Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Feeding 80 dollar feeder

Has anyone tried this?

http://www.nativeoutdoors.com/nativefeeder.html

It's advertised in Pond Boss and I'm interested in a simple feeder to supply a couple of lined ponds. My wife has shut me down on new Stren Feeders. I've hit my limit.

Bruce,

I have three of them....with mixed results. On the plus side:
1) low cost...more units to distribute feed
2) very mobile...move it where you want it
3) throws out a good pattern of feed...see minus side
4) great service from the folks that sell them

On the minus side:
1) they do clog up occasionally; any is too often for me...lots of rain usually is accompanied by clogs
2) they are somewhat difficult to fill...small opening makes it difficult to dump a sack of feed in it.
3) they use a rubber impeller that the raccoons can easily destroy when trying to get their paws into the feed

Bottom line Bruce...at $80 they are a good unit but recognize that there will be problems. They are not a Stren, but its a good economical way to get wide distribution of feed.

Bruce, I have two and as luck would have it my wife is going to school at Bryan school or nursing (nurse anesthetist). If you want we could arrange so I could let you borrow one for a while. I live south and east of York and would be more than happy to let you see them or borrow them. Not as good as Stren, but they do they job.

Bruce, after thinking about it, I would bring it up if I could see your SBH setup.

But Bruce you're loaded as a dentist aren't you!

Just had to rib you!

NEDOC, You can come see my setup anytime. You can even bring a fly rod if you want. The fish should be on the beds in about 9 weeks. I'd love to check out one of the feeders. I'm almost sure I'll get a couple.

Cecil, I'm a hybrid myself. I'm a cross between a rich dentist and a broke fish grower.

Meadowlark, I'll buy a couple based on your recommendation. Thanks a ton for your input.
Did you see the picture of my daughter on the cover of the new Pond Boss Magazine?

What kind of beer do I need to bring?

Bruce, no haven't seen the picture yet..how is it you guys can see that?

Rumor has it that there might be an article on Tilapia also...in addtion to yours....can't wait to see it.

I'd supply the beer to have the privilege of a visitor!

So, Meadowlark...You can't see the new cover when you click on Pond Boss home page?

Bruce,

Broke fish broker eh? I guess that's what happens when you put good money into holes in the ground.

How long does the battery last in this feeder? Has anyone tried this set up with a rechargeable battery and a solar panel?

kevin b,

Mine last for one month before needing recharging. I haven't figured out an easy way to hook up a solar charger without compromising the water protection...if you have a way I'd be interested in hearing it.

The feeder unit will not tolerate water...I have found out the hard way.

Mine lasted 2 mos. before I charged it (didn't even need to at the time, but it wasn't throwing the feed as far). It depends how long you set it to run. I just use it to 'train' my fish and end up feeding quite a bit by hand.

Just got done experimenting with NEDOC's Native Outdoor feeders. I really liked them for the price. Now it's time to buy three of them. I'm glad to be able to support a Pond Boss sponsor. I'll let y'all know how they work out for me. And of course I won't hesitate to ask for help if and when I run into a problem.

Thanks a lot, NEDOC!!

I just bought this feeder. I have a 12vdc 4 amp hour gel cell battery, instead of the 2 6 volt lantern batteries. The 2 green wires are tied together, so just connect up the red and black wire for using a 12v battery. This battery will fit nicely in place of 1 lantern battery and last a lot longer. I will monitor the voltage occasionally, and if necessary, put a solar panel up, for trickle charging, or just buy a second battery, and swap them out when you fill the feeder.
I will posst my results.

burgermeister,
How has the 12vdc 4 amp hour gel cell battery workout?

Bruce, can you give us an update on the feeders? Just curious to see how yours are working now.

nevermind, I saw your other post now.

An update on the Native Outdoor feeders:

1. All three feeders are operational

2. They handle smaller pellets better than larger.

3. The batteries hold a charge for months

4. It's a hassle to not be able to vary the feeding schedule

5. It's hard to tell how much feed is left in the feeder.

6. The three feeders don't all go off at the same time, which, in theory, they should. There's as much as forty minutes variation between the units

My general satisfaction level is pretty good for the price.

