Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Raising Forage and Bait Delta netting for minnow cage

Im kicking around the idea of trying to build a minnow cage to try and breed fatheads in so when the young hatch they will fall through the netting and out of reach of adults. Is it ok to leave treated delta in a small pond? I though i had heard some treatments on fabrics can be toxic. Also anyone have recomendation on where to buy small qtys of delta netting? I tried one place by never could get a response to their email order form. Ive been using netting from joeanns for my minnow net but it just doesnt hold up.

Treated Delta is fine. The problem you will find is that turtles will chew through it and make holes big enough for minnows to escape. Find it through Memphis Net & Twine or Delta Net & Twine.

Try this site. These are the best net builders I know and easy to deal with. Several here have bought nets from them on special order. Brunson Nets.

http://www.brunsonsportnets.com/PDFs/Marine%20Catalog.pdf

I use treated nets and cages all the time Delta will work "but"
Use the water based plastnet it is essentially latex paint with a UV inhibitor. I don't however have the company apply it.
There is a bacteria that can contaminate the net treatment it has a foul odor and the treatment will degrade faster. The companies that use this say it has no effect on the net (it may not) but it Stinks to high heaven and I have seen fish shy away from it.
I buy the treatment in 5 gallon buckets from the company and treat my own.
Curious, are you concerned with the adult Fatheads feeding on the fry or your gamefish feeding on the adults? Fatheads do not eat their own young. Though fry are fair game for every insect or fish that come along.
Fatheads will require some structure to spawn on. The male Fathead selects a nesting site generally choosing a hard surface for the females to attach their sticky eggs. Each male will guard the site from predators and other male Fatheads. The male will spawn with several females and continue to guard the nest until all the eggs have matured and hatched. Each nest may contain form 100 to 500 eggs yellow in color about 1 to 1 1/2 mm in size and attached in clusters to the pipe The fry leave the nest as soon as they hatch and can be observed in small schools just below the water surface. Look close they are very small. (a 5mm long thread with eyes)
I have used 24 in. peices of 3" PVC pipe as spawning structure with excellent results. Set them in shallow water 10 inches or less. They will nest on the outside and the inside of the pipe sometimes four or more nests to each pipe. If you want to protect the fry the pipe can be removed after the eggs have been laid and place in a separate pond or tank until they hatch.
This is a production method of spawning and can yeild large numbers of Fathead fry each year.
The placement of the PVC spawning structures can also be used to control the fathead population in ponds. By removing the pipes every three or four days and allowing the eggs to dry you will eventually eliminate the population through attrition as the adults only live for about 18 months.
This could also be used to transfer Fatheads from one pond to another without trapping. Place the pipes along the shoreline of the pond with Fatheads. Allow them to spawn on the pipes and then remove the pipes and place the pipes in a cooler and move to your pond. This would eliminate the transer of some parasites common to the species.
Barry