Just rough it up a little. I think it gives the algae something to stick too.
How do you get the pvc to stay in those blocks so well? I tried to make some like that and they just broke into 10 pieces?
Don't see anything wrong with your build. So the only variable would be WHERE to place them(to me).
I use old pvc if I have it, but would prefer sinking a 6-foot cedar with a single concrete block. Drill at the base, a hole large enough to slip a cable through the trunk and through one end of the block. Tie it off and you're done. You can find cable at the local cable tv outlet. Yep, the leftovers are in the dumpster in the back...or you can just ask them to hold some for you if you have an issue with raiding the dumpster.
Either way, it's cheap and it is VERY effective. The only down side to using cedar is that it makes a mess of your boat! But that's why God made vaccuum cleaners.
aj
Sac-a-lait started a thread which is not far below this one on the structure sites called "another little old build". He says he thinks his pvc works as good as wood. You might want to look at the thread.
My PVC works better then wood!
A lot has to do with where you place the PVC structure....ours is in 10-20 feet of water just off the dock in a cove. They look almost identical to the ones you have built. In the spring time we slay the crappie! Its unreal, but thats bc of the placement, the crappie are moving into the shallows and our structure is sitting right there.
In the fall its the same thing, the crappie move in to feed on the shad that are in the shallower water, our structure, once again, is in perfect position to hold the oncoming fish.
in the winter its a little different story, sometimes they are there, and sometimes they are not.
where you place your structure can be vital to how it fishes.
I've put bamboo tops out for years with great results. I put out 30 pvc tops in similar areas (10'to 15' of water) two years ago and wasn't impressed with the results.
There are allot of reasons to use pvc over wood but the bottom line is they have to produce crappie.
I have some pvc condos that have been out for 5 years and have never caught a fish off of them. The spots are good. Myrtle bushes dropped next to them will produce in a week. I'm through with PVC. I fill cinder blocks with concrete and carry wire out with me and a chainsaw. I can fix up 10 to 15 brushpiles in a few hours and then fish them for 3 or 4 years and replenish the good ones, find new spots for the others. CF
I tried PVC here and was disappointed. I love pallet stakebeds and Persimmon trees work good. Mixed results using boo.:confused:
http://www.crappie.com/crappie/crapp...-underway.html
I have pvc out but it dont hold fish! I put cane out in the same area, full of fish with in a week! I also have wood out and I have better luck with the wood, holds fish almost year around. The cane want. Put two piles out today. ( wood ), can't wait to fish them.
I agree I like cane too. It brings in fish fast, but I have noticed it isn't around too long
If I had to choose between PVC and a brushpile the pile would win about every time. Usually you stand more of a chance to catch numbers of fish in a brushpile. BUT, in my experience with stakebeds, I really can't tell a difference in the PVC or wood. Sometimes their in both, sometimes their in one or the other, sometimes their in neither. There are few absolutes in fishin'! Thanks.
Mark
Porcupine structure
I am not saying this is perfect but I do think it is better at mimicking the natural thing. Personally, if I had a lake to place such structure in I would use green or black PVC and there would be multiple sections that went back and forth and in and out and every which way. Enough cover to not only attract crappie but to get the bait fish and other food supplies to inhabit the structure at the same time. Could even take some sort of shallow blade and cut groves all up and down the PVC to give places for moss, algae and other plant material to get a hold in. Cut big holes in the PVC pipe for bait fish to hide in and crayfish.
Is everything I see straight up and down to limit lost jigs and lures?
I know, I know nothing about attracting crappie to structure but I do know a little about attracting plants and critters to it. Just me 2 cents I guess but I think there is room for a lot of improvements that will improve even the commercial one's production a lot.
Wood outproduces pvc 10-1 for me.......gonna stick with wood in the future.
I make plywood forms so I can make the bases wider. The forms are angled 15 degrees so I can get them out. I use 2 80# bags for 3 16" x 16" forms. They have to cure 7 days or they will break apart.
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i dropped some where i have caught lots of fish and then about six months latter went back dropped my camera down and they had algea hanging all over them but no fish that was a year and a half ago still no fish i am all about wood even just a oak limb pretty good in size a cinder block and peice of wire and fish will be on it in no time. just my 2cents
Placement is the key factor here in My opinion I normally put mine where bait fish stay? then I keep the location's baited for bait fish. they produce better this you have to remember about 10-15 % of the water holds 90% of the fish!
we use these along with homeade pvc structures. These produce GREAT!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by fish_4_all
and it does not matter what color PVC we use, after awhile they have so much algae on them that they are brownish/green anyways.
here is one day fishing solely over these and our home made pvc strucure earlier this winter
all fish are 10" or bigger except for one
http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e1...pictures-2.jpg
Brushpiles work 10:1 better for me as well. Hardwood treetops are hard to beat.
I keep 10 stick pvc "trees" bundled up ,layed over on their side for a week or so in shallow water and they will be covered with alge. then take them to area of best intrest . cane or boo trees seem to go away the first time the floods come but pvc still there maybe not standing, but there, with fish
PVC must work for some because too many people post good results. As for me, I have gone over to strictly brush. I've had poor results with pvc, plus I can't hardly find it with my fish finder.
Brush piles all the way!
I've had it both ways, PVC is good but not great . xmas trees don't last long. Pallets are really the best if not too sticks.
I wonder if those static dusters you can get at Dollar tree would work? Just a thought.
I was wondering if willow would be a good choice for wood and a longer lasting material short of using cedar. I know the stuff we have around here does not rot very fast compared to most other woods and the tannins might be a huge draw for fish and food for the fish.
We put out alot of pvc structures that were over 8 feet tall. Some of them were the corregated stuff that you would think woud hold more algea. We have caught fish off of them but not nearly as many as the wood brushpiles we put out. I think willow is a real good choice and persimmon too. I think the more limbs the better. I'm sure any structure will work in some spots. I tend to think the most important thing is location, location, location.
I've had good luck w PVC>
wood all the way for the best and fasted results
I've put out, boo, pvc and wood. Boo did ok till someone moved them. Wood still produces after three years. PVC been down three years and have caught one bass off them. I guess it has to have something to do with the water, whether it has a current, or stands still most of the time. I put my PVC in a big cove on the lake fairly close to the main channel. Maybe it just hasn't grown the algae that a more calmer water would grow. Just a thought.
There is a husband and wife guiding team in Texas that the Texas Sportsman magazine has mentioned in at least a couple of articles. I talked to the husband and they use willows that they sink weighted on the bottom and with a plastic bottle tied to the top. They prefer willows with leaves still on them. They have had really good success with this.