my home lake has very little cover other than shallow water lillypads, some stumps, and this really thick viney surface vegetation(impossible it fish) that seems to be taking over the lake. and i wanted to build and sink some kind of cover near some a bottom structure in about 5-10ft of water.  (lake is barley over 10ft at its deepest).  so what kind of materials should i use to build.  i was thinking either pvc pipe or wood that is either held down by a cynder block or just pushed into the 2 feet of mush and mud that makes up the lake bottom.  and what should it look like, mabey like a submerged dock.

any suggestions would be appreciated.

What I'd do is take a few wooden pallets (that usually are stacked with bags, etc.) and stack them together (layer) them and nail them. Then take a bunch of nice size branches, limbs, pine boughs or whatever else and add it to them. From first hand experience, be sure that if you use 3 pallets together, tie on 4 or more cinderblocks! Me and a friend took a collection of pallets that I made (3 pallets layered with branches, etc.) and set 3 cinderblocks on it and threw it in my pond. The pallets floated around for 2 days before finally becoming waterlogged and sinked, which by that time because of the stream and the wind, the pallets drifted somewhere in the pond that still to this day I have no knowledge of it's location!

Another idea is to get a canoe, and chop down a small cedar tree (roughly 5-7 feet tall) and sink it! One cenderblock is enough to sink a 5' - 7' cedar (again from personal knowledge).

Or if you want something unique. Take a bucket (5 gallon etc.) and fill it with cement (still wet) and add a small tree or big tree branch. When the cement tries the tree will remain vertical and it is like sinking your own personal tree.

There are many ideas. Use your imagination, no matter what you do the bass will love it!  

old christmas trees tied to cinder blocks or jugs full of conrete work great and is probably the most popular method

I really like that triple pallet idea.  Pretty much anything will work though.  Just be careful you don't create a hazard for other boaters.  

i wont have to worry about other boaters because on the lake the most hp allowed is 12, mostly jon boats with trolling motors and a few carolina skiffs are all thats on the lake.  and whatever i do im going to completly submerge it a few feet under water.  

and about the pallets. will stores just give them to you?

When adding structure for bass you need to make sure that the bass can move in and out of the structure.

I would take a trip to your local Lowe's or Home Depot and pick up some of the black sewer drain pipe and a few concret blocks.

Take the pipe and attach it to the blocks, this could be done by running the pipe trough the holes of the block and making a loop and securing it with some zip ties.

I would play around with it and see what looks best.

Hope this helps,

Alfred

If you have sycamore trees, they will sink without blocks tied to them.

We got our pallets stricktly off of job sites (since my dad owns his drywall business and he got them off job sites in the dumpsters). Most stores will give them to you if you ask I am sure. If not, then check local job sites, I am sure there are some thrown away and not used.

If you get 3 pallets another idea is a pallet triangle...

This tepee ^ was sunk in our local lake here in Orange County, Va (Lake Orange). Me and Jomatty, Randy Beasley and a few others I believe fish this lake.

If you can't find any, then try sinking a cedar or small pine tree for good measures. Or make a brush pile, take a bunch of pine boughs, cedar boughs, sticks, limbs, etc. and pile them up and tie them together.

PS: Check these websites for some ideas...

http://www.jandjhabitat.com/

http://msucares.com/pubs/infosheets/is1529.htm

Everything sounds great EXCEPT the PVC.

the thought of tossing any kind of plastic into a bass lake just creeps me out.

I know PVC won't leech toxins, but still..........................................

Starting last fall until early this spring I sank bundles of brush and made 7 brush piles. I used branches from a few trees that had been cut down to make the bundles. Each bundle was approximately 18" in diameter and 4'-5' long. I sank them in water 7'-10' deep on a sloping bottom. I used 1/8" nylon cord or bailing wire to hold the bundle together. Do not use twine, it will break and or disintegrate. When you tie the knot make sure that you have an extra 2'-3' left to attach one or two cinderblocks. Some bundles need one and some need two. I load all of the bundles and cinder blocks seperately on the boat. I find the spot on the water and ancor the boat front and rear. I tie the cinderblock to the bundle and toss it overboard. When I am done, I mark the location with my hand held GPS and draw a picture of the orientation of the piles and their location to docks, trees, poles, etc. I have caught fish off of 5 of the 7 piles. I will add more bundles to the good brush piles in the fall. There are too many people on the water during the Summertime. I have had multiple people question what I am doing and if it is allowed.

I tried Alhuff's suggestion of using black drain tile last fall. The main problem is that it will float until you can get all of the air out of the tubing. You have to puncture it or get the type that has holes in it. You have also got to submerge the whole thing to get it to fill up with water. It was more of a problem than it was worth in my opinion. I used cinder blocks. They cost $1.25 each at Lowes and I can afford them. Making cement blocks is cheaper but takes time. I have not tried to do it yet.