Well,.............
I was going to a set to relure with a different lure, and the trap had been tripped, and looks to be from a fox.
I reset with peat moss, calcium chloride, and sifted a light coat of onsite dirt.
We shall see,..................
One thing is for sure, they more "they" learn, the more "they" teach me(:

I just started using Peat this season...I mix it with dry dirt and a small amount of CC. I've had no major problems...

Peat and dry dirt is good stuff....

Oh, forgot to mention, this bag had a corner ripped on it. Naturally, a big chunk of it is actually frozen.
So, Cody, Do you simply depend on guiding for the animal to make its first step its last?
I tried to simply pack it, but it didn't really work, as I had happen last year. So, I managed to get it to have "some" firmness, but I am a bit nervous that the animal will step a place other than the pan, and dig it up.
Maybe place snow over the peat?

I'll tell you what....peat is some awesome stuff. Today i caught a fox in a set that had not been maintained for almost 10 days. We've had on/off rain....light in nature but still rain, and even 2 inches of snow....along with freezing/thawing. The snow melted yesterday. Through all that precipitation that set fired and nailed a huge female red.

With regular dirt, rain or snow makes the pattern turn to sloppy mud. This doesn't happen with peat. It also doesn't get heavy so dry fires/snapped traps are less frequent. It just stands up to weather better...

With a well guided step down, bedding is virtually not necessary....one step on the pan and their had. On ocassion I have them scratch at the pattern, but they do this with dirt as well. Right now, they're VERY hungry, so misses aren't so prevelant. They hit the trap hard...

Also, if you're worried about smell with calcium, sprinkle urine on the pattern and around to cover it up. A spray bottle works well...

I use calcium cloride and I havent had any problems with it.
look at it this way if you dont use anti freeze you wont catch any thing and thats a lot beter than mising som.

I use table salt. Have not seen any avoidance at the sets. Seems as though that sometimes, that llittle darker patch of "wet" looking dirt helps pull them in to investigate.

ok, so,.........
Cody, you are saying you simply put the peat down, make sure the trap is pushed down into good and snug, and then top dress with peat, right?
I used it tonight in a hole that I refreshed. I packed the peat around the top of the trap best I could. I see what you mean when you say you simply can't pack it like dirt, etc., but it does seem like it will do the trick.
So, can I ask what you all are using for traps? I am thinking of pulling all my #2's, since the weather is getting fairly nasty, and going only with the mb 550/650's.
Any advice from you all on this?
Also, I tried putting two traps on a trail where the feet are stepping repeatedly. When you cover the trap with saran wrap, do you leave excess on the top so the jaws can close, or do you simply wrap it "tight/snug" onto the top of the trap?
Thanks so much to you all,
Chris'
P.S. Do you have any pictures of the peat moss at a set?

Yep, it makes the set look fresh which is GREAT for sucking them in...

Chris...Don't over think things keep it simple.peat moss looks brown and fluffy it does not pack well.I have never packed a set..I use all step downs and I have never had any dig outs.step downs are deadly.make your pattern as small as you can..I like to make his first step his last step...keep it simple and you will be better in the long run.nothing beats good clean gear and clean habits when making a set.a good basic set will take them if the animals are there..take a set or two and a method you are comfortable with and perfect it along with a bottle or two of good lure and stick with it and you will caught fur

Thanks Bull! I take it you use Peat?

Yes..but I also use the dirt at the set if the time of year is right..animals have been caught with just about every antifreeze method out there it all depends on what you are comfortable with
I have used Glycol mix with water and I have also used table salt .Peat is fast and easy to use.I sift a lite coating of dirt over the trap so to blend the color.peat has a brown color to it the really stands out

I have used calcium chloride and it works fine as an antifreeze.

With any chemical antifreeze, its how you layer it to try and avoid the "wet spot".

If possible, dig a deep bed, or find a deep depression, put down a sheet of wax paper.
Dry dirt,
CC
Dry dirt
Trap
dirt
CC
finish with dry dirt

Although salts and CC are not my first choice, they do work, and if you dont make wax dirt, and all the garden shops around are out of peat moss like it seems they are around here, you have to use what you have available.

Like said earlier. CC and any salts are very corrosive to steel.
Wash your gear good at the end of the year, or preferably after a catch or two and re-wax at least.