The 1.1 square metre Pluto trawl doors used by Hirtshals fisherman Hans Frejlev turned out to be almost too efficient when these replaced a slightly larger pair of conventional steel doors on his 9.50-metre trawler.
‘I’m fishing with Dyneema warps, so had to add some weight to the doors to keep them down,’ he said.
‘Towing with the tide they are fine, but against the tide can be more of a problem.’
He commented that the doors are highly stable and stay up throughout the tow as he fishes for a variety of species on muddy and sandy grounds.
‘I only have a lousy 120hp. I had heard from other fishermen that their fuel consumption was down when using these doors, and a pair of MarEco doors was a cheaper option than a new engine,’ he said, adding that he has seen his own fuel consumption drop since starting to use the Pluto doors, which tow clear of the seabed.
‘Even if they touch the ground, it’s so light that they don’t do any damage. It can be a struggle to get them close enough, because I’m using Dyneema warp. But I don’t want to go back to using steel wire warps again.’
Now he’s hoping to get back to sea again before too long, after an accident on board in the summer that resulted in the loss of a thumb.
He commented that the Pluto doors have attracted attention, as well as some disbelieving looks.
‘People just don’t believe their eyes when they see them,’ he said.
Atli Már Jósafatsson at MarEco, manufacturer of the Pluto doors, commented that more developments are on the way, with a 2 square metre pelagic door soon to go into production, and this is designed for smaller trawlers operation along the Spanish Mediterranean coast .
‘There’s a demand for these smaller pelagic doors,’ he said. ‘That’s even though the Pluto demersal doors are also effective for pelagic fishing.’
