Thread: suggestions for alternatives to nets - please!

hey all, really hoping i can pick the hive mind on this - what are the alternatives to nets cos i'm discovering a latent hatred i didn't realise i possessed!! seriously though - have a large pond that goes almost across the width of my garden (approx 5.5m by 10m) and i've just replaced the bridge over it, going out to my office. while i absolutely love the most zen walk to work, i would love to not have to peer at the fish through a b****dy net - and i've been caught out in the past giving herons some very expensive sushi so using nothing is definitely not an option.
what has anyone else used or could recommend?

Velda electric fence works for me - still get an occasional heron but they can’t get the fish and soon fly off when they get too close !


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Dumb question but how do those work with a bridge over the pond - how do you manage to not trigger them yourself?

I use removable nets on a frame, takes a few seconds to remove them.
take them off when i'm out and about in the garden.
put them back on when i'm not.

another thing i did was to fix over head paracords to prevent herons from easily landing.
depends on the area to cover and if you hate that worse.

if you have the cash i have seen a few that have automated pond covers on motor powered winches.
but that is a lot of faff and money too.

there is no easy way around it if you have herons in your area.
some people have open ponds and haven't had a single fish taken....yet.

Thanks for this - having just discovered a tear in the liner that will mean I'll need to replace that this year, will definitely try and work the frame idea in to the rebuild.

Originally Posted by seemo

Thanks for this - having just discovered a tear in the liner that will mean I'll need to replace that this year, will definitely try and work the frame idea in to the rebuild.

heres how i made my frames

After losing my fish to a heron I strung 3 rows of fishing line around the pond using inverted 3ft L shaped plant stakes. I had read that herons walk toward the water but won’t step over anything. My next ploy was to string an electric fence round (as did a friend to stop otters), but that wasn’t required as the fishing line did the trick and the replacement koi have all survived for many years.

Super helpful, thankyou. This weekend is going to be all about sitting down and planning, so great timing!

and, as if by magic, first heron of the season landed and checking out the pond today. gits!