Learn To Catch Catfish - Catfish Fishing

Proposed Ban On Lead Fishing Tackle

Chad — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 10:00:32 +0000

Please read this, take the time to read it thoroughly and take the time to go to the link and send an email to your local lawmakers about this situation.

Here is a brief summary of the situation from Keep America Fishing:

“On August 23, 2010, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was petitioned by the Center for Biological Diversity and four other organizations to ban all lead in fishing tackle under the Toxic Substances Control Act. This includes sinkers, jigs, weighted fly line, and components that contain lead such as brass and ballast in a wide variety of lures, including spinners, stick baits and more.”

The groups petitioning the EPA denied the petition for the ban on lead ammunition, supporters from hunting and shooting sports have been successful in having ammunition excluded from the ban but fishing tackle is being looked

The ban on lead fishing tackle also has a severe lack of research and support behind but as you may or may not know fishing does not have big powerhouse political organizations behind it like hunting and shooting sports do. (like the NRA).

This would be a MAJOR game changer for fishing tackle and would drive costs up substantially. The alternative to lead sinkers is steel sinkers which cost considerably more than lead sinkers do.

Please take the time to go to Keep America Fishing’s page on the proposed ban on lead fishing tackle and follow their instructions on their page.

You need to do two things, first copy and past the letter on their sent and send it to the EPA by email. Second, use their form to email your local lawmakers. The whole thing just takes a few minutes.

Make sure when doing both that you fill out all your valid information (name, address, phone number etc) because often times with issues like this you letter, email or petition signature is eliminated if it lacks supporting information.

This needs to be done BEFORE September 15th.

Copy and past the link to this article and email it to everyone you know, post it on your Facebook pages and do everything you can to spread the word. There is strength in numbers and together we can be heard.

Click here to sign email your local lawmakers.

WFAA Channel 8 Daybreak News

Chad — Mon, 06 Sep 2010 10:00:28 +0000

If you saw us live this morning from Eagle Mountain Lake on WFAA DFW Channel 8 news and are looking for more information, links and information are below.

To book guided catfish trips on Lake Lewisville, Lake Worth and Eagle Mountain Lake go to the North Texas Catfish Guide Service website or call us at 817-522-3804.

Rates and information are available on the website. If you want to fish for trophy catfish (big catfish) now is the time to get on the schedule for November through February and catching some big Texas trophy blue catfish on rod and reel.

These techniques are not lake specific, so they will work anywhere in North Texas right now.

Make sure you sign up for the Learn To Catch Catfish email feed so you get updates by email as we add articles, and also sign up for our newsletter. Being a member of our newsletter makes you eligible for exclusive content not available to the main website, as well as winning free prizes.

Have questions? You can send us questions about catfishing by email, visit our Facebook page and ask questions there, or send us questions on Twitter @catchcatfish.

How we are catching catfish right now.

With the weather changes the water is beginning to cool off so it has scattered the fish some. Over the next few weeks we will be using a number of different techniques for catfishing.

Blue Catfish

We are using two different techniques for blue catfish right now. Fishing shallow water for blue catfish (1 to 6 feet deep) using fresh cut shad and a slip sinker rig. Fish shallow and don’t sit too long with no bites. The fish are scattered so you have to find them. I suggest using a minimum of twenty point test line and a Daichi crcle chunk light circle hook, you can find information on these products on our suggested catfish tackle page.

We will also be drift fishing for blue catfish focusing on water above the thermocline generally no deeper than 22-23 feet deep. Fish with fresh cut shad using a Santee Rig , again with no less than twenty lb test line and a circle hook. Match the hook to the size fish you are targeting.

Channel Catfish

Channel catfish are abundant right now. We are fishing shallow water for channel catfish, generally 1-6 feet of water using a slip bobber and fishing areas baited with catfish chum. Use catfish punch bait fished under the slip float. If you don’t start catching fish quickly, move.

Jug Fishing

We are fishing water 6-20 feet deep with Redneck’s Juglines using fresh cut shad and Redneck’s Catfish Bait Soap Focus on structure and large expansive mudflats with structure nearby.

And The August Winner Is…..

Chad — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 02:32:36 +0000

Sorry for the delay in getting this out there. I have been crazy busy the last few days, there is a lot going on around here right now.

I totally forgot about the August free prize drawing announcement. I said in the month in review that I would make the announcement on September 1 and the failed to do so. It wasn’t until someone sent me a message on Twitter asking me why I hadn’t done it that I realized I had forgotten.

