Why the crab pot is still empty the next morning
A working pot needs a reachable water tile and a daily bait-and-harvest loop. Separate an unbaited pot from a functioning pot that caught trash: those two outcomes need different fixes.
Place at a reachable edge and bait it today
Stand beside the water with the pot selected. Click an adjacent valid water tile where you will be able to reach it tomorrow. Put a piece of ordinary bait on the placed pot and leave it overnight. Placing a pot during the morning and checking it that afternoon gives you no catch. If checking from the pier feels unreliable, begin with one pot immediately beside the walking surface.
Work the row in two passes
An item bubble over the pot signals a harvestable result. Take the catch, then bait the pot again for the next day. Leave room in your inventory so you can see what you picked up. Pulling up the pot itself while interacting with an empty one tells you you have passed the harvest stage; put it back and rebait. Luremaster removes the daily bait requirement. Mariner instead removes the trash outcome. These two level-ten choices solve different problems.
Move water types when the wrong animals repeat
For a Lobster or Crab, set up a coastal route at the Beach. For Crayfish, Snail or Periwinkle, use freshwater such as a river. A better rod or a different casting distance will not change a pot’s habitat. Trash counts as a catch and still grants Fishing experience. If the problem is repeated trash rather than an empty pot, keep harvesting for XP and consider the Mariner profession when you qualify.