# Ice eater questions



## thatguy2

I have done a lot of sifting through old threads looking for answers. You may have seen the thread about my pond build. It is 220 yards from the house to the pond. I could run electricity from my house to the pond but don’t want to go to the expense unless I know it would be worth it. I have no issues buying a generator to power it since we have a transfer switch on the house and it could be dual purpose use. I’ve got a power plant cooling lake 10 miles away, a 10k acre lake 1 mile away, and some river that doesn’t freeze and is non hunting 6 miles away. Some questions
1. Do you run the ice eater full time once the deep freeze hits?
2. Is it a build it and they will come kind of scenario?
3. How do you hunt it to keep birds coming back?
4. Any other advice?
Been seeing geese and ducks fly over the house. I think an ice eater would keep the majority of the pond ice free.


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## DisplacedDuck

1. Depending on your definition of "deep freeze," it is not just advised to run them 24/7, it is _required_ to keep a hole open. 

2. I don't have enough experience to say if it is a sure thing in every scenario, but I can say that when we have a deep freeze, the birds we see are more apt to work. But, I'd be remiss if I didn't say that when a deep freeze hits we usually see only 10% of the birds as on normal days.

3. Again, I don't have a ton of varied experience, but in my neck of the woods we're more than likely hunting passer-bys, so we don't worry too much about over hunting at any point in the season. That being said, if you were truly worried about over-hunting I'd just observe the pond on days you can't hunt, if possible, and see what activity is like and when there is activity.

4. Don't over estimate the power of an ice eater. It will keep a beautiful pocket open in warmer sub-freezing temps, but back in Missouri, where the windchill has pushed temps below 0 for days on end now, our two (2) 3/4hp ice eaters, started before the freeze and ran around the clock, have struggled to keep much of a hole open. Is there still a hole? Yes. Does it look enticing to a bird flying overhead? Debatable. I'd argue not really.

In conclusion. I am a huge fan of ice eaters, but they have their limitations. Don't expect them to keep a huge pocket open in frigid cold temps, and they aren't a golden ticket, although I do feel you are more apt to work birds, if there are any birds to work.

Hope that helps!


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## Timber Hole

If you can run permanent power do it!!! Generators are a pain in the $@& and noisy, some more than others. Being able to flip a switch and have open water is an ideal scenario. The deeper you can set the ice eater the better hole you will have.


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## DisplacedDuck

Timber Hole brings up a good point, and better addresses another question the OP asked-run power or not? and I agree with him completely, running power is the way to go. We had power ran to one of our spots and it made life 110% easier. From keeping batteries charged to running the ice eaters. Definitely the way to go.

*HOWEVER*, in your situation I'd rather you 'prove the concept' from running eaters off a generator for a season or two before going to the expense without any knowledge of if it'd even work. If after a season or two you see positive results, it's well worth the expense, but only after it has been proven. Just my $0.02.


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## thatguy2

If we get rain and the pond fills I thought about running it off a generator next year to see what happens. Ideally I’d run electricity for the ice eater and build a blind near it as well so we could have some juice in it as well. Pond is 12 ft deep in the middle. Pond size roughly 1/4 acre so could a big one keep the whole pond open? I’m in KS. High today was 9 low last night was -6.


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## Timber Hole

Here is a pic of my hole after running the ice eater for 24 hours. Eater is located on the right side of the pic and is pointed left. It sets up a circulation in the pond and will eventually melt the center area. The temps were single digit and the hole is only 3 to 4 feet deep. If you can get the eater 5 to 7 deep you'll get better results.


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## Waterdog Trainer

thatguy2 said:


> If we get rain and the pond fills I thought about running it off a generator next year to see what happens. Ideally I’d run electricity for the ice eater and build a blind near it as well so we could have some juice in it as well. Pond is 12 ft deep in the middle. Pond size roughly 1/4 acre so could a big one keep the whole pond open? I’m in KS. High today was 9 low last night was -6.



One eater will not keep a 1/4 acre pond open with the temps you describe. When temps are that cold you can keep a hole but it's hard for them to keep up. It would take several to keep the majority of it open. More trouble than what it would be worth. You don't need the entire pond open. Just where your blind is. 

Electric power with GFEI would be the best for a number of reasons. If you elect to run a gen for a test be prepared to spend some bucks on fuel. You may spend enough on fuel the first season to pay for wire and a trencher.


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## KSU86

3 acre pond. 1hp ice-eater runs on electricity. Conduit/Wiring is pretty pricey - 200 yards from road. I anticipated this pond being covered up during cold snaps -it rarely works that way.
My neighbor across the road has a nice 7-10 acre complex (old fish farm) & they sometimes hold decent #'s of duck & geese, but they over-hunt & push roosting birds out regularly.
I still set up the Ice-eater and pay the electric bill, every December - hoping to keep more birds in the Valley. Every experience is unique. In my case, the hunting benefit is minimal.


