fish saver setup

[jwetovick]

I'm looking at transferring some fish this fall and possibly even this winter. Looking for some ideas on DIY fish saver setups that use a purchased pump, etc. I'm reading so many good and bad reviews about certain pumps I'm just spinning tires and curious if anyone on here has some info they'd share? Thanks

[esox_xtm]

Transferring fish? From one body of water to another? I'm guessing that's pretty much illegal wherever you are unless it's to a private pond. Maybe even then.

[FG Steve]

Assuming that you are engaging in a legal activity (if not, don't do it!), you might check with your local Game and Fish Department or equivalent.  I volunteered with the local fisheries guys last year to electrofish and capture some wild trout and move them to a new brood stock facility.  They had a good setup and a lot of practice.  We moved about 100 fish that day with zero mortality.

[WolfPack1]

Interesting concept. Here in WI it’s illegal to move live fish anywhere. Heck, I think no matter the case, even if you’re bringing em home to clean, they’ve gotta be dead. Could be wrong on that though.

Anyway, if it is legal where you’re at. I’d make sure the water temperature in the vessel that you’re transporting them in is the same as where you’re pulling them from and putting them. I’d maybe use a cooler with an aerator, and make it quick. Small batches, multiple trips, with low mortality would be the goal.

[jwetovick]

Ok I changed my mind, I won’t be transferring fish so we can skip that topic. Any other setup ideas or pics?

[matzilla]

couple tablespoons of non iodized salt and a minnow bubbler are all you need - when water temps are 65 or less the fish will stay alive for hours so long as they're not cramped. A big cooler will help

[jwetovick]

couple tablespoons of non iodized salt and a minnow bubbler are all you need - when water temps are 65 or less the fish will stay alive for hours so long as they're not cramped. A big cooler will help

Thanks. Just got done reading your 6 page post on pond boss about your pond. Great read as I just gained access to a very similar situation.

[Agronomist_at_IA]

How far do you need to move them?

We've got a small farm pond that has a good population of panfish. However the bass need to be left in it or the panfish over populate and stunt. We've had issues with some heavy spring rains that wash a lot of the fish over the outlet and down the creek.....it's great when the pannies get thinned out.....however if the bass go it's a problem. We've caught a few bass, catfish, and pike in the river a mile or so away and moved them in a cooler with the water temp lowered with ice & a water pump to the farm pond to help keep the pan fish population under check. Never had to leave private property though since the river was on one end of the property and the pond on the other end. It seems to have helped out....seeing lots of 8-10in pannies......before 6-7in stopped them. Pond never gets much pressure maybe fished 2-3times in summer and in winter. Caught a number of 5lb + bass we throw back.

[jwetovick]

Good info Agronomist. About 10 miles would be about max which isn't all that far. Ordered a good aerator and will be looking for a large cooler. Plan on using a clover trap and maybe try to seine this new pond to see what is in it. It is about 80yrs old, 12ft deep, and about 1.25acre in size, with sandy bottom. It appears there has been little/no management done for a decade at least. So, have a long road ahead but at this point I do see tons and tons of minnows and fry in the shallows so at least there is a forage base. I have caught a half dozen 5in green sunfish which is a problem for me. I have also seen some carp jumping in the shallows. I did fish the pond about 6yrs ago thru the ice and caught tons of 5in bluegill and 1 5lb bass. It's only 6 miles from my house so looking forward to playing around with it even though the best thing would be to kill it off and start over but that's not an option.

[matzilla]

Thanks. Just got done reading your 6 page post on pond boss about your pond. Great read as I just gained access to a very similar situation.

Its an uphill battle but a lot of fun. I just wish I had more time to spend down there this year - between all the projects around the house and having 3 surgeries from May-July, I've been short on pond time.

if you're going to move some into the pond, tag them with a clothing tag gun or similar and keep some good records with lots of pictures. It helps! Moving them during cooler water temps make it much, much easier....just try to balance out the temperatures and mix the water in the cooler. Most of mine have moved quickly (1hr or less) in a covered bucket with about 4 gallons of water and a max of 8 bluegill at a time. Never had a problem. A bubbler would add piece of mind.

