Zebra Mussels

[Carl Guffey]

<font face="georgia,palatino" size="2">We now have zebra mussels in Norris around Shanghai Marina and they are also prevalent in Melton Hill around ******* Hollow. The problem probably stems from boaters that moved from a lake containing Zebra Mussels to Norris Lake without doing a washdown of their bilge and/or livewell.

The mussels in Melton Hill are just moving up the navigatable waters of the Tennessee River. But we need to be very vigilant about moving from one body of water to the next and what we may carry. Please wash down your bilge and livewell areas everytime you go to the lake.

Use warm to hot water and mix one cup of bleach to five gallons of water and pour into livewell. Plug and then run livewell on all cycles for fifteen minutes (including pumpout), let sit, drain through the lowest opening. If livewell is separate use the same mixture and clean bilge, let stand, and then drain through lowest opening. Once complete, open all hatches and let livewell and bilge air dry.</font>

 

[Tsuga]

Your advice is good. We have had zebra mussels for some years (about 10?) in Watts Bar now and the number seems to have stabilized at what would be low levels for them. They were supposed to have an explosive population here, but that did not happen. Apparently there is not enough rock in the right places.
My best guess is that it was not bass fishermen who brought down the zebra mussels from the Great Lakes, but tugboats and their barges. They are probably rarely taken out of the water and cleaned and they may travel long distances.

 

[Solo]

What about the livewell after using the bleach? Something will be needed to clean the bleach to keep from killing the fish.

 

[Carl Guffey]

<font face="georgia,palatino" size="2">The bleach will turn to salt and water as it drys. The livewell will be ready to accept fish on your next trip with no adverse effects if you have followed the use directions and the livewells are completely dry.</font>