I had a really tough time picking a winner this month, there were so many good comments that I picked fifteen of what I though were the best and threw all of the names in the hat and picked from those fifteen people.

This months winner is Justin Wilcox.

Justin if you will contact me through the ask a question page and send me your mailing address as well as the email address you used to sign up for the newsletter I will get everything verified and then get this stuff shipped out to you.

If for some reason I don’t hear from Justin within 7 days, or he wasn’t signed up for the newsletter already I will default back to the “hat” and draw again.

Thanks again for being loyal readers of Learn To Catch Catfish, we have some great articles and information in the pipeline so stay tuned!

If you are not registered for the newsletter, sign up now. Additional information and videos not on the site or youtube will be available to you.

The Month In Review – August 2010

Chad — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 10:00:52 +0000

As August is drawing to a close I wanted to wrap up the month, recap all of the catfishing articles I added to Learn To Catch Catfish this month and do my month in review for August 2010.

We have had an amazing break in the Texas heat here in North Texas the last few days and the weather has cooled quite a bit, but the heat will be back soon. This does however provide a glimmer of hope that Fall and Spring catfishing is not too far away. It will not be long and Labor Day will have passed, the lakes will all turnover and the fishing will change. Fall and Winter are absolutely my favorite times of the year for catfishing here in North Texas, I am really looking forward to getting my clients out on the water for some cormorant catfishing and some fishing for trophy blue catfish.

As soon as the weather really gets cool this also offers a very welcome break for me from making Redneck’s Catfish Bait Soap and Redneck’s Juglines. After blowing and going all Spring and Summer the cooler weather gives me a MUCH needed break to kick back and rest a bit and actually do some fishing on my own, among other things.

Plus the break from this brutal heat will be a huge bonus, if you couldn’t tell from the sweat pouring off of me in the catfishing with a baseball bat video, it is pretty tough to deal with. It will definitely make it much easier on me shooting videos for the website.

I have mentioned a couple of times lately in some posts, and most recently on the Facebook page and on Twitter that I have some big announcements coming up that I hope to be able to make soon. I have had a few emails and questions from people wanting to know why I throw these teasers out there and wait to spill the beans as far as what is going on. First and foremost I want to make sure that I have all of my ducks in a row (that is Texan for have my stuff together) before I go making an announcement. The other reason is though that there is a lot of “monkey see monkey do” going on with catfishing and the internet and I want to make sure I have everything in place to support what I am doing so I can pull the trigger and move quickly before other people have a chance to copycat what I am doing.

As I have mentioned many times before, you need to make sure you are signed up for the newsletter because I will be offering some benefits and exclusive content (like the catfishing the thermocline video) to newsletter members that is not available to the general public on the website. This next deal I am going to do is going to be REALLY cool and something that is not available anywhere else so make sure you are signed up, if you have not already done so.

This Month On Learn To Catch Catfish

Bad Catfishing Information Overload – Talks about the wealth of inaccurate fishing information that is out there on the internet and in the media and why you should avoid it.

Catfishing With A Baseball Bat Revealed – I uncovered the secret from the orginal catfishing with a baseball bat video.

Free Floating Juglines For Jug Fishing – I covered how to make the best free floating juglines for jug fishing catfish that are available.

Learn To Catch Catfish Shirts - I was pondering whether to order some shirts with the websites new logo. I still have not gotten back to this and am not certain what I am going to do yet.

August 2010 Free Prize Drawing – Was the prize package that I was giving away for August 2010. I will make this announcement on September 1st.

Thermocline Effects On Catfishing – I covered what the thermocline is, what causes it and how it effects fishing for catfish.

Missouri Produces Another Monster Catfish – Information on another 100+ lb blue catfish caught in Missouri since the 130 Lb blue catfish was caught.

Help Me Help You – Explains some of the things you can do to help me continue to provide great content here on Learn To Catch Catfish.

Ethanol In Boats – The Silent Killer – Talks about the effects of ethanol on boat motors and fuel systems. If you have not read this yet you need to make sure you go back and read it again.

Catfish Limb Lines – I republished an older post about catfishing with limb lines because I went back an added a new video to this article.

Lake Turnover – Is the follow up to some of the thermocline videos that talks about what happens when the water starts to cool and how it effects fishing.

Catching Catfish With A Thermocline – This is a follow up to the first thermocline post where I cover not only how to recognize the thermocline on your fishfinder (graph) but also reveal some techniques for catching some really nice blue catfish with a thermocline present. This video was an exclusive video for the newsletter members.

