Electrofishing

I am not a hard core survivalist but I am aware of the basics especially when faced with a SHTF type scenario. Having watched and spoken to many regarding survival when faced with a world without supermarkets or restaurants our reliance on hunting, fishing and farming will be essential. It is here I will discuss one of these topic, fishing.
We have all gone fishing from one point in time to another. A very relaxing past time or hobby, but not when you are starving and need fish immediately.

Well I came across this, electrofishing:

There are three types of electrofishers: backpack models, tote barge models, and boat mounted models, sometimes called a stunboat.

Backpack electrofisher generators are either battery or gas powered. They employ a transformer to pulse the current before it is delivered into the water. The anode is located at the end of a long, 2 meter pole and is usually in the form of a ring. The cathode is a long, 3 meter braided steel cable that trails behind the operator. The electrofisher is operated by a deadman's switch on the anode pole. There are a number of safety features built into newer backpack models, such as audible speakers that sound when the unit is operating, tilt-switches that incapacitate the electrofisher if the backpack is tilted more than 45 degrees, and quick-release straps to enable the user to quickly remove the electrofisher in the event of some emergency.

When boat electrofishing, the boat itself is the cathode, and the anode(s) are generally mounted off the bow. The stunned fish swim toward the anode, where they are caught alive using a dip net.[1] Towed barge electrofishers operate similarly to backpack electrofishers, with the exception that the generator is located on a floating barge instead of on a backpack. Often the barge can be left stationary on the shore and longer cathodes and anodes allow the crew to sample large areas. Barge electrofishers often employ gas-powered generators since a user does not have to carry the extra weight on his or her back.

Wiki - Electrofishing


It seems like such an easy solution to the old hook, line and sinker method of catching fish!



The technology is pretty simple, all it takes is the knowhow and desire to do this. I believe the main part of the equipment is an 'Ultrasonic Inverter', which I hope some more technically oriented people here on ATS can maybe explain in detail what exactly this device is/does and if there is an alternate' end of world' type substitute for this (welding equipment comes to mind). Since these are probably not just laying around everywhere.
I don't know, it sounded like a great idea to me, as an alternative to grabbing a fishing pole. Myself, I was never an outstanding fisher. After 20 minutes I'm ready to pull M-80's out and start lobbing them into the lake!

What do you guy's think?



Thanks. . . AB

hm interesting, This would definitely come in handy in a survival situation. Some may see this as 'cruel" or cheating when used in a hobby situation, it is illegal to fish at night with a flash light where I come from as it attracts the fish quite well. I assume this would fall under the same category.

It appears it actually attracts the fish and then kind of stuns them. Interesting, and actually illegal here if I remember right. I suppose in a shtf case, what is the difference.

I have an idea from this though...one that can attract the fish to where I fish

In the U.S. it is against the law to use this method, in a lawless situation it would be a good idea. I have always heard this method called a "Telephone" because people used old crank telephones to produce the charge years ago.
Back in the 70s my dad was friends with many law enforcement officers and they got together with some game wardens that had a telephone set up and i got to see this first hand on the Mississippi river. It only works well on fish without scales, so catfish were what was coming to surface. The small ones looked like the were walking on water. The really big ones was the interesting part. I was eight years old at the time and they looked like submarines. We all had dip nets and were scooping up what we could get our net around. The biggest we could get in were around 40 lbs. These were not the largest by far. We broke our alluminum dip nets trying to get larger fish after we had what we wanted. From what i remember the game wardens saying, this only works in flowing water, not so well in small ponds and lakes.

Great idea catch all you want......eat all you catch......
if these work efficiently we should have the fish population all but totally depleted even FASTER.....

reply to post by AnteBellum


Back in the old days, that method of getting supper didn't involved a cumbersome battery, but merely the small crank-powered generator from an even older wall-style telephone. These days, the readily available and relatively cheap old, army field telephone units work for the same purpose.

Not to mention that between households or within a compound, they can provide a secure communications network that won't by bothered by any EMT blast. But as a phone network, they will need batteries.

sounds interesting. I wonder why they are attracted to the electricity? In a shtf scenario the only drawback I see in this is the energy required. There are ways to charge batteries of course so I guess it would require a safe place to set up your fort. Just because the electrofishing equipment requires space and batteries can be heavy as well as the equipment required to keep them charged.
If trying to stay mobile it might get a bit bulky when your truck is out of gas and you have to decide what to carry on foot.

But still cool because I am a terrible fisherman, although I did catch an octopus once... by accident

Surplus Army field phones work very well for this.

You need to be closer to the fish, but it still does a good job of stunning them. A few hand cranks of the dynamo is all it takes.


Mine is an older WW2 model that's bigger than the canvas bag models from the 60's.


