IceShanty.com's Ice Fishing Community
Ice Fishing Tips -Check your local regulations! => Equipment => Topic started by: Bob_D on Sep 03, 2004, 04:53 AM
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It's time to start thinking about bait storage. For those who don't want to be running to the bait shop every fishing trip, bait tanks are the key.
Here are some pics of my bait tank. The drain makes water changes easy, and the overflow allows for continous water flow (sprayer) if desired. It's a 100 gallon Rubbermaid stock tank, and I use air pumps and air stones to supply o2 to the fish. I plan on adding a second to replace a 25 gallon one I have. I can keep 10 lbs of pike bait in the 100 gal without any problems.
Feel free to ask questions.
(http://www.fishingvermont.net/images/VTimages2003/baittank1.JPG)
(http://www.fishingvermont.net/images/VTimages2003/baittank2.JPG)
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here is my set up for keeping bait alive and so i dont have to depend on the bait shops.it is a 55 gallon plastic barrel on its side,cut the door out,cut a slot in the end halfway up installed 300 gph fish aquarium filter and a bubble stone keeps my bait healthy and ready for action when i am.total investment was about40 bucks.i keep it in my garage which stays about 50 degrees and it being on the floor gives me about 40 degrees water temp.i never feed my bait and the light is for those -25 nights for a little extra heat.300 gph turns the water completely over about 6 times an hour so there is a lot of current in the barrel.
(http://photobucket.com/albums/v365/billditrite/100_0138.jpg)
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Do you leave the aerators running 24/7? How often do you have to change the water?
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no the aerator only is on for an hour here and an hour there!!unless i have smelt in there they seem to like it more.the filter runs 24/7 and i never have to change the water.when i take my bait out to go fishing it is usually in two five gallon buckets,or one fifteen gallon cooler with wheels.depends on ice conditions,either way i take about ten gallons of water with me.when i return with my unused bait i put the bait back in but not the water.i refill the 10 gallons with fresh water and doing this at least twice a week i never have a problem.
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Ok....I finally got my bait tanks setup (new house) to the point that I could use them if needed. I have a little more work to do on them but here is a pic of the setup. These are 2 100 gallon tanks. They should hold 15-20 dozen pike bait, plus some smaller bait without any problems. I took the pic before I put the front of the box and covers on so it can be seen better. I know this is a little extreme, but it works for what I need.
(http://fishingvermont.net/images/otherpics/bait_tanks1.JPG)
Jigwiggler,
Just saw your post. These tanks will be outsideish. ;) I have stock tank de-icers to keep the water from freezing.
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Geesh Bob that's some pretty serious rigging but awesome . Nothing the matter with looking after your bait well in the winter at todays prices . I catch my own too but have never got setup to this extent but am seriously considering doing one of these tanks like this . Thanks for the ideas .
TD
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I have an old double wash tub, each side holds approx.15-20 gal. of water. I use an aquarium filter on each side, air pump and stones, and aquarium heaters. All out in a small shed. I don't change the water at all. I give them a pinch of tropical fish food 2 x a week.
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I think I bought and used minnows 2 times the whole season last year but I'm game to try em again .......
What? And give up your Roostertails? ::) ;D If you don't use live bait, what are you using on your tip-ups? If you are ever in NW VT, I'll take you out for some walleye.....The bait is on me. ;)
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You are closer to me then I thought. I live on the northern tip of Lake Champlain. I'm interested in what you are using for jigs, but I'll start a post in another section for that.
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Bumping topic to the front page .... for all those guys getting ready for catching their own minnows ....
mike
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Simply awesome set up Bob. I am jealous. How do you fill the tanks? Are you using tap water and treating it or do you have some kind of filter system. I would love to set something like this up but I dont trust tap water. I always have to haul water from the creek or river to change out my water and its a pain in the a$$
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troll they have treatment for tap water available at any pet store and maybe even wal mart. it neutralizes the chlorine. you can also just let the water sit for a few days and it will distill itself
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Ice Troll,
I use tap water. I have a well, so I don't worry about my water quality. Billditrite is correct. The water treatment works well. I use to have "city" water and treated my tank water with "Aqua Safe". I purchased it at Walmart. It worked very well for me.
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Thanks for the info. I have always been a bit leary of the tap water because I work hard for the minnows I trap and it would make me a wee bit pissy if I lost 30 to 40 dozen minnows in a mass die off because of water quality. The treatment makes sense since people dont use river water to set up aquariums. I think your design is just the ticket Bob. Thanks for the help guys.
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That is a real nice setup.
I set up a bait tank the other day in my basement. It's just a rubbermaid bin with treated tap water. I have an aerator that I use for a protable bass livewell for my small boat and connected it to a trolling motor battery. It's working great and the 3 dozen shiners I have in there are happy. Make sure you cover it or have high enough sides that they do not jump out. I have some last year try to get wise and went flying out of the tank.
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i made a tank out of a rubbermade container last year worked good , don't get a clear one if you walk around in the area its being placed in alot, you'll scare them and they think there are no walls and they'll swim right into the walls :tipup:
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I figure this is the time of year to start building these type of things. If anybody has any questions, please ask.
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Those set-ups are awesome! Where do you get those Rubbermaid bins with drain and overflow? How much are they?
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Do you guys keep your bait tanks in your garage or basement? I'm considering doin something like this but wonder about the water freezing if kept in the garage. Or does the water filter and air pumps keep the water from freezing?
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I'm going to set up a tank this year, mostly for the convience factor as there aren't many places to buy bait around here. I'm going to use a 36 gallon storage bin. Is there any specific type of filter that I should look for? I was looking around the pet store and the best option seemed to be one of the over the side waterfall type filters. I figured I get the 40-50 gal. size. Also do I need an aerator as well or will the water fall action put enough O2 into the water?
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I made a bait tank out a water softner recycle tank. It already has the false bottom in it, so I put a pond pump under that and don't have to worry about the minnows getting sucked up. I separated it into 2 sides with a piece of plexiglas for suckers/shiners on one side, crappie/fatheads on the other. It pumps the water to the top, where it runs into a make shift filter made out of a colander, charcoal from the pet store, and some filter media. I did have to make an extension for my net, as it is about 3 feet deep. It's not sexy, but I still have all of minnows from last March. I will try to get a picture of it.
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where can i got one of those 100gal rubbermaid tanks?
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Tractor supply company- like 50-75 bux
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Nice setup Mac! I have a much smaller version, as all I got is a 15 or so gallon tank, but it hold alot of bait really...surprising how much...
One question, do you have a tough time collecting them when you're heading out for some fishing? Even in my small tank its tough to track them down.
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I decided to run with a scaled down version of all of thee above. I ran over to the Home depot and purchased a trap style plastic container...then grabed a airpump and I run it a few hours aday. No filter yet but it will come. These trap style containers are perfect because they are stackable and I plan to grab one or two more so I can seperate the bait by size..keep the monster shiners away from the mudminnows
(http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y28/icejunky/Goodies/DSCN0444.jpg)
(http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y28/icejunky/Goodies/DSCN0445.jpg)
works well so far...I also grabbed some worm flakes to keep them fed
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Thanx Mac...I noticed that once I started feeding them the water quality whent down fast..I will put a halt to that now..thanx again
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i would not feed at all if you can keep the temp in the 30's. i really quite hard to starve a fish.
good luck,
jerry
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MM,
I don't pump the water, I use the commercial aerators from cabelas.