Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations when do you start your feeders?

what water temp do you begin your feeding again on your pond?

I just go to pond and throw a handful in and see what happens.... probably when it gets 60 ish. Before this last front they were smacking the surface after something so it’s getting close to time here .

Also a hand feeder. Been feeding MVP all winter. Some days they aren't very interested but many days they are voracious. I simply give them what they'll gobble up quickly. We've had some week long warm spells that get the fish fired up. A few weeks back I measured 70 degrees at the surface.

Got a bad bag of Aquamax LMB last week (feed was soggy) and should get a replacement this Friday. Then I'll be adding this to the mix.

I find that just about any fish food that I get from a feed store this time of year is old. They will generally eat it though after 3 or 4 warm days.

Here, I feed year round with my TH Feeders. I slow down the amount but my cnbg will feed everyday. I did stop my hand feeding and cut back on the Aquamax lmb feed with the trained lmb and hsb for about 3 weeks total during our coldest events. When you start back feeding watch for how long it takes for the feed to be gone and then adjust the amount you want to feed. If wanted you could feed year round where you are located.

I feed year around unless the water drops below 50 degrees which it has not this year. Just set the timer for 0ne second bursts 3x in am and 3x in pm. On another note...I just had to replace my battery again yesterday. I write the date of installation on the side. I got 2 years and 3 months out of a $13 battery. Very happy with that considering I feed everyday. New battery this year cost $25!!

Flame and Others - Where do you get your batteries for the feeder/s? Who seems to have the best battery for the price?

I bought this last battery at tractor supply. The one before was just at our local lumber company but they were out right now. My TH feeder uses the 12 volt and I seem to average 2 years out of one no matter what brand. Generics work fine. As mentioned earlier...$13 bucks for my last one and still got over 2 years out of it running it every day.Anybody that sells deer feeder stuff will have batteries for our fish feeders. E-bay has them for around $17 all day long.

Local hardware store

+1

Ok I have thrown out a handful couple times a day now for a week and no takers. Temp at surface is 60 - guess they are still laying low

I threw a few handfuls into both ponds yesterday after the morning crust of ice melted off. Had a lot of 3-5 inch BG hit it immediately and some HSB showed up in a minute or 2 but I don't think it was all of them. I didn't see any large BG and no YP but they could have been farther out. Certainly no feeding frenzy like summer but way more than I expected.

I generally wait until I am sure that the feed stores have fresh food.

+1 on what Dave says, after 3 months old it looses a lot of nutrients ck the date . That’s one reason I don’t use tractor supply’s feed

Side note. Hijack, sorry to distract.
I’m going to give up on my new and improved AquaPro feeder. I couldn’t keep it running last summer. I think it will make fine structure for fish habitat. So the question is, do Texas Hunter Feeders ever go “on sale”? I don’t feed a lot, but I’d like to feed some. Will have it set on bank, unless I get a platform built. No issues with hogs, but I have a large supply of raccoons.
Thanks for any tips. If there’s any used ones out there, let me know.
Thx
Jeff

Mine is five years old and coon proof. Would anchor it just in case some big critter comes along. Don’t think they ever on sale..... but they are worth the price cause feeding a high protein feed reall makes a big difference

Agreed, when you factor in the price of good feed over the years, the cost of the feeder becomes less of a factor. I had to dump feed twice from the AquaPro due to leaks. It’s tight now, but took a while getting it sealed.
Thx

had my first hits on my feed today -

I tried a (other that Texas Hunter) feeder for a year. I worked on constantly, it was always clogged. I finally was informed by my wife that I was always buying the "bargain" brands and She bought me a Texas Hunter. All I have to do is put food in it. I know it's going to pay for itself in wasted food and headaches in a very short time. The lesson here is complain and whine enough and someone may buy it for you, Or don't be a cheapskate. I obviously fall in the cheapskate group