Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Creating habitat Bretski's Fish Cribs- Excuse my Ignorance

The Fish cribs Bretski built look great but what are they actually used for? Are they for smaller fish to live in, spawn in, or just another creative way of making Fish Structure?

Where would you put them in a 200 acre lake and how deep should they be placed? It's a bit confusing to me but these look like a cost effective piece of structure.

Thnx

Foodeefish

I think the primary purpose of Bretski's Fish Cribs since they were placed near the spawn beds for SMB are to be places for the SMB fry to find refuge while they are less than 1" long. IMO the concept is good especially in ponds that do not get a lot of filamentous algae (FA) growth. Dense growths of FA can completely coat the fencing to a point where all the openings are clogged and fish cannot enter or leave the box-like structure. The bottoms of these cribs may remain relatively algae free due shading factor. Bretski may see this post and provide his opinions and experiences so far after having the cribs I place for a few years.

Live and learn...
Actually, I cannot recall if there was a specific targeted application for the design other than providing a place for smaller fish to escape predation. Of course, this only really works well as long as the snow fence shell remains intact. Now that I know that my pond level will fluctuate 2 - 3 feet over an average year, my placement regarding depth has yielded unfortunate, but easy to understand drawbacks.
I set them on a shoreline slope with the highest end about 12 - 18" below normal pool. I also reside in the midwest freeze zone. Factor in a 24" - 36" water level drop by the end of summer/fall, and the integrity of both the snow fence shell and the actual PVC frame have suffered from ice floes.
I must have low FA content because all the stuff that I have put in (most of it well over 4 or 5 years ago) is still fairly clean. Honestly, all the PVC is still primarily white.

IIRC several were put near SMB spawning dishes. Habitat for yoy SMB.