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Ice Fishing Tips -Check your local regulations! => Ice Fishing Live Baits and Plastics => Topic started by: Ice777 on Feb 12, 2019, 11:52 AM

Title: Preventing minnows from getting thermal shock
Post by: Ice777 on Feb 12, 2019, 11:52 AM

I heard about adding a little snow to the water, like a little every hour or so.  But how long will it take for them to acclimatize from baitshop to lake water temperature?  Even in late fall the minnows seemed to go into shock and did not move in the lake water, however when I tried putting them back into the bait bucket they would "come back" and start swimming around.

Title: Re: Preventing minnows from getting thermal shock
Post by: Kevin23 on Feb 12, 2019, 01:12 PM

I leave the minnows in the back of the truck on the way there so the water starts to cool, then scoop in some slush from the first hole. Takes a 20 minutes or so then they are acclimated well to the 35 or so degree lake water. If I'm in a hut with a heater going that warms the bucket, I just add a scoop of slush every once n a while.