[jwetovick]

Its an uphill battle but a lot of fun. I just wish I had more time to spend down there this year - between all the projects around the house and having 3 surgeries from May-July, I've been short on pond time.

if you're going to move some into the pond, tag them with a clothing tag gun or similar and keep some good records with lots of pictures. It helps! Moving them during cooler water temps make it much, much easier....just try to balance out the temperatures and mix the water in the cooler. Most of mine have moved quickly (1hr or less) in a covered bucket with about 4 gallons of water and a max of 8 bluegill at a time. Never had a problem. A bubbler would add piece of mind.

I did plan on looking into tagging like you did. That would make it interesting and also help with knowing progress. Would you mind sharing which tag gun you use and more importantly, which tags? Thanks for the info! Hope all is well!

[Agronomist_at_IA]

Good info Agronomist. About 10 miles would be about max which isn't all that far. Ordered a good aerator and will be looking for a large cooler. Plan on using a clover trap and maybe try to seine this new pond to see what is in it. It is about 80yrs old, 12ft deep, and about 1.25acre in size, with sandy bottom. It appears there has been little/no management done for a decade at least. So, have a long road ahead but at this point I do see tons and tons of minnows and fry in the shallows so at least there is a forage base. I have caught a half dozen 5in green sunfish which is a problem for me. I have also seen some carp jumping in the shallows. I did fish the pond about 6yrs ago thru the ice and caught tons of 5in bluegill and 1 5lb bass. It's only 6 miles from my house so looking forward to playing around with it even though the best thing would be to kill it off and start over but that's not an option.

Sounds like you have an over population of panfish. I'd try to get some channel cats & LMB in the pond. Then fish it pretty hard and remove the green sunfish, but leave the blue gills in the pond. The greens don't tend to get has big. If you do anything with crappie they tend to spawn and over populate in small ponds pretty easy. So Always keep plenty of predatory fish with decent size in with crappie. I love the paper mouths because they can grow to 12-15in and are really good eating.

[matzilla]

I did plan on looking into tagging like you did. That would make it interesting and also help with knowing progress. Would you mind sharing which tag gun you use and more importantly, which tags? Thanks for the info! Hope all is well!

https://www.amazon.com/Comfort-Standard-Tagging-Attachments-Needles/dp/B00PWQILU8/

You simply load the tag gun, hold it at an angle pointed toward the head of the fish, pop the needle behind a scale and pull the trigger. Sometimes FA gets hung up on the tags but you can cut the big ends off if you wish. I kept them on and my fish didn't seem to mind. I always took a couple pictures of each fish after tagging, measured them and weighed them when I remembered to take the food scale. You can get the tags in different lengths and colors - or the real fancy stuff https://www.hallprint.com/fish-tag-products/2014/8/26/t-bar-anchor-tags

Running the seine and a cloverleaf should tell you all you need to know to get going on that pond!

[KinnickResident]

How far do you need to move them?

We've got a small farm pond that has a good population of panfish. However the bass need to be left in it or the panfish over populate and stunt. We've had issues with some heavy spring rains that wash a lot of the fish over the outlet and down the creek.....it's great when the pannies get thinned out.....however if the bass go it's a problem. We've caught a few bass, catfish, and pike in the river a mile or so away and moved them in a cooler with the water temp lowered with ice & a water pump to the farm pond to help keep the pan fish population under check. Never had to leave private property though since the river was on one end of the property and the pond on the other end. It seems to have helped out....seeing lots of 8-10in pannies......before 6-7in stopped them. Pond never gets much pressure maybe fished 2-3times in summer and in winter. Caught a number of 5lb + bass we throw back.

I'm around the Sheldon area; let me know if you ever need help thinning the panfish out lol