IceShanty.com's Ice Fishing Community
Ice Fishing Tips -Check your local regulations! => Tipups => Topic started by: Second City Fisherman on Sep 20, 2012, 08:34 PM
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I run Jack Traps and am heading up to NW Angle in Jan. We go for walleye of course but during the mid day slow period tip ups for pike are cool. I do not want to buy a box tip up. What is a good way to keep the hole open in below zero conditions? Is the foam hole cover is the only solution? Or maybe a home made box for tip up? Any ideas are most welcome.
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There's also one with a coffee can, copper line coil, and a toilet paper roll soaked in lighter fluid or tiki torch oil that pumps warm water in the hole. My fav.
I'm a minimalist and chose the walk and chip method. Easy enough considering where I am. ;)
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i find that a if you take a 4x8 sheet of ply wood (very cheap and thin stuff) take a roto zip or something similar and take a piece of 6" string, nail it in the center of a hole, then pull string tight while cutting in a circle (making it a 12" cover) then cutting out a 1 1/2- 2" hole in the center with a hole saw bit then a slot so the cover can slip through the tip up then painting it black works well. only problem is, is that it doesn't let sun light penetrate. So what i was thinking of doing was gettting a sheet of plexy glass, and doing the same process, this way when the sun hits it it creates a green house effect also allowing sunlight to penetrate.
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Good looking out. Thanks man. I wouldnt want to pee all over my jack traps. Maybe i will invite the boy from the NE . haha. No really, I guess foam or diesel fuel will be the best bet. :o
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and the plexy glass/ ply wood, doesn't add a hole lot of weight maybe 2-5 pounds, and it doens't take up a lot of space in the sled, stack em up in the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket, or can just lay them in the sled.
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A chunk of carpet or a mud flap, preferably dark in color.... make a hole in the middle and a cut out to the edge. The best ones are made of heavy black rubber like semi truck mud flap, hay bailer belting, or truck bed mat. They tend to lay flat, rarely stick to the ice, and don't blow around in the wind.
Like this... Only you can make them yourself out of junk and save $6.99 ;D
http://www.fleetfarm.com/mff/detail/mills-fleet-farm-ice-hole-insulator-purple/0000000006344 (http://www.fleetfarm.com/mff/detail/mills-fleet-farm-ice-hole-insulator-purple/0000000006344)
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When we fished the Angle there wasn't much of a mid day slow down. Caught eye's and sauger all day long. The only slow times were dawn and dusk due to the stained water.
Love to fish The NW Angle.
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antifreeze ;D jk i like to kick loose powdery snow over my holes if i need to insulate them,been doing this for years with no problem
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When we fished the Angle there wasn't much of a mid day slow down. Caught eye's and sauger all day long. The only slow times were dawn and dusk due to the stained water.
Love to fish The NW Angle.
........and this is relavent, how?
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the foam covers bring up the controversy of does allowing light in through the hole help attract fish or not?
i like the plexiglass idea
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I've cut hole covers from tire inner tubes I pick up on the road or rubber roofing material. Nope, they keep the hole dark but they're light, stow in practically no space, don't freeze down, act as a solar collector and are my favorite price. It' amazing how a thin cover can keep a hole open or only lightly iced in even some very extreme weather.
/m
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If its sunny u can float a black ping pong ball in the hole. Sun heats ball...ball heats hole! :tipup:
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you can by the waterproof foam covers for like $4.00 at baitshops and box stores
(http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y62/adkRoy/icefishing2011/PICT0088.jpg)
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Thanks for the great ideas. I will try a few of them for sure.
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Plywood painted flat black. It works like a charm. I like the black pingpong ball idea though too.
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ive had good luck w/ the foam covers on real windy ,cold days. they dont freeze down if you give it 30sec. after cleaning before you put it on. freezes around the hole. i then put a little snow around edges to seal and on top of the cover so it doesnt move.
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what about vegetable oil. take a small container with you and dump a few cap fulls in to the hole it might be enough to cover the hole and prevent feezing.
another option i use to keep my jigging holes ice free is to have a portable areator and put the bubbler in the hole and it seems to work fairly well.
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When we fished the Angle there wasn't much of a mid day slow down. Caught eye's and sauger all day long. The only slow times were dawn and dusk due to the stained water.
Love to fish The NW Angle.
received your PM of 9/21. i was just saying that your post semed out of place and not relevant to this topic. possible posted on the wrong topic?
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what about vegetable oil. take a small container with you and dump a few cap fulls in to the hole it might be enough to cover the hole and prevent feezing.
another option i use to keep my jigging holes ice free is to have a portable areator and put the bubbler in the hole and it seems to work fairly well.
Warden might ask you what that oil film is on top the hole.