Again, I will be making the announcement for the August free prize drawing on September 1st, so stay tuned.

Until next time, tight lines and screaming clickers!

Parts Of A Baitcasting Reel

Chad — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 10:00:37 +0000

I have had close to fifty questions through the ask a question page with questions about baitcasting reels referring back to comments I have made in different articles I have posted here, like the article on choosing a catfish reel.

I was scanning through all of these questions the other day trying to figure out how to address them all and decided that rather than going through them all one by one I would just go into some further detail about fishing reels for catfshing and address them all through an article, or a series of articles, and maybe a video (we’ll see).

What I am going to do is run through the different parts of a baitcasting reel and talk specifically about some of the key components and what they do. Once I get that knocked out, I am going to circle back around and cover some more details on how to use these different functions for catfishing the “proper” way, and then the “Chad Ferguson” way, which if you have not figured out by now, often varies greatly from the way you have “always been told”.

As I mentioned in the choosing a catfish reel article, I like round baitcasters, Abu Garcia Ambassadeur 6500C3 reels to be exact but the basic functions are going to apply to most baitcasting reels regardless of what brand you use. There may be a few features missing from other models, and the parts may look slightly different but at the end of the day, the basic nuts and bolts will apply to all of them.

I am going to run through these parts explaining what they are, provide a brief description of what each one does and then when I come back with some additional articles I will go into further detail on the “proper setup” and use and then my setup and use.

Drag (often referred to as star drag)

The drag adjustment is this “star” shaped piece located between the handle and the end of the fishing reel, and perhaps one of the more if not the most important piece of equipment on the baitcast fishing reel. When the drag is turned clockwise, it tightens and when it is turned counter clockwise it loosens. This increases or decreases tension on the drag washers inside the reel which controls the reels ability to “slip” when something is pulling on your fishing line.

Spool Tensioner

This little round knob is typically located on the same side of the reel as the handle and drag and is usually round. When the spool tensioner is turned clockwise the tension increases and when it is turned counter clockwise the tension decreases. The spool tensioner controls the amount of pressure that is placed on the spool (the round part of the baitcast fishing reel that the line wraps around) and controls how much and how fast the spool is allowed to spin. Proper setting of the spool tensioner helps to prevent backlashes when casting.

Line Guide (Levelwind)

The fishing line runs through this part from the spool out to the fishing rod. The line guide moves back and forth as the handle is turned and spools the fishing line back onto the spool evenly and uniformly. As you cast the line guide moves back and forth as well.

Pawl (often also referred to as worm drive)

This is a long gear that runs from left to right across the reel. If you look at the bottom or back of where the line guide is located there is typically an exposed area where you can see the pawl inside a long metal tube and you can see the grooves in the pawl. This rotates and is what causes the line guide to move back and forth across the reel to spool the line on and off of the fishing reel uniformly.

Bait Clicker (often also referred to as a line alarm)

This is the switch located on the side of the reel. When the switch is pushed down it is typically in the off position and when it is pushed up it is typically in the on position. When the bait clicker is engaged it forces a small piece of metal (or sometimes plastic in more inexpensive reels) down that comes in contact with a gear. The friction of the bait clicker coming in contact with the other part causes a “clicking” noise when the spool moves in a forward or backward direction.

These are the basic parts of a baitcast reel. Like I stated before, I will be moving on to additional topics about baitcast fishing reels for catfish covering a number of different topics like proper settings for some of these parts, some basic maintenance and other “how to” information pertaining to baitcast fishing reels. To view some information on choosing a baitcast fishing reel for catfish ready choosing a catfish fishing reel and also check out my article on suggested catfish tackle. If you are considering buying a new catfish rod and reel you should read choosing a catfish rod as well.

Make sure you sign up for our feed to get updates by email whenever we add new articles, and sign up for our newsletter as well. Newsletter subscribers are eligible for free prizes and drawings as well as gain access to exclusive content that is not available through the main website. If you want to be “ultra” connected with Learn To Catch Catfish follow us on Twitter and stop by and “Like” us on Facebook.

If you like this article and information remember to post a comment below, click the “like” button below and “help me help you”.

Lake Turnover

Chad — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 10:00:47 +0000

Lake turnover is something that many people don’t understand and many people also fail to recognize when the lake turnover takes place. If you have a good understanding of the thermocline, then understanding lake turnover is pretty simple.

I know I have been pretty scientific lately with all of my articles, and they have received a lot of views but I have been a little surprised that there hasn’t been more comments.

