I'm currently working on a couple of different float designs and was wondering if there was any significance to the dimensions used. I'm working on new designs to lessen the load and make them lighter. My starting design was a 2"x8"x24" float like most of us have seen.

Question #1: Does the width being 8" have any reason such as buoyancy or making the wind and waves bother it less?

Question #2: Does the length of 24" have any effect on buoyancy or less resistance to wind and waves?

I'm thinking of going to a 1"x6"x24" or 1"x6"x18" board. The reason for the 6" board is to lessen the space so the rat can't walk beside the trap/pan. Does anyone have any insight on if this would work or not or if I'm just wasting my time to think about this instead of making more floats?

If your going to build a float It has to be very stable In the water.. A poplar pole placed through a hole In the float will stabilize It . And is a great food source for rats. And you want to place your traps up close to the bait source.

Make One and see It works.

This might be a better option http://thebeav.us/stools.htm used these In ND and caught over 3000 rats.

I always used 2x6's and 1 inch cedar lumber on the bottom. I also added chicken wire over the top that I could pile a few weeds on. In my limited experience, floats were either dead or deadly. Some spots never caught a thing where others produced doubles many days in a row.

That is interesting Beav, thanks for the description.

Also to the OP, I seen floats of varying designs but also used a simple stake with Mark Steck's Hangman (?) brackets.
Worked very well with much less to carry in .... if that is an issue.
Cheers

Carrying them in isn't an issue, just trying to save some weight in the truck. Also it seems the rats around here don't really like that style of brackets but I also haven't tested them a bunch either.

Have you tried the triangular ones?

If it’s to narrow it’ll tip over when the rats climb up. I like 2x8x40”. Wormy white pine works good.

I've watched many rats climb all over floats and never touch the pan. My floats got real narrow after watching this time and time again.

I've also watched plenty of rats step all over the pan of a tuned trap. They have lighter feet than one thinks and why most high number rat trappers spend the money on a pinch style pan (I also wax my rat traps).

Any float wider than the trap will miss rats...especially if you have side rails, which stabilize the float and help contain the trap. Rats walk edges.

I keep my traps on the end as if you get your traps too close to each other, you often times end up with one rat in both traps. Attach the traps on the ends, not in the middle.

Stake with a center pole/hole through the middle so the float can raise and lower. Fiberglass rods are the most durable and space saving stake one will find (and beaver don't like them).

There used to be a post in the archives that probably had 100 or more designs.

If you want to increase your catch build some funnel traps to use in culverts or den entrances to go along with your floats. They work in smaller culverts or the bigger ones just put a few across the bottom it’s amazing how stupid rats are. Check the regs and make them as big as you can mine are rather basic you could add one way doors to the funnel ends but they still fill up with rats.

've also watched plenty of rats step all over the pan of a tuned trap. They have lighter feet than one thinks and why most high number rat trappers spend the money on a pinch style pan (I also wax my rat traps).

That's why I weaken all the springs On my rat traps.

My floats are 6" X 33" with low side rails & a stake hole dead center.
I have 1/2" foam glued & screwed to the bottoms.

For stakes I use 5' foot of grey 1/2" PVC electrical conduit
with the ends sealed/filled with expandable foam.

The 6" inch float width with side rails are just wide enough for the trap
but just narrow enough that the rat has to cross the pan between the jaws.

The longer 33" float length makes them
much more stable, and much less tippy.

If you are using coil spring traps, heat weaken the springs with a torch
to lessen the pan tension to ensure the trap fires high on the rat's shoulder.