Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Creating habitat cover sinking option

I see a lot of people using cinder blocks and mixing up cement to sink cover. Why not fill laundry jugs with sand or gravel and join two or more by a short cord or cable. Then the cord could be draped/looped over a tree or pile of brush, or a small drywall screw would hold the container in place on a pallet.
Sand weighs about 15 pounds per gallon, so you could use that to calculate the equivelant weight needed. Since the weight would be divided between two or more containers pulling down on opposite sides, the strain on the handles should not be a problem.

That'd work too, but you might want to fill the jug with water after you've got as much sand in it as possible to displace the air that is still left in the jug.

Most people underestimate how hard it is to sink a pallet or xmas tree. After fighting that battle too many times I started using the pole method and letting the stuff waterlog and sink tied to the pole. One exception would be pvc trees which are easy to sink.

I would leave the lid off, and there is a good chance you will lose a little gravel out of the opening as it falls. Using your melon though, lots better in your pond serving a useful purpose than in the dumpster. What kind of body of water are you fishing at 40+ acres? Is that an impoundment, natural waterway, or pit? I would not be surprised if your gravel filled detergent holders did not become home to a fish or two even as your trees deteriorate to a log.

Structure, as far as I know is very, very good.

I've got a bunch of cat litter buckets. I figure on sticking the tree in with a cross piece in the trunk. Then screwing some pallet lumber in an "X" across the bottom with long deck screws so it always stands up and then putting half a bag of quickrete in it, that's 40 pounds. Then I'll fill the bucket the rest of the way up with large limestone. That should sink a 7 foot Christmas tree I'd think. They will go on the ice in position. Our ice doesn't tend to drift.

I think you could probably just use 50 lbs of Crete and not worry about the limestone. I'm not sure though, but 10 more lbs of Crete would be alot more easier than messing with limestone.. I'm also trying to think of some kind of crossmembers to keep my trees standing..

Well, if I make an "X" with crate lumber, 3/4" stuff, and use long deck screws into the bottom of the bucket and then the crete hardens around it I would think that would hold it. I would think that the bouyancy of the tree would orient it. Both the wood and the air trapped in the branches.

The thing about the large limestone is that I have it on site, about 20 tons, I have to buy quickrete. I've been going to Lowes and buying broken bags cheap.

This is one way I have used but it is a lot of work. Results were good but the pole system I use now is IMO much better.

Use 3 gal plastic flower pots from nursery. No cost free for asking. Note they have 4 holes one at the bottom on each side. Used 2 ft rebar to go through the holes to from an x to help keep it upright. Used one 24-30 inch rebar to stand upright when filled with qk. Slightly off center so tree is near center. Use long cable ties to attach tree to rebar so it will stand. Use coat hanger wire to strengthen the connection ( 2 places - near top and bottom). Sink from boat ( on ice should work). I made about 100 and all worked but a lot of effort. A few with bigger dry trees did not sink with 3 gal of qc so rocks were added.

Have also used pallets w/wo trees and oak limbs , concrete rubble , standard brush and even fencing (wood).

We have a cheap brand concrete here at local stores. $4 for 100 or 90 lb bag.. It's good for structure anything Else not so much lol

If I had to drop a large tree from a boat I'd counter wind it with twine, tie a loop in one end and run the other end through it. Then I'd run that end through a stack of Lifesavers and tie a knot in it. Toss it in the water and when the Lifesavers dissolve it lets go. My uncle said he used to do that dropping trees in Douglas Lake.


Some of the triggers on Limpet mines long ago worked like that. A dissolving disc not much different than an Alka-Seltzer. At least that's what they told me in EOD school 30 years ago. WWII stuff.

I I fill my cat litter bucket full of concrete and put in a tree with a 4" trunk that figures as a weight of 70 pounds. So, how big a Christmas tree should that sink? Several of the trees I have are about 4 feet wide at the bottom, I will cut them down to 6 feet tall, cutting from the top.

Since the trees are so dense I figure on cutting some holes in the foliage. Thinning it out in spots so bluegills of size can get in.

It depends - on the tree (green , dry etc). Trial and error.

Have used the branch thinning also where needed. I don't thin when small BG protection is the goal. I don’t thin for deep water tree structure as time will do that.

Eric, when you say "deep water cover", what depths are you talking about?

In this case cover that is in 10 feet or more of water (actual structure goes from near surface to bottom).

It is important to look at each piece of structure in light of its intended purpose.

If near BG beds to enhance yoy/small BG survival/#s then I use thick trees and lay them on their side and stake them down about 6-10 feet from the beds. No thinning and I will clump several trees in the area. I want the trees to cover from bottom to surface.

If for deep water structure then you are trying to attract fish aggregations there for feeding/fishing. I want the small fish to go there or the big ones won't follow. So I don't thin most of those because if I do the small fish will not come (they know if the structure is to open to offer protection). By adding some with thick branches every year there is an entire spectrum of cover as the trees age. Some with few branches (old trees) on the bottom for big fish all the way up to thick branched new trees for the small fish near the surface.

On transitory cover (highways) from spawning to feeding to main lake body I use some real tree limbs (oak , hickory etc) with brush/bush type and xmas trees.

I was thinking about taking a pallet and anchoring 4 larger trees in buckets with concrete to the corners. Then I would tie the tops together an cut them so they are about 8-12" below the surface. Then I'd hollow out the middle. Then I could add more weight to the pallet. I would drag it onto the ice with my truck.

I was going to place this dead center of the pond between the two diffusers. That should drive the zoo plankton into the foliage with the flow of the system.

I was going to lay 4 trees on their sides around the pond at about 16 inches deep.

I have used the pallets with xmas trees attached method. Very hard to sink. I have done that many ways. One was to T 2 pallets ( upsidedown T one flat one standing) and attach a tree to each end of the T standing by sticking the trunk in the standing pallet. Add QC to each flat part of the pallet. Even tried long pallet fences (5-6 pallets long) and Ts with 2 upright pallets and trees. The later is a tall structure ( from 10-12 up to 20 feet tall) and is a bear to boat out and sink. On ice some of these would be much easier.

If I had ice I would build a crib out of pallets with a tree on each corner and fill it with limestone rock , QC and gravel and a few 2-4 inch oak limbs.

I think I've figure this out. I'm going to take three pallets and cover them with some wire fence I have that is 2"x4". Then I'll tie them in a triangle. I will tie in 4 Trees on the pallets by scalping one side of each and laying to two sides of the triangle. I may cut two of the pallets down about 4" so the angle the trees will be on is steeper. Then I'll cut some fence to cover the ends. I have a pile of 3" limestone and I'll put 8-5 gallon buckets inside the triangle before I close it up. I'll drag that onto the ice. 8-5 gallon buckets of stone should weigh in at almost 600 pounds. I gotta think that will sink that hog.

I figure that will provide cover for the small fish and overhanging cover for the bigger ones.

That has to work....or break the ice!