This may not be real exciting stuff but part of learning how to catch fish and be consistently successful catching fish is learning the science behind it including what effects the water temperature and weather has on not only the lake, reservoir or river that you are fishing but also the fish themselves. The sooner an angler understands and recognizes that, the sooner he will begin to become more and more successful catching catfish.

If you have not already done so, go back and read the article I posted on thermocline effects and watch all of the videos I posted on the thermocline.

After you read that article and watch the videos then go read the article on catching catfish with the thermocline and watch that video (you need to be signed up for the newsletter to watch the video because it is not posted for the general public to access). In the video about catching catfish with the thermocline I cover how to use your graph (sonar fish finder) to locate the thermocline. I use the Lowrance LCX-15 on my Xpress HD22CC catfish boat but any powerful high resolution graph will work.

In the catfishing the thermocline video I also cover some specific techniques that you can use to locate and catch blue catfish, and even some really nice sized blue catfish with a thermocline presence.

Understanding Lake Turnover

I go into some greater detail in the video below but here are the basics of what happens. As the weather begins to cool in the late summer and early fall the water surface temperature begins to drop. As this occurs it also typically accompanies increasing winds on the lakes and reservoirs as well.

The layers of water that existed when the thermocline was present begin to “mix” and all that cooler water that was on the bottom level of the lake (the “dead zone” that I talked about) begins to mix with the middle layer and the upper layer. All these different layers of water that existed mix together.

All that decaying matter that I referenced several times that was on the bottom of the lake decaying and sucking all of the oxygen out of the bottom layer starts to come up into the upper layers of water as well.

You can tell when the lake turnover starts to take place, because the water changes colors, and it often times happens quite suddenly. You will be out on the water fishing one day and everything will be fine, and a day or two later you return and the water will be a dark color. Often times people say it looks like coffee or chocolate milk but I wouldn’t go that far, to me it just usually looks much darker than normal and you notice a lot of “junk” floating around in the water (that’s the decaying matter coming up).

Another way you can recognize the turnover taking place is there is usually a very foul smell to the water. I have heard it compared to rotten eggs or sulfur but it never smells that way to me, it just smells bad.

Lake turnover can be one of the toughest times of the year to fish. I have had some successful fishing trips for catfish during this time, but they have been few and far between. I usually take this time of year to clear my guide schedule and don’t do much fishing. I use that opportunity to scramble and work on getting all my gear repaired, maintained and ready for the amazing fall catfishing that will quickly approach (like cormorant catfishing). I do all of my boat repairs and maintenance, respool fishing reels etc during this time so I don’t have “down time” when the fishing is really good (Fall and Winter fishing is some of my favorite).

Make sure you watch the lake turnover video below, and as always comment and let me know what you think!

Catching Catfish With A Thermocline

Chad — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 08:00:34 +0000

The other day I covered the effects of the thermocline on catfishing.

The basics of what was covered in the effects of the thermocline on catfishing were:

What a thermocline is
What bodies of water will develop a thermocline (lakes, rivers etc)
When it will develop (at what times of year and basic water temperatures)
Information on catfish behavior in this situation and how it effects all species of fishing including bait fish
A couple of basic hints on how to locate this

Before you go any further with watching this next video, I would suggest again that you go back and watch the first video on thermocline and make sure you watch all three videos.

I was a little surprised looking at the statistics on the views on the videos that a lot of people watched the first video but didn’t watch parts two and three.

I know this is not a real exciting topic, and the videos were length but I tried to go into great detail to make sure there was good information available so you could have a good understand of the effects this has on fishing.

In this next video, I am going into greater detail on how exactly you can view the thermocline (if your body of water has one) using a graph (aka fish finder) like the Lowrance LCX-15 that I use on my Xpress HD22CC and also go into greater details on some of the techniques that I have used to target fish it these situations, and also why I prefer some other techniques. if you will take the time to watch the video it will give you some good insight into an effective technique that will produce some nice catches, if you are willing to invest the time. I also give you a better indication on where I am not fishing right now.

Again, some of this is pretty technical but it is important to understand if you plan on fishing in the warmer weather.

Like I said in the post about effects of the thermocline on catfishing post I am going to distribute this video to the newsletter subscribers only. If you were already subscribed to the newsletter you should be receiving an email with a link to the video. if you are not subscribed to the newsletter now, and you would like to view the video, just go and sign up for the newsletter and I will send a link out again here in the next few days.

