I can see how a trap would bed better in sand than in dirt

Thanks for the video. I had been looking for it.

When it first came out I couldn’t catch a thing with it. ‘Probably used too much grass. But I kept at it. Then, because Minnesota had ‘monsoons’ last year, and in fact, we had close to 2-inches of rain the day before I started, I used the pipe dream set almost exclusively. Between periods of rain, I’d collected and dried lawn grass. If I hadn’t gotten sick, it would have been a perfect season. The pipe dream set Really came through for me. So much so that it will be my go-to set from now on.

I’m leaning that way as well.

Waxed dirt- use it. Pro- trap works, con -takes time to make - $$$$
Glycol - used it a few times but it gets all over everything
Hulls- get wet and freezes
CC - works- but rusts traps - I still use it though
Salt- I use it on pipe dreams sets with grass- the key with the grass is not to use much. You can still see the trap through it
Dry dirt - I use it too when the temps are really cold and going to stay there
Different conditions call for different methods.

Peat moss. With a light covering of dirt at the set to blend It In.
Sand In my opinion draws moisture more so then dry dirt.

I’ve never used the pipe dream set but plan to this year. Everything I have seen about it emphasizes to not use a lot of grass. Why?

In my opinion, it stands out too much with a lot of grass. I just make sure my dog is covered and a few sprinkles of grass and let it go. The screen I got from No-BS is probably the best screen I’ve ever used. Thick enough to perform and flexible enough to mold under jaws.
This past year I put at least two sets and each location. One dirt hole and one pipe dream. During normal dry weather, the dirt holes out produced the pipes. But, during weeks of rain the pipes out produced the dirt holes mainly because they were the only 100% functioning sets with scent and trap reliability.

Do you drill hole anywhere in the pipe to release water?

I did alot of snow sets last year with crinkled wax paper over the pan. I will say that if you get an inch of frozen snow over your set. It won't fire. No sir.

I don’t drill anything in the pipe. If it does get water, it doesn’t last long and I’ll take a stick and just poke it in the pipe to stir up the smell.

So for Iowa weather, wax dirt is probably the best for me, but it’s expensive, heavy and time consuming. But when properly made its almost bullet proof.
Peat moss takes a learning curve, but it can be serviceable, till it rains a couple inches and your dirtholes look like ponds. When that happens the wax dirt is toast as well. You’ve got to buy it a year in advance, and cut the bag open and place it somewhere so it can vent and dry out. A lot of guys use the attic in there garage or the hayloft in a barn.
I’ve found that if you halfway bed the trap around the outsides of your jaws to form a loose imprint, cover with peat moss and pull up on the levers about 1/2”, that will allow just enough peat to filter down under the trap to get it slightly freeze resistant.
Adding a little calcium chloride before bedding will get you closer to the freeze proof range. Then you have to top dress with a little dirt to keep the peat from blowing away.
In regards to the pipedream set, it’s extremely freeze resistant as it is. But if it’s gonna get real cold it needs a little help as well, at least in my soil conditions. I just sprinkle a little calcium chloride under the levers and around the jaws, that seems to help. If you use to much grass it will do a couple of detrimental things, it can crust over if it gets wet, it can clog the jaws, or it will provide sort of a dry lubrication that will allow for a pull out. I use a loose fist size handful and spread it thinly on and 5-6” around the trap to help blend it in. I use only dogless traps in the pipedream set and screens from no bs. Like everyone has said you should be able to see some screen when you’re done.

Thanks for the info.

Watched the flick. To bad you couldn't understand one word of It.

i use wax dirt only at this time it works well for me i ave never ventured out yet to try other products or anything so there could be better things but this is what works for me, just having super dry dirt in the dead of winter can help even if it is not waxed at all as long as you dont have any freeze/thaw going on

I have to be versatile as we have several different types of soils here and all seem to handle the weather differently. I've tried just about everything and decided I can't just stick with one method. But for the most part I use wax sand and/or peat moss. Calcium Chloride comes in handy but leaves a wet spot around the pan and like others have said, hard on traps if not properly waxed. I really like Zagger's method but when the ground is harder than Chinese algebra, this can set up can be very time consuming if not done ahead of time. Blowing snow can really add to the equation too, so in that case I fall back on the waxed sand and/or peat moss. I like scree covers earlier in the season but later on wind can blow snow under the screen and freeze things up enough to lock up your set. I suggest to try a few different ways and keep an open mind. Eventually you will find a method you like and that works.

Can't deny the fact that Zagger's method works for some people. I have given it a solid three years of attempts with little to no luck. Coons sure are easy to catch with the conduit. If the grass clippings don't blow off the screen here the deer seem to like to try to eat it. I was really hoping I could get it to work as I get tired of lugging around wax sand/dirt or drying out peat moss as anyone.

I've asked this before but other than Zagger can anyone say they have put up numbers of coyotes say over a 100 on predominantly pipe dreams? I've seen plenty of people catch 10-20 a year on them. I've probably caught around 4-5 a year that stumble into them when I make coon sets. By the time I factor in grass clippings, screens, carrying a pick axe or maul around, cutting pipe, and pounding the pipe in....I have found myself just going back to a standard dirthole/peat done. We get some pretty nasty weather here in Nebraska and if the peat is down most everything is down here anyways including wax dirt.

I don’t have the numbers of critters y’all have up there. But the pipe shines for me during the wet times. Early season dirt holes seem to out produce everything. Later in the season and especially when it warms some the pipes out produced everything. I always add a pipe with every set. We don’t seem to get an inch of rain, we end up getting 3-5” at a time. Dirt holes fill up and pipes generally remain productive. We don’t have the wind blowing like y’all do either though, but I’ve never had the clippings blow off the screen or deer attempt to eat them...our deer seem attracted to dirt holes, lol.

Lol, I've never seen anything like it. I can lay down brome grass hay on the ground and the deer could care less. Some dried out grass clippings from the yard and they just lick em right up. We tend to get more snow than rain but here lately we've been getting both. I've always liked the thought behind the pipe I just can't get it to work for me. I'm sure I'll try some more. I just haven't heard of anyone else that has been able to replicate the success Mark has had with it. I'll run about 250 lbs of wax sand but when that's out it should be cold enough to go all peat. I find that once it freezes and stays froze dried out peat is very hard to beat. Freeze/thaw the wax sand is pretty hard to beat.