Another HOA lake question. We've got 100 acre lake, that the bluegill could really use some growth. I track my milage the other day when I kayaked around the shoreline, and it was 2.5 miles, so we have alot of shoreline.
Currently we only have one feeder in a park area, to attact fish for the kids to catch, and we are adding a coin operated one so the kids can feed the fish.
How many feeders would it take to make a difference on a lake this size? I could probably get funding for 6-8, I'd probably have to split it over 2 years.
I was thinking the Texas Hunter 250lb models, so I don't have to worry about filling them as often. We've got the 70lb model now, and it has worked great, no problems in 4 years.
Well I am no expert on this but from what I have read on this site most folks have at least 1 per acre maybe 2. So that's a lot of feeders on a 100 acres! Yikes!!!
Even if you went 1 per acre that a 100 TH feeders times 700 bucks OUCH!!! And that's before feed.
Bottom line is your not going to put near enough out I bet. So place them as good as you can and do as many as you can get by with!
6 to 8 more feeders is better then no more feeders!! At least you would be feeding some of them and others would have more natural food to eat!
RC
The only difference between a rut and a Grave is the depth. So get up get out of that rut and get moving!! Time to work!!
Whenever I'm asked how many feeders to put on a pond or lake, I respond with the ambiguous (or cya) answer of -- it depends. Are you trying to nourish the growth of the fish, or simply attract them. About the thickest feeder density I've seen on a recreational pond or lake is 1 feeder to 2.5 acres. The intent in that situation was to attract and nourish the fish -- not the sole source of food, but a primary part. I think in your case, you may have to approach it from the other direction. Determine how many feeders you can afford and then figure out how to make that work for you. Larger feeders are more convenient, but you may not be able to purchase as many which would limit your feed coverage. Another thing to consider might be using Scatter Feeders (conventional deer feeders). If you can get them out over the water they do a great job of feeding fish. They are less expensive than directional feeders, feed over a larger area and, being simpler, they are more reliable. The biggest problem is getting them suspended over the water. The costs may exceed the benefits. It will probably be more difficult to fill and service them as well. However, if you have existing piers, large overhanging trees, etc. then it may be worth looking into.
That is my concern that even say 8 feeders would not really make any difference other than fishing hot spots. I don't think I could justify the expense of 30-40 feeders.
The one that we have attacts a ton of bluegill, and is fun to watch the bass come in and nail them. It keeps the area loaded with gills, and the kids in the neighborhood have plenty of fish to catch, they are just 3-4".
However many feeders you can put on the lake will benefit. You will be feeding the bass indirectly by feeding the bluegills.
More food for the bluegills will result in them growing faster, and they will have better body condition. That will result in them spawning at an earlier age (maturing faster) and have larger spawns, = more bass food.
I've thought about this too; I feed off my dock every evening mainly to enjoy the fish and I figure something is better than nothing. WOwens do the homes have docks on the lakes could you get individual homeowners to feed fish from their dock 1/day if you bought the food? That's what I was thinking for my lake, I probably could get 15-20 people to do it and it's a 60 acre lake. Just a thought cause it's just too expensive to add automatic feeders to lakes our sizes.
Esshup is right. Weather it's 3 or 33 it's better than 1. You see how many your getting from the one feeder. Imagine if you had 7 or 8 out there. I would try to spread them out best I could. Let say your went with 8 total. I would try and put 3 more on one side down from where your current one is and spread them out even. And put 4 more on the other side as even as possible. At least that way you will get fish coming and going also. You would be far better off then with just one.
As Zach said above you could use deer feeders as they do work I been using one for 5 years now, but I have a shallow spot to put mine and it's fairly level and I only have 1 acre full pool. Here it is in this pic. It will sling the food though no doubt.
The only difference between a rut and a Grave is the depth. So get up get out of that rut and get moving!! Time to work!!
Feeding BG has been shown to be from 4 to 8 times as efficient as them eating just natural forage. Any that you do will help. Suggest you try to map the BG bedding areas , docks and other features and then pick out a few to feed from.
We recommend one feeder to every 3 to 4 acres of water. However, the feeder is only a small cost. The fish food will cost you a whole lot more. That's where the funding from the HOA will be difficult. Expect to spend $600 to $900 per feeder per year for fish food.
Thanks for all the info. There are 2000 homes in the neghborhood, so the HOA budget is over a million per year, I think I can get the $. I just have to convince myself that asking for the money will be worth it, and the right thing to do.
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