Make sure you watch the video soon because I am only going to leave it active for a week or so and will be removing it after that.

Once you have had an opportunity to watch the video, come back and leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Update

I have received a number of emails from people wanting to know why they haven’t received the link to the catfishing video. Please read below for trouble shooting information.

Troubleshooting

1. The newsletter is different than the daily feed. Make sure that you have actually signed up for the newsletter. I will email the link one more time in a few days so everyone that was not signed up (or had issues) can view it and then I am taking the video offline.

Here is an example of what the daily feed looks like. This is NOT the newsletter. If you are not sure if you have signed up for the newsletter then go to the newsletter page and try to sign up again. If you are already signed up it will tell you.

2. You signed up for the newsletter but didn’t “opt in”. When you sign up an email is immediately dispatched to your email address where you have to click a link to verify your email address and authorize us to send emails to you. This is called a double opt in, which is a protection for me so folks cannot claim that I am spamming them. Make sure you clicked that link to “opt in”.

3. Check your “spam” or “junk” folder and see if the email with the link is there. The subject line of the email reads “Exclusive Content – Catfishing The Thermocline”. If the email is in your spam or junk folder, move it to your inbox or mark the email as “not spam” and it should correct the issue for you in the future.

4. If all else fails, and you cannot figure it out, send me an email at LearnToCatchCatfish@gmail.com and include your name and email address and I will look and see if I can figure out if you are signed up or not. Please use this as a last resort as it me take me a few days to get to this.

Catfish Limb Lines

Chad — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 07:00:46 +0000

Catfishing with limb lines is a pretty simple process, which is often call tree limb fishing or limb lining as well. Just like many other things with catfishing, what it is called depends on the area you are in. No matter what you call it, fishing with limb lines is just another form of setline fishing.

Trotlines, juglines, bank lines, throw lines, pole lines and rubber band lines are all forms of setline fishing or set lines.

Fishing with catfish limb lines is a very popular form of catfishing and is very popular among people who are into flathead catfish.

The catfish limb line is in itself a petty simple piece of equipment although in recent years there have been some attempts to modernize this form of fishing with some high tech equipment.

The basic equipment is some braided nylon twine, some catfish bait and a hook. The bait you will use for your limb line will depend on the species of catfish that you want to target with your set lines.

Twine

First let’s start with the actual line or twine, which should be braided nylon twine. Braided nylon twine is available at just about any sporting good retailer or outlet.

Braided nylon twine comes in a variety of sizes. The smallest sized braided nylon twine you will usually find is #9 braided nylon which has a break strength of about 73 lbs. if you are going to be fishing for smaller fish like channel catfish or smaller blue catfish that would probably be sufficient but if you are going to be catfishing for bigger catfish like flathead catfish then you should use a larger braided nylon twine like a #18 braided nylon twine which has a break strength of 170 pounds. I like to use Mariner Green Braided Nylon Twine.

Hooks

Hooks are a matter of personal preference. If you are going to be fishing for smaller catfish then I would recommend you use a smaller circle hook like the Eagle Claw Circle Sea Offset Circle Hooks – Model L197 or if your not a fan of circle hooks then look at any hook like a Kahle hook in size 4/0. Be advised though that circle hooks perform very well on set lines.

If your going to be going after bigger fish like big flathead catfish or big blue catfish then look at using a larger circle hook like the Daiichi Circle Chunk Light Hooks, the Mustad Demon Circle Hooks – Model 39951BLN or even a traditional J-Hook. Flathead catfish are well known for straightening out hooks. If you’re going after them then you want to make sure you use a heavy duty hook on your set lines.

Don’t be afraid to experiment with different hooks and see what works best for you.

Bait

If you’re fishing for smaller fish then you can use cut bait or some forms of prepared catfish baits. One bait you might consider is my product, Redneck’s Catfish Bait Soap which is a lye soap catfish bait that is specifically designed as catfish bait for setlines like those you will be using.

If you’re fishing for flatheads, you will want to fish with live bait. Most commonly perch, bluegill, goldfish and bullhead catfish are used as bait for flatheads. Whatever you choose you want to make sure that your bait is good and lively when you bait your lines. Having good lively bait that will stay alive is an essential step to catching flatheads. While flatheads will occasionally bite dead bait or cut bait, especially in the spring, flatheads are well known for preferring live bait.

Building and Setting Your Catfish Limb Lines

Most experienced fishermen using this method of fishing will tell you that they build their lines on the water and don’t prepare them before hand.

