keeping shiners

[Danny]

Whats the best temp. to keep shiners at?

I've gotten pretty good at keeping shiners alive in my basement from one weekend to the next, but sometimes when they go from the 65 degree basement to the real cold outside they don't do so well.  I have a fridge in the basement I can put the bucket in to keep them cool, just not sure what temp to keep it at.

[Webguy]

Low 50's is the temp of the spring water that our bait shop circulates, seems to work well. The colder the better, slows their metabolism.

[Capt.Dana]

Whats the best temp. to keep shiners at?

I've gotten pretty good at keeping shiners alive in my basement from one weekend to the next, but sometimes when they go from the 65 degree basement to the real cold outside they don't do so well.  I have a fridge in the basement I can put the bucket in to keep them cool, just not sure what temp to keep it at.

     The best temp to keep Arkansas shiners is 55 degrees Fahrenheit. The only problem with that is that once you go outside and put them down the hole they get shocked. What I do is put some snow into the water to ease the shock on the way to the lake. Shiners can get shocked into cold by not into hot, therefore when you bring them back home take a few hours for them to acclimate. I hope this helps!

[lenz]

i leave my bait bucket in the garage 45 degrees or less, or leave it outside. just chip off the ice and thy're good to go

[FishinAddiction]

i leave my bait bucket in the garage 45 degrees or less, or leave it outside. just chip off the ice and thy're good to go

Plus this wont shock them when they go from warmer water to very cold water and kill them.

[Simmy04548]

I am able to keep my leftovers til the next weekend with no problems. It is very cold right now here in Maine, all I do is set them in the garage with a light moving style blanket around them(sides), a styrofoam top with air holes on top. About wednesday I change about half the water and they are ready to go friday or saturday, FRESH !!

[Danderson]

i've kept mine alive for 3 months without feeding them. i keep the water very cold and throw in 2 hard packed snow balls every day and keep a regular fish tank aerator on all the time. works very well 

[esoxmaster]

       I keep my shiners and suckers outside in a tank (mine happens to be 90 gallons, but that's because I keep alot of big bait. Any size works, it just depends on the quantity and the size) I have a small pump in it just to keep the water moving, and any size heater you can pick up at your local petstore will do. All you have to do is turn it on to the bare minimum to keep one little bit of water above freezing, because no ice will form unless the whole water body gets to at least 4 degrees celsius. This allows you to keep your bait really cold. Another reason I like 4 degrees celsius in my tank is because that is the temperature of the liquid water below the ice on most lakes, and if it's not exactly that, it will be somewhere close. This minimizes the temperature shock when you drop your bait down the hole. I know it sounds complicated but all it is, is a tank (or rubber maid bucket, or whatever you use), a cheap water pump  (around $20), and a cheap aquarium heater  (also around $20).
       Also, another thing that helps alot is adding a little bit of aquarium salt to your water (this too can be purchased cheap at your local petstore). This causes the water to have a lower freezing temp. One will be supprised to find that many aquariums actually recomend using a little aquarium salt  (yes, even in freshwater aquariums) as it helps the fish to breath better and makes them healthier and stuff. You may also be supprised to find that most "bait saver" or "bait keepers" contain aquarium salt as well (a jug of this can be purchased at about $20 and lasts a long time).

[djbinding]

Whats the best temp. to keep shiners at?

I've gotten pretty good at keeping shiners alive in my basement from one weekend to the next, but sometimes when they go from the 65 degree basement to the real cold outside they don't do so well.  I have a fridge in the basement I can put the bucket in to keep them cool, just not sure what temp to keep it at.

Colder the better.  Cold water holds oxygen.  That's why in the summer you can't keep em for too long without changing the water.  I keep my shiners on the garage floor and bring them down the street and refill with fresh pond water.  I'm going on week 3 now and they're still kicking.  But cold is the real trick. 

[flaggs]

I have a regular 20 gallon tank in my gararge with a heater set to 45 degrees. I change out about 30% of the water once a week and add a teaspoon of "Finer Shiner". I also take out the sponge and charcoal filter and flush them with cold water to get them clean. I feed them once every couple days. I keep about 3-4 dozen on hand at all times (all sizes from Pike to Medium, I don't bother with small) for those, "I am outa here and going fishing" moments. What is really important (I have found) is that as soon as you see a dead soldier in the tank, remove him. He will contaminate the water (especially if he gets sucked up to the intake to the pump). Check the shiner tank everyday!

I have shiners (no bit of an exageration) with 4 holes in there back and they are as lively as can be! (that's the finer shiner doing it's magic).
Flaggs!

[esoxmaster]

Right on Flaggs! sounds like you know what you're doing.

[flaggs]

Right on Flaggs! sounds like you know what you're doing.

Clearly esoxmaster, your no slouch/rookie yourself 

May the flags be flying with the wind at your back and a pint in your hand!


Flaggs!

[newbraintree]

I have a regular 20 gallon tank in my gararge with a heater set to 45 degrees. I change out about 30% of the water once a week and add a teaspoon of "Finer Shiner". I also take out the sponge and charcoal filter and flush them with cold water to get them clean. I feed them once every couple days. I keep about 3-4 dozen on hand at all times (all sizes from Pike to Medium, I don't bother with small) for those, "I am outa here and going fishing" moments. What is really important (I have found) is that as soon as you see a dead soldier in the tank, remove him. He will contaminate the water (especially if he gets sucked up to the intake to the pump). Check the shiner tank everyday!

I have shiners (no bit of an exageration) with 4 holes in there back and they are as lively as can be! (that's the finer shiner doing it's magic).
Flaggs!

I do pretty much the same.  I do try to keep a couple suckers in there to help filter the water

[Redhead]

i've kept mine alive for 3 months without feeding them. i keep the water very cold and throw in 2 hard packed snow balls every day and keep a regular fish tank aerator on all the time. works very well 
[/quote I agree,keep them by the garage door and put snow in every day after work.I use
a styrofoam pail with no aerator and they stay nice and lively.

[flaggs]

I do pretty much the same.  I do try to keep a couple suckers in there to help filter the water

Suckers... That's a good idea!  I'll nedd to pick up a couple...

Thanks newbraintree!

Flaggs!

[FishingNewEngland]

Here's my large shiner tank.

10 gallons, 2 filters, and an airstone. The fish are over 2 weeks now. I usually have 10-15 in the tank but gave a bunch away due to back injury. They eat flake food.