Ice Hole Covers

[vaughan]

Anyone have experience using the ice hole covers?   Did you make your own, seems like round rubber cover would work great and be cheap.

[thebigwiggle]

They work great if you use them right and if you are a tip up fisherman i would definitely use them. I am surprised how many people don't use them .. I don't use them because the tip up  i use are frabill polars and they are insulated , and i used them on very extremely cold days and my holes never froze.

[Vtgooseman]

I love the ones I have from Kittery Trading Post.  Definitely worth the few bucks each.

[grampieshanty]

I made my own out of really heavy black rubber mattes. I don't use them alot but they are nice on cold days when the sun is out . Helps keep them somewhat ice free. Also use them once in a while on my trout holes to see if they bit any better which they didn't. Heard that if you could block the light the trout would not be spooked as much. Not saying it doesn't work ,i didn't see any difference.

[Bailbuster]

I use them and made my own from 1 camper mat from walley world..

[kasilofchrisn]

I made some last year from some thin ribbed floor matt material.
Used the gasket cutter from work to cut them out. They look real nice but they didn't work out as well as I had hoped.
I think using heavier material would have been better.
I hear the foam ones work well for some people in my area so I may try and make some of those sometime.

[kaos12fly]

Other than keeping your holes from freezing over, do these actually improve catch rates?  I fish mainly for notherns with my tipups, and had heard a few mixed reports as to their effect.  On days when the ice is covered in snow, does this open source of light spook fish off at all?

[Bailbuster]

i fish northerns as well and I don't think it adds anything to the bite.... but nice to have a ice free hole

[troutslayer 23]

ui used them all last season and my trout numbers declined very rapidly ... i think the light the hole lets in helps the trout locate the bait ..... tho i have nothing to suport this but seemed like when i didnt use them i had a bunch of flags and when i did hardly any

[dylan8351]

I think it all depends on the situation. I leave slush in my holes at times to keep the holes dark and so the fish can't see me moving; especially in shallow water. Mostly, I think a hole cover would be to make our fishing easier. No one wants a jagged edge when pulling a fish in after breaking the ice out.

[fishnmachine]

I've used them since they banned alcohol in the holes. My first ones were black rubber,which worked almost too good. I've seen sunny days where they would melt an inch or more down into the ice. The ones I use now are made out of double foil bubble insulation They work great. I can go a whole day without skimming a hole, and they don't weigh much more than a pound for the whole set.   

[mempfree]

Gee, wouldn't you think, just cutting up some rubber mats, and placing them around your tip-ups, would work, on keeping your tip-ups, from freezing over the drilled holes, which, would save you some money?  I wished I had some on Sunday, as my Sister, said we will just use my Dads, 4" Gas Auger to drill our holes!  Well, by a few hours, they were 2" holes, ha, ha, ha.  I had to get my 8" Auger repaired, due to my Nephew, pulling the cord on it, and it broke, Saturday morning.  Got the Auger back yesterday, with a new cord, pulley and had the chipper blade sharpened.

[srobat]

Try armaflex pipe insulation. You can get it at Homans in Williston. It comes in A 4'x4' sheet. Just cut your own circles. 1 inch thickness works the best!

[Bailbuster]

I made 12 out of 1 camper mat

[Troutmagnet]

I have several of the foam covers and they have worked great. I also use them to kneel on at times when the ice surface is rough...saves these old knees!!!

[flagfishon]

Try armaflex pipe insulation. You can get it at Homans in Williston. It comes in A 4'x4' sheet. Just cut your own circles. 1 inch thickness works the best!

How much are the mats?

A friend of mine bought some foam mats for around $6 ea. and they work great.  While I'm clearing holes, he's jigging for more perch.

[Bailbuster]

I think it was under 10 bucks but I made them 4 years ago so could be more now.

[vtpike]

I've used them since they banned alcohol in the holes. My first ones were black rubber,which worked almost too good. I've seen sunny days where they would melt an inch or more down into the ice. The ones I use now are made out of double foil bubble insulation They work great. I can go a whole day without skimming a hole, and they don't weigh much more than a pound for the whole set.   

I will never try anything but what fishnmachine speaks of!

[adkRoy]

our local bait shops sell pre-made ones for about $3.00 apiece. very well worth it for keeping snow out of the holes and preventing the hole from freezing over.

[vt-jig]

i used the cardboard circles from those cheap frozen pizzas..not very durable, but they work good.

[dave b.]

I made a bunch from a 1/2 thick closed cell camping mat from a big box store. Work good for keeping the snow out of your hole on those blowing snow days. Not sure if they help or hinder with the bite. I only use them when conditions make them helpful. I made a 10" circle out of 1/4 inch plywood to use as a pattern, marked them out on the mat and cut them out. drilled a hole in the center and cut a slit. I made mine that size so they would fit into a five gallon pail. They will blow away if you take them off the tip up and lay the m on the ice.

[thebigwiggle]

Dave b
how many hole covers did you get out of one mat? i bet it was cheaper then buying the ones on line that usually run about 7-10 a piece.

Another piece of info on these hole covers that some people are leaving out is that you need seal them up around the sides with the slushy snow from the hole , this will help from the hole from freezing up , because it will trap out the cold air and don't be afraid to put a little slush snow on top of the hole cover on a windy day to prevent from blowing around.

[thebigwiggle]

when i Tip up fish which is not that often but these are tip up i have used for about 15 years and they work awesome. On cold days i don't have to worry about my holes freezing up and worrying about chipping out a hole and cutting my line with my chipper .
See below

[dave b.]

BigWiggle I think I got 14 out of that mat.  For 6-8 bucks it was a good deal. I took my pattern and marked the out and cut them out with scissors. The mat was a little over 20" x 60" I think. I like your tip about packing a little slush around the edge, the snow will find any little gap and get in when it is blowing.

[thebigwiggle]

BigWiggle I think I got 14 out of that mat.  For 6-8 bucks it was a good deal. I took my pattern and marked the out and cut them out with scissors. The mat was a little over 20" x 60" I think. I like your tip about packing a little slush around the edge, the snow will find any little gap and get in when it is blowing.

Wow  That is allot .. you definitely saved a bundle by making your own.. where do you get the Mat at Home Depot???

[dave b.]

Walmart