The preferred method is to find a tree limb overhanging the water in the lake, river or creek where you will be catfishing and identify where you will set them. The ideal tree is one that hangs over the water and has a good flexible branch. Branches that are somewhat flexible and will move slightly are preferred because they help reduce the chance of the catfish straightening the hook or pulling the hook from their mouth.

If you cannot locate a flexible branch you might want to consider adding a piece of bicycle inner tube or bungee cord to allow some flex in the line. This can be done by securely tying the inner tube bungee cord to the limb and adding the line to it at the bottom. This really only needs to be considered for branches that don’t have any flex and only if your fishing for big fish.

Tie your line to the tree using a firm knot of your choice (or to your inner tube or bungee cord). Once you have tied off to the limb you should measure off a length of twine to your preferred depth in the water. How deep or shallow you set these in the water is a matter of personal preference and something you will learn through trial and error.

One well known technique for flatheads is to set the bait right at the water level where the live bait is suspended just enough in the water to keep the bait alive and lively. Doing so, allows the bait fish to swim around and splash a lot and makes a lot of noise, which is believed to assist in attracting flatheads. You can obviously rig the bait suspended below the water line as well to any depth of your liking.

If your fishing for smaller fish and baiting with cut bait, dead bait or Redneck’s Catfish Bait Soap you should experiment with setting your baits at depths below the water line and even down towards the bottom of the water column.

Slide your hook onto the line and then tie a slip knot onto the mainline with the end of your line. Once secure, slide the slip knot up on the twine about 6 inches (or more) above the hook. This allows the line to slip when the fish bites the bait allowing some “play” in the line and helps with setting the hook in the fish’ mouth. This is an optional step but can be very effective in increasing hooksets.

Some anglers will add split shot weights above the baits to help weight the lines but I typically have fished mine weightless and just used the weight of the bait to hold the line down.

Responsibility and Ethics

Obviously when you set limb lines you should keep track of where you set them and you need to make sure that you run them (check them) on a frequent basis, at a minimum twice a day, but preferably more (when baited).

Also make sure when you are done fishing that you remove them from the area.

Big catfish are breeding fish that take years to grow to large sizes. Please fish responsibly and when you catch big catfish take a picture with them and then return them for the waters to grow and continue to spawn and populate the lakes so we all have fish to enjoy for generations to come.

It only takes a few irresponsible anglers who let fish die on their lines, leave trash in the lakes, and act otherwise irresponsibly to give all of us a bad name.

Make sure that you become familiar with the laws in your state regarding fishing with a limb line or any form of set line and that you are in compliance with all state and local laws, because the laws on setline fishing will vary from state to state, and it is illegal in some states.

Make sure you visit the tackle page for the list of products that I use in my catfish guide service.

Visit all of the pages on Learn To Catch Catfish for more great catfishing tips, tricks and information. Subscribe to our daily feed for daily updates by email as we add them and our newsletter for less frequent updates and to gain access to exclusive content and promotions as they become available. You can also keep up by following on Twitter and Facebook.

Update 8/18/2010 – Video Added

Ethanol In Boats – The Silent Killer

Chad — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 09:00:17 +0000

I am not a mechanic or a small engine expert but I know my way around an engine and a wrench, or anything mechanical for that matter and rarely end up taking anything to a mechanic or “shop” to be repaired, I can usually figure it out.

I have mentioned a few times that I like to go tarpon fishing in the Florida Keys and a number of years ago when I was in the keys I noticed that all of the gas pumps had “ETHANOL FREE” stickers on them. Honestly, I hadn’t paid much attention or put much thought into it at the time and a few months later I was over at West Boats getting some parts for my Xpress HD22CC and some how the topic of ethanol and boat motors came up. I again, did not pay much attention to it.

Several weeks later another catfish guide that helps me with clients from time to time called me and asked me if I could fish some clients for him, because his boat had broken down, this went on over the course of a week or so while his boat was being repaired with me trying to scramble between my and the other guides at North Texas Catfish Guide Service trying to help keep this guides clients on the water.

Well, this other guide finally got his boat back and learned that ethanol fuel additive was the culprit of the damage of his motor, which finally got my attention so I reached out to a couple of different marine mechanics I know to get the details on what exactly was going on with ethanol and boat motors.

I have two friends right now who are going with the same issues with their motors and again it is due to ethanol in their boats, so I though I would put something on here and hopefully help others avoid the time and frustration (and lost fishing time).

The basic nuts and bolts of how ethanol effects boats (as it has been explained to me) is this.

