Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Creating the food chain Fiberglass boat for fish structure??

OK so the small pond has virtually NO structure whatsoever - and after 6 years of observation it's painfully obvious that the ecosystem is very top heavy. Very few small fish.

So I'm going to add some structure - I happen to have an old 15 foot fiberglass boat - I'm considering sinking it. Yes I'm planning to remove all metal/fuel/oil/vinyl/wood/etc. Based on what I have been able to glean, fiberglass is going to have a very low to nil breakdown ratio in water...

Seems like a good idea on the surface...any thoughts? Anyone tried this? Biggest issue I envision is getting enough weight in it to sink appropriately...that's no problem, I'll use broken up concrete sections. She'll go straight to the bottom.

The boat is garbage anyway, if it'll work it's a better use than filling up a landfill, and I'm sure not going to burn it.

Put it in upside down if you can.

Simple,

Blow some holes in it. A drill, saw, shotgun, anything. Blow some side holes in also.

Should make an interesting and functional piece.

The idea should work, I doubt it'll help improve the over abundant top end predator issue and the subsequent lack of forage. I'd start removing some of your predators to make more room for those that are left.

I scuba dive in a quarry that has several boats, cars, and even a helicoptor in it. There used for dive, and recovery training. There is always some kind of fish hanging around them, so it would work for structure.

I wish I had thought of that, using old boats for structure. I had two old fiberglass boats on the pond and did burn them to get rid of them.

Spinnerbate, not far from me is a limestone quarry so clear you can see forever in it. I had a friend that dived in it with air tanks. So I was wondering what makes them so clear, the limestone?

If you need cover for forage species you can do better than sinking one boat.

First I would get some old cinder blocks and place them in about 12" to 18" of water. You can put one about every 25 sqft. These will be used by fathead minnows for spawning.

Then I would add some corkscrew eelgrass in about 24" to 36" of water. This will make great spawning area for forage like golden shiners and lake chubsuckers and will provide cover for small bluegills as well.

I also recommend stacking up wooden pallets and bolting them together to make a "tower". Then you can spray the whole thing with plastic truck bed liner, attach a five gallon bucket full of cement to the bottom of it, and sink it in about 48" to 60" of water. This is GREAT cover for bluegills.

You should also add a lot of large flat stones to your shallow areas to provide cover for crayfish, and consider adding rockpiles of baseball to bowling ball sized rocks all around the pond at all depths to provide more cover for forage.

Pondweed and Mississippi Grass Shrimp could also help your food chain.

Creating cover and spawning areas are the best way to improve the survival of your forage.

Here's what we have for shallow cover. A mixture of many kinds seems to keep em' all happy.

Spinnerbate, not far from me is a limestone quarry so clear you can see forever in it. I had a friend that dived in it with air tanks. So I was wondering what makes them so clear, the limestone?[/quote]

Not sure what makes them so clear, they're granite around here with some brown algae on most everthing under water. No plant growth hardly at all. Visibility is usually around 20 ft. When you get to the themocline around 30 ft, there is maybe 4-5 ft. of visibility, unbearable cold for a regular wetsuit, and no fish. If you ever want to get a renewed appreciation for fish, go diving.

you say the concrete sections are pletifull. Talk to people who fish their ponds after customizing them and the piles of concrete are the best!!