Bruce, I ordered the digital timer upgrade for $40 from Native Outdoors. It is much better and is easy to install, electrically. It is about 3" square and 1/2" thick. I velcroed it to the inside of the plate you take off. I also got a sunvisor type solar panel and glued it to the side of the feeder to keep the gel cell charged. The timer has 4 feeder settings with varying times and motor speeds. I ended up using high speed on all. I use gamefish chow and mixed some 3/32" 46% Rangen fingerling with it. The fish love the mixture. 1/2 acre pond. 7 seconds at 630 AM, 3 seconds at 11AM, and 7 seconds at 730PM. I plan on putting a toggle switch on motor leads so I can cut off the feeder, but the timer still runs normally. For very hot or cold snaps.

Bruce,

Has the small opening to add feed frustrated you? ....or maybe it's just my clumsy nature.

After a couple of seasons of spilling expensive feed on the ground when trying to refill/load, I bought a unit this spring with the very same timer/impeller system mounted on a 6 gallon bucket for about half the price. Works the same, but is easier for me to fill each time. It's hanging over the TGG pond now.

burger,

Thanks a lot for the information. I did not know that the upgrade existed. I'll try that for sure.

Meadow,

The small opening can be very frustrating. I ended up fashioning a funnel for use with the feeders. Where did you get the new unit?

Bruce,

Here is the link....scroll down until you see the feeder....looks like it has gone up a couple of bucks to $45, but the same feeding system only with a 30 pound bucket. Much easier to load for me.

http://www.wingsupply.com/shop/Scripts/prodList.asp?d=860&p=350

Burger,
You mentioned something that sparked my interest. A toggle swith that turns feeder off yet keeps timer going as scheduled. Have not heard of this but does sound like it might have some validity for our feeders. How important do you think it is? Any feedback from all Bossers would be greatly appreciated. Billy

Billy Klemstein
Outside Sales
Sweeney Feeders
1-800-443-4244

Hard to believe Billy hasn't had any responses. I can think of several times when it will be nice to turn off feeding, but maintain the programming of feeder.

1. as stated above, during too hot/cold temps. during transition periods.
2. compensatory feeding. on for 5 to 7 days, then off for 2 or 3.
3. off for a couple days prior to kids fishing.
4. off if water quality deteriorates.

Billy,

For all the same reasons Burger mentioned plus:

- Turn feeder off during weather events (windy, snow, etc.)
- Turn feeder off when friends, family or clients are fishing.
- Turn feeder off to manually feed fish. (Family and friends may want to hand feed fish and watch the water boil!)

I hope aquapro (stren) is also monitoring this thread.

Ed

One lame reason: Turn feeder off when you are out of fish feed.

Wow, the digital timer (or lack thereof) is the only thing that disappointed me about those feeders. I am certainly ordering the upgrade.

Billy, it sounds like a darn good idea. I realize that they aren't too hard to restart but it sounds like a good convenience.

For those of who don't live on the land, turning one off when it runs out of feed would be a great idea.

Editing here. I think both would extend battery life. It would sorta be like turning off the light when you leave the room but leave the clock ticking away.

Burger,
I have a tendency to be a thread killer for some reason. LOL

Thanks for the input. I'm going to run this by our timer folks and see what the negatives could be. Product development is always a touchy thing but we sure like to think outside the box around here.

No problem, Billy. More on the switch for the Native Outdoors system. You can use a single pole switch to just break 1 side of the battery, but, I personally, will use a DPDT switch with center 'off' position. That way I can leave the photo board in as an option to switch to if the programmable one fails, or if I want to go back to short dawn/dusk feeding without opening the unit up. I will just switch to the photo board motor output. I also glued the back plate mounting bolts in place and replaced the hex 1/4-20 nuts with stainless wing nuts. just FYI

I'm posting in this oldie because I'm going to recommend a few feeders for Mr. H's 7 acre pond.

I believe he would be more likely to go for a less expensive model which was less convenient than a higher priced machine.

I checked out Meadowlark's link, but couldn't tell if the same feeder was still there. It sounded like the best deal.

Does anyone know where you can buy one of these feeders anymore? I can't seem to find them for sale any longer. I really like them and would like to purchase more.

I'm under the impression that they don't make them anymore, but if someone knows where they are I'd take at least five of them.

I don't anything about these feeders other than I did a search for a low cost feeder. I thought I would post it in case someone was interested in checking them out.

SpinPro Wildlife Feeders

I wonder why they quit making them? Those were nice little feeders. I wanted to get one for my grow out pond.

Bruce, if you ever have one that goes down and you can't fix it. Hollar at me. I need the back panel for one of mine that still works but I dropped the back panel in the pond.