Building a homemade Bait Tank ??

[lizbeth]

The cost of Bait Tanks are Crazy !! my question is have any of you guys made your own Bait Tank ? If so pictures would be great...

[konrad]

You can convert an old cooler into a live well. I have seen the kits before in Bass Pro catalogs. Never used one but don't see why they wouldn't work.

[Jumptrout51]

What type of bait and how many?

[Harmsway]

Pirate Girl, here are some things I have learned over the years of trial and error (mostly error):

Rounded edges are mandatory (so the bait don't beat themselves crazy against the wall).
Some small current is good (keeps them lined up with the current, instead of swimming into the wall).
Too much current is bad (tires them out from constant swimming against it).
Flow-through is good because it keeps the temperature right.
Aspirating areator is good too, if you change the water enough to keep temperature in check.
A handfull of rock salt helps freshwater baitfish survive longer (like shad).
Half of a plastic 55-gallon barrel works pretty good.

Here is a teaser photo (sorry I don't have a pic of the full-monty).

Savannah's Sunshine Bass Poppy 2_June 2010.jpg (1.91 MiB) Viewed 4691 times

[Flint River Pirate]

I have a stupid question. Are you wanting a bait tank for your boat or one for the house? I'm asking because a good friend of mine lives at the lake and he has a cool bait tank behind his shop where he keeps bream. He likes to catch catfish and always needs bream. Seems to work well for him. If that is what you are talking about, I will get the specs from his.

[lizbeth]

I'm thinking about one for my new boat. I found a 15 gal polyethylen tank, that I have in mind to make it out of.

[lizbeth]

a4b0ce07b736e9b200ae9775eb2bf5ca.jpg (5.86 KiB) Viewed 4637 times

[woopty]

I use a plastic garbage can with an overflow tube about 2/3 of the way up. Got a small bilge pump to move water from outside or re-circulate when running. Tied down the lid and put a cutting board on top.

[lizbeth]

good idea (the cutting board)

[Harmsway]

good idea (the cutting board)

Yeah, lid is good, especially for mullets (jumpy little bastids). Maybe cut your lid (not quite through the middle) and bolt on some rubber hinges.

[Tidedancer]

Here is a site that uses a round cooler

http://www.tropicalboating.com/fishing/ ... -well.html

[bman]

For years my dad used a setup like this for Shiners...


I made one out of a big plastic tub from Wallyworld like this:

I'll try to take photos of mine later- Ive had it for 5 years and its still working.

Here is a version I found online.
http://www.mastercatters2.com/showthrea ... d3db4e59b&

Only bad thing about these models is the water gets warm in the summer. I alway swapped some water during the day OR you can float an ice bottle in the tank to cool it off.

[Harmsway]

Here is a site that uses a round cooler

http://www.tropicalboating.com/fishing/ ... -well.html

Sweet. The only modification to this design I would recommend is to direct the inflow to squirt toward the sidewall instead of straight toward the opposite wall. The idea is to achieve a uniform circular flow current.