live wells

[Sir reel]

Greetings,

My 19' Carolina Skiff (SemiV) does not have a live well. I have considered several times about how I might build one in ...or ... what sort of add on or portable live well that would be best. I don't want to take up a lot of room and I wouldn't necessarily always use it. I'd like to hear from anyone who has:.......

1. Had a unit custom built into their boat and was happy with it. If so, who did the work.

2. Purchased one of the many portables on the market and what they like or don't like.

3. Considered building one themselves. I'll probably get laughed off the forum but ... why wouldn't one of those large rubber maid containers from Walmart work as a well?? Then add the pump and plumbing. It seems to me that you could make one for a lot less than they sell the fibre glass units at West Marine, Cabelos, etc. Your looking at 150 - 200 bucks for a plugin complete package unit and that's just more than I want to spend.

So... give me some input fellows .. am I spit'n into the wind or what?

[wevans]

I haven't done it, but have heard of it being done. Buy an ice chest of the prefered size "make shure that you can add a seat pad to it", make the prefered modifications to it, and you have a new seat and a livewell all at the same time I am shure that it is not as easy as it sounds, but ya git what ya pay for

[Wil]

Tin Can has a pretty nice removable setup on his saltwater boat. He's got a plastic cooler (48 qt I think) mounted on a metal bracket on the transom, and an aerator running into it.

It's really easy to get to, and doesn't take up any room in the boat.



Wil

[tin can]

I used a 36 qt. marine grade Igloo cooler. I fabricated a bracket that hooks into the mounts for my ladder that I never use. I used a piece of sheet aluminum for a bracket that holds a 500 gph bilge pump below the water surface, under the cooler. I installed a standard plastic aeriater sprayer through the cooler as well as a through hull fitting in the cooler for an overflow. Everything hangs on the transom, outside the boat. I wired to the back with a 2 wire push together connecter, through an accessory switch on the console. It's easily accessable and I didn't have to modify my boat or use any floor space.

[Sir reel]

Good morning,

Thanks for the replies so far, and especially to you TC for taking the time to provide such a detail explanation on a good idea.

I have two questions (so far ). 1. The bracket that holds your pump; did you attach it directly to the hull/transom or did you suspend it from the cooler? 2. Do you leave it in place when your running? I would assume that at least the pump would come inside when you move? ?

I really like your method for three reasons. :idea: One as you say it doesn't take up any room inside. Two, you did'nt have to put holes in your boat. Three, your method can be used to keep a constant flow to the bait rather than just trying to introduce bubbles into a static volume of water.

In my research on "live wells" it sounds like a lot of "authorities" recomend some sort of light (either natural or electric) to keep the bait lively and in the best shape. Any need to give that serious consideration?

Just so you can be prepared... I may post a question later on asking for suggestions on mounting a drawer under my polling platform. I just can't stand letting space go to waste . so put your caps on just in case Thanks again for the help from all the participants.

[tin can]

I made a bracket that is attached to the cooler and hangs down into the water to mount the pump. I probably need to refine that part a little. I undo 2 thumb screws and unplug 1 2-wire connector and remove everything. The entire system stays outside the boat when I run. The pump is below the water line but above the bottom of the boat. Seems to work fine.

[wetjet]

i made one out of an old cooler

bought an aerator with the suction cups on the bottom at wally world and hooked a cig lighter plug to it

drilled a hole near the top to run the wires through so i could close the cooler

i normally do not use one so this set up is good in that i can remove from boat for trips where i will not use one

[Ken K]

Make sure you will still have enough room to trim your motor up if you put a drawer under the poling platform. Not to state the obvious or anything.

[Sir reel]

Good morning Ken,

Thanks for your word of caution. The immediate grasp of the obvious sometimes escapes us. It had occured to me, but I haven't actually gotten around to taking measurements and evaluating the travel involved when I trim the motor up or down. Thanks for look'n out. I'll report back when I find out how much room I have to work with.