FAD - Fish Aggregating Device

[fishing-mavericks]

Initially I was thinking about setting a FAD offshore, after hearing the feedback from other members I now realise there is much potential for damage so I dont think I'll do it anymore. I'd be interested to know what the cost of having one setup by fishfad here in Brisbane would be though, spread between a group of guys it might be affordable.

thanks again for the input guys!

[straddiebrad]

mate you could use old milk crates with a large float straped in side of it maybe two or three crates,been thinkin about this for a while.brad

[chris_stewart14]

What are you going to make it out of? You going to float it or sink it? You must have a bloody big boat to cart it out there or are you going to assemble the whole thing out there?

[Bri The Pom]

How about pallets with a bouyant material in the middle of them. I caught my only dolpin fish next to a fad.

Good luck.

[waldo]

Just another danger to shipping. It will be taken out by a trawler, ship or bad weather and just end up as more rubbish on the beach. If it causes an accident or injury and can be traced to you.... :dry:

[kriso]

waldo wrote:

Just another danger to shipping. It will be taken out by a trawler, ship or bad weather and just end up as more rubbish on the beach. If it causes an accident or injury and can be traced to you.... :dry:

i agree, with out proper research and engineering and mantaince this could end in alot of trouble, just something to think about.

[fishing-mavericks]

I'm mindful of the same thing guys. Simply leaving something out in the ocean isnt a great idea in case it can cause damage to other vessels. But that said, alot of FADs exist and dont get in the way of ships and trawlers. I think this will come down to doing correct research on placing the FAD out of shipping lanes, away from trawling grounds and far enough out to see so that it wont be a nuisance. The ocean is a big place, so if placed in the right place (just like the other FADs owned by fishing clubs) I dont see this being a problem.

Thanks for the input!

[fishing-mavericks]

and to put things into perspective, the blokes that leave their crab pots in the middle of the bay and in random spots between the river mouth and mud island have far more chance of destroying a prop and outboard than me putting something way out to sea that is 5 meters under the surface. Just something to think about in case you're of the opinion that every FAD in the ocean equals reckless damage

[FREEWILLY]

I know of some fads. not their position though, i have seen them before they were dropped out, it is highly ilegal , i can understand why it is illegal, but a FAD left 200ft deep might never ever become a problem.

The ones i have seen were made out of truck tires filled with concrete and a plastic pole stricking out of them, two of these with about 30 metres of shadecloth between them sunk to the bottom.

I have seen the fish caught from this Fad, it has been there for over 12 months and has a huge population of fish congragate around it (apparently)

[fishing-mavericks]

when I hear stories like that I can understand why FAD's can get a bad rap from some people. If the device is in violation of the law and common sense then it's just a downright selfish and irresponsible thing for someone to do.

There are still legal avenues for setting FADs out offshore, and if this is the best way to do it then I'll go that route. The last thing I would do is endanger someone else's boat just for the short gain of attracting some fish.

[tugger]

5m deep would still cause damage to a comercial vessel in a large swell this could be near the surface and foul props .there is no shipping lanes out there they can travel in close to shore heading north to minimise current or travel wide to find the current .becareful as they register fads to be placed on charts for shipping and i'm shore nobody would like to be responsable for a marine incident. ships can be 20m draft and larger comercial boats can draw 5m+ and it sounds like most of these fads proposed hear would disable a prop

[fishing-mavericks]

tugger good point mate, I was thinking about depths relative to fishing boats. Ships have a much deeper draft so I will have to rethink the idea of submerging the FAD. Glad I asked everyone before going off with a half baked plan

[Feral]

FADs dont have to be a solid mass, nor do they have to be near shipping channels or trawling grounds.

If you put it outside the 3 mile limit you dont have to worry about Qld law, only federal laws. (Qld frown on FAD's reckon they dont do anything, Feds are more acoomodating). Best idea I have heard of for a FAD is a length of that plastic temporary fencing used to keep pedestrians out of roadworks, anchor one end, 20 litre drum the other end held by strong mono, designed so the drum floats bout 5-6m under the surface. Nothing will catch that, even if it does, it wont do much damage, the mono will break.

[fishing-mavericks]

hmmmm thats interesting, making the construction in a way that if it comes into contact it cant actually do damage to props. 100lb mono would do far less harm than 6mm poly rope.

[tugger]

there is no shipping channels outside so where is it out of the way the vessels i have relocated vessels before that draw up to 6m in depth and have props 2.5m in diameter and in a swell you could snag something 10m deep . to place something permanetly out there would have to be ilegal unless registered as charts show fads along the east coast.

[bootyinblue]

Interesting thread... Is there not FAD's professionally placed and a list of them somewhere so people can fish on and around the mark?

[tugger]

Feral wrote:

FADs dont have to be a solid mass, nor do they have to be near shipping channels or trawling grounds.

If you put it outside the 3 mile limit you dont have to worry about Qld law, only federal laws. (Qld frown on FAD's reckon they dont do anything, Feds are more acoomodating). Best idea I have heard of for a FAD is a length of that plastic temporary fencing used to keep pedestrians out of roadworks, anchor one end, 20 litre drum the other end held by strong mono, designed so the drum floats bout 5-6m under the surface. Nothing will catch that, even if it does, it wont do much damage, the mono will break.

the last time we got fishing line around our props at work it cost $30000 for a new seal and $300000 to go on to the slip . then another boat to replace ours while we were on the slip it nearly sunk the company that employs around 50 people. this is why i'm very hesitant to give any positives on this idea. the danger to life is a real posibility at sea if you lose your ability to monuvure as well

[Davo_Dinkum]

interesting topic and read.

i thought a fad was the latest craze.

[chris_stewart14]

It is an interesting thread guys.. Damage to boats is one thing but damage to the ocean is definately another.. All suggestions so far of plastic fencing, truck tires, milk crates.. These are far from natural biodegradable substances and unless it is engineered very well there is every chance it will break up and we will have ten tonne more plastic junk floating around our ocean..

I dont overly think it should be something legal for the home hobbyist.

[fishing-mavericks]

tugger. that's a big eye opener mate, I couldnt have even dreamt up a scenario like that. Definitely made me rethink the whole idea!