Ethanol performs fine in most cars and most cars don’t sit for extended periods of time with unused gas in the tank like many boats do.

Boats however (or some boats) sit for extended periods of time with gas in the tank. What happens when the boats sit with this ethanol added gas in the tank is the ethanol sinks to the bottom of the tank. If there is water in the fuel or water vapor (which is a very common problem with boats) the water absorbs the ethanol at the bottom of the tank (where the fuel pickup is for most motors).

Now you have this big mess of water an ethanol at the bottom of your gas tank and you go and crank up your boat motor, which sucks this watery ethanol added mess into your boat motor.

The second problem is that ethanol is a solvent.

Older fuel systems get varnish and other junk into the fuel systems, and then the ethanol gets sucked into the fuel system breaking all that varnish and gunk loose, which in turn causes problems.

The results of both of these issues is generally the same. The motor goes from running fine, to spattering, sputtering, popping and often times the end result is a motor that won’t start or won’t stay running.

This is becoming more and more of a problem, and I spoke to a marine mechanics the other day that said it had increased his repair business in a major way.

The mechanic said that ethanol is the hardest on boat motors in this order:

1. Two Stroke Fuel Injected Outboards

2. Two Stroke Carbureted Outboards

3. Inboard Outboards

4. 4 Stroke Outboards

Way back when I first recognized this was an issue I started asking around on how to prevent these problems with ethanol in boats and the feedback was all the same.

Here is your course of prevention:

First, install a Fuel Filter/Water Separator Kit on your boat between the tank and the engine. Most boats have these built into their engines but they are insufficient. These are a good idea anyway because again, water in boat gas is a problem and they can save a ton of headaches. If you buy marina gas (which is like playing Russian roulette with your boat motor in many places) these are a MUST have regardless of the ethanol issue.

Second, make sure you change the Filter a couple of times a year.

Finally, make sure you are adding fuel stabilizer every time you fill up. I am using Marine Formula Sta Bil because that was what was recommended to me across the board by everyone I have spoken with. I was also told that it was very important to make sure that you add the Marine Formula Sta Bil before you fill the boat up with gas and not after.

If you decide not to listen to my warnings, don’t come crying to me when your broken down and shelling out a bunch of cash to fix your boat motor.

Help Me Help You!

Chad — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 10:00:01 +0000

I want to thank everyone for all of the positive feedback that has been sent by email and in comments on the different articles.

I have received a number of emails and comments from people wanting to know what they can do to help me with Learn To Catch Catfish and offering assistance.

I appreciate all the offers for help more than you will ever know. I have some huge plans for this website in the future and am excited about the future of this project.

That being said, with the outpouring of positive feedback and offers for help, I wanted to post a quick message outlining what you can do to help me keep this site going, and growing for the future so I can continue to share information here and grow the website.

These are all things that don’t cost a dime and only take a few seconds to do, but they can have significant impacts on the overall success of the website. I won’t bore everyone with details on all the behind the scenes stuff and how and why it helps me for you to do these things, but if you could help with any or all of these things I would greatly appreciate it!

Let me preface this by saying that some of this is probably heading into an area that some of you have never heard of or have no intent of being involved in (like Twitter and Facebook) and that is 100% okay, don’t stress and if you are no interested or it’s not your “deal” then just skip it and move on, but I do appreciate any and all involvement or “help” you can give me!

1. Comment On Articles

When you read an article, comment on it. This has a lot of impact on the website and also helps me greatly to let me know how I am doing with articles and gives me ideas for new articles. I read each and every comment that is posted and make notes on ideas for future articles, and often times try to respond to most if not all questions that are posted.

To comment you just go to the bottom of the page, fill out the info and hit submit.

The first time you leave a comment it will not show up immediately (the first one has to be approved, this is just a way to control spammers).

If you are wondering how to get an avatar (your picture beside your name when you comment) you can find instructions here on how to get an avatar (gravatar).

2. Subscribe To The “Feed”

On the right hand side of the page there is a box where you can enter your email address and subscribe or you can just click here.

Once you do this you will receive an email asking you to verify your subscription, you must complete this step. If for some reason you don’t receive the email to verify your email address, check your spam or junk mail folder. If the email is not there, it usually means you entered your email address wrong. The more subscribers there are the easier it is for me to get prizes from sponsors etc so it really helps me to increase these numbers.

Once you subscribe, you will get a short excerpt of articles sent to your email whenever I publish a new article or information.