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## bill cooksey

Always interesting how different spots are easier, or harder, for an ice eater to keep open. As far as being effective in helping kill ducks, they are a huge deal if you are in an area where a big concentration of ducks are regularly out looking for food. Most of my experience has been in flooded fields, so when the birds leave the roost to look for food, we look perfect to them. In our application, one usually has a huntable hole open in under two hours. Usual scenario is to get there about 11:00 am to fire it up. Birds here usually fly in the afternoon during a freeze, so we're set by about 1:00. The place I've done it the most has the MS river on one side and big refuges a few miles away in the other three directions. Water is so shallow it barely covers the ice eater when it's flat on its side. It's pretty much a perfect scenario for killing during a freeze.


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## Drake Decimator

Watch out for beavers if you have them in you pond, SOBs have clipped my cord several times. I run the cord out of the water i a metal pipe and zip tied to brush/trees to the generator. Nothing like showing up with several inches of ice and plugging in the generator and it doesn't rev up from draw of ice eater. Time for 330 conibears I suppose.


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## thatguy2

I’m sure the beavers will eventually find th pond. Neighbor traps so easy fix. One thing I am concerned with is the ice eater supercooling the water and stressing the HBG and HSB I plan on stocking in the spring.


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## Old Critter

I agree with everything Displaced Duck says above. We use a 1hp 220volt ice eater that plugs into the blind's power box. The blind is about 300 yards behind the garage and the buried wire runs in between. We have a circuit breaker just for the ice eater.

There are far fewer ducks around when the deep freeze sets in. But we leave it on 24/7 once the evening temps fall into the 20's so we can at least hunt. Better than TV in the cabin.

So far, no beaver problems. But we have a trapper who can take whatever he wants, as long as he takes the beaver too. Friends have lost cords to beaver. But then they don't trap either.


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## smashdn

Buddies run one on a 1/2 acre pond when it gets cold enough to freeze. If the roost area starts to freeze (not the pond but another lake that is not hunted 1 mile away) the birds don't fly, they sit tight and keep the hole open.

I guess my point is if you aren't getting new birds in a truly deep freeze the birds may not fly. Your ice eater and open hole do you no good.


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## thatguy2

This afternoon I would estimate 500 canadas and 5k snows flew over while I was deer hunting.


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## hannibal

We ran electric and can run two ice eaters. We only run 1 and we also run our pump. Birds actually prefer the warmer pump water and will almost always use pump ditch when deep freeze hits. We have the ice eater on a temperature switch so it doesn't run when above 32 degrees. It is not an automatic thing where we are at. Upon first hard freeze birds on refuge fly out once a day to feed and right back to refuge to keep there hole open. It often takes a week+ of a hard freeze and cold temps to have birds hitting our man engineered ice holes. I would prefer a hard freeze for few days with a good thaw everytime. Birds go back to using water and food sources on our pools vs going to dry fields and back to fuge. With all that said we have had some very good hunts over the years in our ice eater/pump holes. 

Good luck


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## thatguy2

Getting ready. Ordered an ice ripper. Outfitter buddy says they are better than an ice eater. He sold his ice eaters and is running 7 ice rippers with 2 more on order. He thinks just one will keep my pond mostly open. Do you guys just build a small shelter to keep the genset dry?


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## Timber Hole

thatguy2 said:


> Getting ready. Ordered an ice ripper. Outfitter buddy says they are better than an ice eater. He sold his ice eaters and is running 7 ice rippers with 2 more on order. He thinks just one will keep my pond mostly open. Do you guys just build a small shelter to keep the genset dry?



What’s an Ice Ripper? Got a link?


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## thatguy2

Timber Hole said:


> What’s an Ice Ripper? Got a link?


https://j2outdoorsllc.com/collections/frontpage/products/ice-ripper-1-horse-power


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## GUNNERX2

30 sq yards is not much of a hole. Hopefully it was a typo and they meant 30 yards square, big difference.


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## thatguy2

GUNNERX2 said:


> 30 sq yards is not much of a hole. Hopefully it was a typo and they meant 30 yards square, big difference.


They updated the website
20 x 35 yard Hole (please allow ample run time to acquire desired results)


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## stevena198301

GUNNERX2 said:


> *30 sq yards *is not much of a hole. Hopefully it was a typo and they meant *30 yards square*, big difference.


Can you elaborate on this? Seems to me, either way you word it, square yards, or yards square, they both equal 30 yards by 30 yards(?).


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## GUNNERX2

stevena198301 said:


> Can you elaborate on this? Seems to me, either way you word it, square yards, or yards square, they both equal 30 yards by 30 yards(?).