I use old speaker wire that fits in the leather case because the commo wire is too thin.


I have never used to take game fish since that is illegal, but I helped a friend empty a koi pond with it. The fish all lived too.

Is this what you are all talking about?



I'm not quite sure how to get it to work for electrocuting fish but I have seen these in almost every Army/Navy surplus store relatively cheap.
There are many new items on the market now that do the same thing, I believe there probably is a difference in power though. After surviving 'Sandy' for 5 days/nights without electricity or gas I've noticed these items popping up everywhere from Home Depot to Shoprite. They are relatively small and used to charge radios, cell phones and the like but I've seem some more powerful ones for general equipment charging.
I'd have to build one of these before I could give a better answer. Then I could switch the power source in and out independently to see what differences it makes. The fish in the fish tank aren't going to like that one, neither will the kids. . .

Studies have shown that electro meathod can make fish impotent. The most simple way to quickly catch a fish is the shot gun methoed. Just find a place with fish and shoot in the water. This will give you a minute or two to grab your dinner.

I think that anything that requires batteries or other electric power source might not be the best choice in a survival scenario. Maybe a box of M80s and a net instead?

Here's a guy who has a little experience with electro-fishing:

AnteBellum
I am not a hard core survivalist but I am aware of the basics especially when faced with a SHTF type scenario. Having watched and spoken to many regarding survival when faced with a world without supermarkets or restaurants our reliance on hunting, fishing and farming will be essential. It is here I will discuss one of these topic, fishing.
We have all gone fishing from one point in time to another. A very relaxing past time or hobby, but not when you are starving and need fish immediately.

Well I came across this, electrofishing:

There are three types of electrofishers: backpack models, tote barge models, and boat mounted models, sometimes called a stunboat.

Backpack electrofisher generators are either battery or gas powered. They employ a transformer to pulse the current before it is delivered into the water. The anode is located at the end of a long, 2 meter pole and is usually in the form of a ring. The cathode is a long, 3 meter braided steel cable that trails behind the operator. The electrofisher is operated by a deadman's switch on the anode pole. There are a number of safety features built into newer backpack models, such as audible speakers that sound when the unit is operating, tilt-switches that incapacitate the electrofisher if the backpack is tilted more than 45 degrees, and quick-release straps to enable the user to quickly remove the electrofisher in the event of some emergency.

When boat electrofishing, the boat itself is the cathode, and the anode(s) are generally mounted off the bow. The stunned fish swim toward the anode, where they are caught alive using a dip net.[1] Towed barge electrofishers operate similarly to backpack electrofishers, with the exception that the generator is located on a floating barge instead of on a backpack. Often the barge can be left stationary on the shore and longer cathodes and anodes allow the crew to sample large areas. Barge electrofishers often employ gas-powered generators since a user does not have to carry the extra weight on his or her back.

Wiki - Electrofishing

It seems like such an easy solution to the old hook, line and sinker method of catching fish!

The technology is pretty simple, all it takes is the knowhow and desire to do this. I believe the main part of the equipment is an 'Ultrasonic Inverter', which I hope some more technically oriented people here on ATS can maybe explain in detail what exactly this device is/does and if there is an alternate' end of world' type substitute for this (welding equipment comes to mind). Since these are probably not just laying around everywhere.
I don't know, it sounded like a great idea to me, as an alternative to grabbing a fishing pole. Myself, I was never an outstanding fisher. After 20 minutes I'm ready to pull M-80's out and start lobbing them into the lake!

What do you guy's think?

Thanks. . . AB

Electrofishing is mainly used to monitor the population of fish in a body of water, usually fry, and requires training for obvious reasons. Its far from selective as you cant choose which fish you stun. The point of electrofishing is that you can catch fish in a specific area, count them, let them recover and then release them.

Reminds me of this.

Electrofishing is also hell on aluminum boat hulls in salt water. Just a warning if you plan to use this method at sea.

Meh.. you can have your high tech toys .. while your out trying to find a charge for them in a shtf situation will already have caught .. cleaned and cooked fish the good old fashioned low tech way ..
Do just fine with rod and reel or else using my two trained cormorants to fish ..

You need fairly briskly moving water if you want good results, if the water's still the fish will turn sideways to the current flow.

I've seen people do this, but mostly we use dynamite fishing for this sort of thing...

stirling
Great idea catch all you want......eat all you catch......
if these work efficiently we should have the fish population all but totally depleted even FASTER.....

Not really , if you use your brain . Put it on stun take the fish and farm them . I've seen this in operation , a pond locally needed to be emptied . They used one of these machines to catch, remove and then restocked in another pond . If you farm the fish unlimited food source . Or if you don't farm them , take what you need , the rest of the fish will recover .