3. Sign Up For The Newsletter

Go to the newsletter link at the top of the page, enter your email address and name and subscribe to the email newsletter. Once you do this you will receive an email asking you to verify your subscription, you must complete this step. If for some reason you don’t receive the email to verify your email address, check your spam or junk mail folder. If the email is not there, it usually means you entered your email address wrong.

If for some reason you cannot see the box to sign up for the newsletter on the newsletter page, that usually means you are using a web browser that needs to be updated. You can update your web browser, or just download Google Chrome. Google Chrome is free and is a much faster web browser than many of the other browsers that are out there today. If you download and install Google Chrome all features of the website will work correctly.

4. Ask Questions

If you have questions about catfishing, email me the question through the ask a question page and ask! This helps me with ideas for articles and videos and gives me something to work off of.

I might not answer quickly but I will ultimately answer, I promise. I have a huge backlog now so I work on them as I can and try to work the answers into articles as I can.

My telephone numbers are readily available on my guide website, please don’t take offense to this but that is my business line for booking fishing trips. Please don’t call me to ask questions about articles or get answers to questions that you emailed me and I have not had a chance to respond to (unless they pertain to booking fishing trips).

5. Spread The Word

There are two things you can do in this area that would really help me.

First, if you have friends or family that likes to fish for catfish, and you appreciate this website, send them an email or tell them in person to stop by and check it out.

Second, if you participate in message boards or fishing forums and you see someone asking a question about something I have covered here that would be helpful, respond to their question and paste a link to the Learn To Catch Catfish article into your response on the message board or fishing forum directing them here. This not only helps with bringing new readers here, but also helps with some behind the scenes “internet stuff” with how the website shows up in the search engines.

6. “Like” Learn To Catch Catfish on Facebook and “Like” Articles

If you are not a member of Facebook go there and sign up for a free account. Then go to the following steps.

If you are already a member obviously you can skip the signup portion.

Go to our Learn To Catch catfish Facebook page here and click on the “Like” button at the top of the page so you are a “Fan” of Learn To Catch Catfish. If you really wanna get crazy, you can become my “friend” on Facebook also!

Second, When you read an article, at the bottom of each article you will see a “Like” button. Click on this “Like” button when you read an article. Again, this is something that helps with that behind the scenes “internet stuff” with how the website shows up in the search engines.

7. Tweet

Go to Twitter and sign up for a free account, it only takes a few seconds. Once you sign up for a Twitter account go to this link and “follow” me on Twitter @catchcatfish (you just click on the “follow” button towards the top of the page).

Once you sign up for a Twitter account when you read an article, look for the “Tweet” button on the top left hand side. Click on that small “Tweet” button and a small box will pop up and you will see a blue box that says “Tweet” click on that. That sounds a link from our articles out on Twitter.

Again, this is something that helps with that behind the scenes “internet stuff” with how the website shows up in the search engines.

8. Subscribe On Youtube

Go to Youtube and sign up for a free account.

Once you have signed up for a free account on Youtube, go to the Learn To Catch Catfish Youtube Channel and “Subscribe”. Just click on the yellow button on the left hand side of the page.

I know this is a lot to throw out there at once. If you can’t do them all or don’t want to do them all then I totally understand, but the more numbers I have behind me in all of these different formats the easier it is for me to leverage this website to make more an bigger things happen, which in turn creates more value for you!

Here is a short readers digest recap, again these things REALLY help me in being able to continue to provide you with great quality articles and videos!

1. This is a BIG one! Comment on articles and ask questions, go here to get info on getting an avatar (that little picture beside your name).

2. Sign up for the “feed” to get article updates when we publish them. Remember to verify your email address.

3. Sign up for the newsletter. Remember to verify your email address.

4. Ask questions through the ask a question page if there are topics I am not covering that you would like to see or ideas you have. I appreciate the input and questions.

5. Email your fishing friends or just tell them in person to visit Learn To Catch Catfish.

6. If you participate in message boards or forums and you see someone ask a question that is answered here, post a link to that article on the message board.

7. Sign up for a free account on Facebook and become a fan of Learn To Catch Catfish on Facebook.

8. When you get a facebook account click the “Like” button at the bottom of the articles if you think it’s good.

9. Sign up for a free twitter account and then follow @catchcatfish on twitter.

10. Once you have a twitter account click the “tweet” button at the top left hand side of the page when you read an article if you think it’s worth sharing!

11. Sign up for a free Youtube account and subscribe to our Youtube Channel

Thank you all again for all of your feedback and I appreciate any and all help that you can offer in these areas!

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