Need advice..So I dont go into the drink!!

[Rodrunner]

I bought a 6x12 Zack shack..Turns out the thing weighs more than I expected (1830#)..By the time I get my gear loaded I'm sure it will be pushing 1900#. So my question...What is a safe thickness of good ice to support my new shack and my 600# ATV and my 200# Fat butt. I was leaning towards roughly 8 inches..Please tell me your thoughts and expierence..Thanks a bunch

Jason

[hoggs222]

My # 1 thought is don't be the 1st guy out! 8" should be fine, but ice thickness varies in a matter of feet. I had a 6.5x12 king crow house and would go out on 7-8" with a Sportsman 500.

[reinhard1]

since you are a fellow fisherman from andover i will agree the 8 in. part. but those 8 in. better be clear. the older i get the inches grow. now one of the lakes i go to in the hard water period is grindstone near sandstone. its a deep lake nearly 160 ft deep. on deep lakes they are the last to freeze so just because a nearby lake mabey is safe at 8in. does't mean a lake like grindstone is. i have a sportsman 500 myself and dont tell me yours is yellow. good luck.

[JSK76]

One thing to consider is the independent suspension on the Sportsman doesn't like much weight, my Sportsman 500 looks like it doing the splits with my 14x6 house on it. I know they make a device that goes between the rear wheels that prevents this I don't know what it's called or where you can get one, but if you want the front of your house frame more then about 6" of the ice it's a must. Not only is it hard on the wheeler but there is a lot of problems that go with it, like getting the tongue jack down when it's so close to the ice and going down a slope to get to the ice from shore, you can get hung up.

[Lip_Ripper Guy]

I won't tell you how much ice you need, but you'll have way more than enough with 8". That is very light for a fish house.

[LMITOUT]

I won't tell you how much ice you need, but you'll have way more than enough with 8". That is very light for a fish house.

That's good advice. My house weighed over 3000 lbs and took it out on 12" with an ATV, but ice conditions vary so much that there is no "golden rule" for safety, walking or transporting a fish house. The good thing is a Zack Shack floats. The bad thing is you don't.

[zamboni]

My # 1 thought is don't be the 1st guy out! 8" should be fine, but ice thickness varies in a matter of feet. I had a 6.5x12 king crow house and would go out on 7-8" with a Sportsman 500.

That is what I go by, I don't drive out unless others are.

[Rodrunner]

Thanks guys..Yep the Zack shack floats but i dont and niether does my wheeler. I'd just rather stay on the dry side of the ice. At any rate thanks again for the input..Ohh, lipripper...Hows ur project coming??

[crappiebuster]

Our shack is about 2200 lbs honda rubicon is about 600 lbs all the gear and beer another 200 lbs have about a 3000 lb footprint on the ice. I go out the night before and check the ice every couple hundred yards just to be sure. As long as its new clear ice 7-8inches is more than enough. She'll pop and crack every once in awhile but thats normal with early unstressed ice. The 6600lb dodge with shack goes out on 10 inches with no worries. We used to drive an s-10 out on 7 1/2-8 inches ice is stronger than you think. But its all about knowing your ice. Ive seen geo metros on 6 inches and i think that guy has been doing that for 20 yrs without a problem. If your newer to ice fishing just wait till you see about 10 3/4ton diesels out there and you know its safe.

[cold one sd]

I didn't know Zack Shacks were that heavy. I talked to a guy on the ice that had a 6'x10' Zack Shack and he said it weighed 800 lbs. It looked like a nice shack though.

[Rodrunner]

lol..Yeah the Zack shack weights are just a little heavier than listed. Imagine that...The 6x10 is around a 1000# or a little more..Thats the one I wanted but got a smoking dealon a used 6x12..i was told that it weighed 1400#.. got it home had it weighed. 1830#..Oh well, such is life. I'll still enjoy the heck out of it.