Ummm, ain't gonna rag on ya but I could and it would be fun 

3 yards x 10 yards = 30 square yards
30 yards x 30 yards = 30 yards square


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## stevena198301

GUNNERX2 said:


> Ummm, ain't gonna rag on ya but I could and it would be fun
> 
> 3 yards x 10 yards = 30 square yards
> 30 yards x 30 yards = 30 yards square


Copy. Never claimed an Alabama public education was great.  I read both in my mind as MEANING 30x30. You cleared it up for me.


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## thatguy2

Is the Honda with an extended run kit still the gold standard for running these babies.


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## QakQak73

Looks like a knock-off of the system named the puddle buster.

Www.puddlebuster.com 

I have puddle buster and works well


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## Timber Hole

thatguy2 said:


> Is the Honda with an extended run kit still the gold standard for running these babies.



The Honda might be the gold standard for running the eater while hunting but in my opinion definitely not for extended operations. The Honda uses a fuel pump and the extended tank attaches in place of the fuel cap. As fuel is consumed in the factory tank it sucks fuel from the extended tank. If there is any air leak in the system it won’t draw fuel from the extended tank. I don’t see any practical way to test the system after each setup so if you do have a leak it’s going to run a few hours and quit.

I run a cheap generator that can be fed from a simple gravity feed setup. It’s heavier so it’s harder to steal and isn’t worth near as much as the Honda.

I would like to have a Honda to use while we are hunting. Much quieter than mine.


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## QakQak73

I run my Puddle Buster off a cheap Kingcraft generator

It runs 9-11 hours on a single tank of gas with no extenders


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## Timber Hole

I bought a generator from Cabelas when they had them on sale. I think I gave $300. I use a 12 gallon tank and it will run 30 hours. Let’s me tend it once a day.


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## DisplacedDuck

We use the Honda gens and love them. We use the extended tank for overnight operations and to Timber's point, they have been a hassle once or twice but for the most part they're fine. Can hardly be heard in the ditch back behind us w/ extension cords ran to the blind.


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## thatguy2

Ive looked at others but cant find kits to make them extensed run. I asked generac and they said it would void my warranty. I liked the look of the powerhouse from northern tool but dont know how I would get it to run longer.


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## Timber Hole

thatguy2 said:


> Ive looked at others but cant find kits to make them extensed run. I asked generac and they said it would void my warranty. I liked the look of the powerhouse from northern tool but dont know how I would get it to run longer.



As long as you are buying a generator with a carb and a factory tank above the carb it’s gravity feed. Elevate any big tank and connect it to the carb. It’s that simple.


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## bbfky

I ran 2 3/4 hp ice eaters off a Honda E2000 last season, the trick is to let one warm up first then disconnect then start the other one then plug back in, burned a ton of gas, Had a 12 gallon extended run fuel tank and with the really cold temps last year it was a pain. Ended up running 700Ft of electric this year and hopefully the electric bill will be a lot less than my fuel bill last year


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## shawbran

Here's a pontoon attachment that I'm running on my Power House Ice Eater. I was able to use a boat and set this in 15 ft of water. I opened a 200ft by 70ft hole in about two hours.


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## thatguy2

My ice ripper is still in the box in the shop. If I dont use it this year I will probably sell it.


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## The10%

bbfky said:


> I ran 2 3/4 hp ice eaters off a Honda E2000 last season, the trick is to let one warm up first then disconnect then start the other one then plug back in, burned a ton of gas, Had a 12 gallon extended run fuel tank and with the really cold temps last year it was a pain. Ended up running 700Ft of electric this year and hopefully the electric bill will be a lot less than my fuel bill last year


Just curious if you had a chance to run your ice eater yet this season? I'm in the same boat and will need to run 6-700ft of power to my pond. What size cable did you go with and any issues with power drop?
Thanks


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## bbfky

I ran #6 aluminum it barely fit in the breaker in my main panel you will want to coat with Noalox if you go aluminum. I also ran a 6x6 box in the pit because splicing it down to 12/2 in a smaller box was impossible, I tried a 4x4 and it was too tight. Never had any issues running both ice eaters utility pump other electric, I have it on a 20 amp but it would be fine on a 30amp. Not too much loss on a #6. I would have gone with a 10/2 but the electrical supply didn't have any long enough at the time so I went with the 6. a 10/2 would have put me at 20amps with the drop which would have been fine since I only needed 20amps. I did have to do one splice underground after miscalculating the distance I was 150 ft short so I spliced another 150 underground. my basic electric bill for service is 20$ just to have service I average 23-25$ a month with electric in the barn and the automatic utility pump that runs year round in the pit. Highest electric bill I had was in January/February where both ice eaters ran for several weeks straight non stop. electric bill was 40$ Outside of the upfront cost of the wire it was a good investment over gas.


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## The10%

Thanks for the reply bbfky, that's very helpful! That's what I was looking at was 10/2, I'll check out getting a spool of #6. Surprised that electrical bill is pretty low, definitely worth it.


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## bbfky

Good luck if you have any questions feel free to shoot me a PM. I think you would be fine with 10/2 it's easier to work with over #6.


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