keeping minnows?

[shizzy]

what does everyone use to hold/carry minnows while on the ice?

Also will I have any luck keeping them for 2 days?

[jwmiller33]

i have a frabill minnow bucket with an aerator in it. runs of two D batteries i believe. it will definitely last for a couple days

[jwmiller33]

i have also seen guys just use a normal minnow bucket and throw in a chuck of snow every couple hours. this will also keep your minnows alive as the snow thrown in the bucket adds oxygen to the water

[Mike Stark]

i just heard of folks freezing minnows in a bucket of water...going into the b-dub with it...busting it openb and putting the minows in water. then some of the minows come back to life and others dont. the guy i heard it from isnt a BSer but i have not personally seenn it done...might give it a try this winter.

[Mainehazmt]

2 1/2 gal igloo water jug hole drilled in top for the airrator

[hawkeye43]

I use a 6 pack cooler, nice tight fit and it freezes just a slap on the top pops it free

[JBMasterAngler]

Don't use snow...it'll make the water dirty...use the slush from the holes you drill...cleaner and more oxygen

[zamboni]

Don't use snow...it'll make the water dirty...use the slush from the holes you drill...cleaner and more oxygen

Especially the yellow snow

[Ed Carlson]

Most of the time...for me...it's in a zip-lock bag or a Styrofoam cup.

I salt mine.

[fivebucks]

Styrofoam minnow bucket for me. The styrofoam lets it breath a little bit over plastic. I've kept them for more than days as long as you change water on occasion.

[OnAFly]

I use an old ice cream bucket. It seals well enough to not have to worry about it and I've kept fatheads for over a month in it with regular water changing every time I go out. I just keep it in the fridge in the mean time.

[MuskieJunkie]

I use a small coleman cooler.

[Eric Kruger]

i use styrofoam minnow buckets and i can keep mine up to three weeks in the basement without changing water and adding a little dry dog food once a week!

E

[toughguy]

2 days won't be an issue. Just keep them on the ice or the floor or your shanty so they stay cold and they'll live. I keep em in my garage for days at a time with no bubbler. They do much better in the winter in cool water. Unlike the summer half of em are dead before you can get your boat in the water

[fisherdog19]

I keep a 10 gallan aquarium in my garage with a filter and water heater so it doesn't freeze solid. Use it year round, cost me $30 for the tank, heater, and filter unit, and about $20 a year in filters.

[OnAFly]

I've thought about doing that as well. What have you been able to keep in it? I was thinking mostly fatheads, crappie minnows and suckers.

[shizzy]

should I bother with one of the bubblers?

the reason I ask is I am an apartment dweller. that means anything out in the garage WILL freeze solid, the basement storeage unit isnt any cooler then the rest of the building and I dont have a fridge out in the garage I could put things in (Wife is just now getting used to a container of waxies in the butter compartment) so basically whatever minnows I have will have to sit on the dining room floor. the way my work schedule is I have 2 days in a row available to fish.

[toughguy]

In that case if it's indoors I would get a bubbler. You can just get one of aquarium ones. No need to get a special minnow one.

[Eric Kruger]

if you get one with a bubbler and keep it in our garage as long as the water ismoving it shouldnt freeze. my minnow life bait bucket doesnt freeze when left in my un insulated garage for days

E

[trapperdirk]

I usually salt mine in a baggy too but have used everything with a bubbler in my day . I'm lucky at the moment because I can get bait real early in the morning here if I'm fishing Simcoe and sometimes I even add just a pinch of sea salt to the bucket and it seems to get them fired up .

TD

[shizzy]

if you get one with a bubbler and keep it in our garage as long as the water ismoving it shouldnt freeze. my minnow life bait bucket doesnt freeze when left in my un insulated garage for days

E

I should add that I have no power and no heat in my garage.

I think my plan will be a cheap bucket with a lid and an aquarium bubbler.

[Ed Carlson]

A heavy wall 7-Day Styrofoam cooler is a cheap answer...and works well in a garage or entryway.

Add a Frabill 110/12V/2-D battery converter aeration unit and your set to go at home and in the field.

[rugbymn]

Here's an idea I've been tossing around and I'm going to try it this year.

Take a length of 3" or 4" pvc pipe. Drill small holes in it. Rig up a cap system that can be easily removed. Put some weight in the bottom and put a rope through it.

Then, just drop it down the hole. The minnows stay fresh for as long as you need them. You can even leave them sit there in your permanent until your next trip.

[charliepete]

I've got an insulated Frabil bucket. When I come in from fishing I stick them in the beer fridge. I used to mess around with aereators and a 5 gallon bucket; but after some experimentation (and advice from here) I find that I can keep minnows for weeks at a time if I change the water every other day, use the drops that aquarium people use to prep water, and keep them in the fridge. I'm convinced most minnows are killed because of becoming shocked as they hit fresh tap water (from chlorine etc), or because the water they are in makes a large temperature change.

[WTN4ICE]

Not so sure any of these will come back to life.