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Pee in the hole. ;D ;D
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Ever put cooking oil i the fridge? It will turn solid. Plus, any oil or whatever floating in the hole will get all over your trap, line, bait, gloves, etc and create a big mess. Powder snow does a surprisingly good job at keeping the hole from feezing. Hole covers work well also. Just keep checking those traps often, and keep a small chisel for chipping if needed.
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Just walk around every 15 minutes and take a leak on all your tip-ups.
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Old timer told me he takes a cattail and breaks it open, then puts the fuzz from the cattail in the hole to keep it from freezing. Never tried it but I could see how it might work.
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http://www.iceshanty.com/ice_fishing/index.php?topic=215120.0
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I have some old foam yoga mats that I cab use to make hole covers. Never thought of them before now.
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Seen a couple guys dropping a brick of charcoal in each hole seemed to work but be carefull not to drop on ice will eat right threw 7 inches of ice quickly!!! Good luck
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How about walking around and cleaning the holes when needed
Or when you catch fish like I do the hole never has a chance to freeze ;D
Pirk
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Make the switch to Frabil round thermal tip-ups, saves time and they fit in a 5 gallon bucket. The black ones come with line, depth marker, and light that flashes when the flag go up. I hate it when we have to break out the ice on my buddies old school traps after 5 minutes.
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Get some two inch ridged foam insulation, cut it an inch or two bigger than your hole, and make a cut out in the top for the top of your tip up so it will slide over the top of your tip up. Cheap and easy.
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In this years in-fishing ice fishing 2013 guide they got a little article about ice quiver floats. Says something about used by duck hunters to give there decoys a little life. There going to float around and vibrate to keep your hole clean. I worry that they will set the tip up off as there quivering around.
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Horse stall mats, not much money, easy to cut to size .
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That's a great idea Stripernut.
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I got some of the "real magic" skipper suggested and I want to see how that works
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For the tipup and tipup line, it will work great. Don't spray it in the water though, it won't do you any good.
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The bubble wrap insulation found in your local hardware store works excellent. Suprised no one has mentioned it yet.
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How about a home depot 5gal orange bucket lid with a hole just large enough to fit spool Never tryed it but Maybe
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How about a home depot 5gal orange bucket lid with a hole just large enough to fit spool Never tryed it but Maybe
If u can find a black one, even better.
I use some black foam i had from those interlocking exercise mats.
Thinking about lining the bottom with some reflectix to see if it makes any difference.
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........and this is relavent, how?
His point was that you'll be pulling fish through the holes all day so icing up won't be a huge problem, you turd
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I would also like to mention adding anything to the water (oil, anti freeze, urine) is a huge no no.
Not only are you polluting the places you fish, this stuff also get all over your gear.
And if you think a fish cant smell/taste hints of that on your line or in the water, your sorely mistaken.
Get some hole covers (make your own as stated above from wood, rubber, foam), if they aren't working try adding some reflectix to the bottom, if that doesn't work, its time to chisel em out.
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Made these rubber hole covers a few years ago with my Tip Up Caddy. They've done the trick for me in preventing Tip Up hole freeze up.
(http://img716.imageshack.us/img716/3528/tipupholecovers.jpg)
(http://img31.imageshack.us/img31/3642/tipupsholecovers.jpg)
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Make the switch to Frabil round thermal tip-ups, saves time and they fit in a 5 gallon bucket. The black ones come with line, depth marker, and light that flashes when the flag go up. I hate it when we have to break out the ice on my buddies old school traps after 5 minutes.
I used the Frabil's a couple years back for quite some time and they did a real good job of keeping the holes ice free, but you could only use them on an 8" hole max. I like the flashing light idea, mine didn't have that. I put those strike indicator bells that go on the end of a regular spinning rod on my flags so you can hear the flag go up.
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check them more often if they are freezing over solid then they need to be tended more ;D
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Just walk around every 15 minutes and take a leak on all your tip-ups.
That would require an excessive amount of beer!
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Seen a couple guys dropping a brick of charcoal in each hole seemed to work but be carefull not to drop on ice will eat right threw 7 inches of ice quickly!!! Good luck
Inspiration!!! I'm attaching a 10" slab of it to a cord and selling my auger. Wonder how long to go thru 30"?
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So did you ever figure out what you were gonna do? I would say just check your holes so you can also check on your bait. Not always a bad idea to move the bait around once in a while also...
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Whats the best way stop freeze over for a tip up? Forget them sitting in the garage...
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we use rubber roofing for hole covers
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Ice Hole Heaters ;) This is how to make them.
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anyone mention a ziploc bag with a hand warmer in it?
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wally world camping mat cut in 12" cicles with a slot for the tip up had them for years now they sell them for big money.....
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Why break your balls carrying a bunch of crap out and extra stuff to set up, Frabil thermals are the way to go pack snow or slush around them and they never freeze ...
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anyone mention a ziploc bag with a hand warmer in it?
Would work for a bout 5 minutes till it ran out of air.