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As the Virginia weather has started to really heat up I`ve started to question the best method of storing my catch.
I see a little bit of everything ...5 gallon buckets, fish baskets, cheap coolers, and even noticed Richard Gene putting his in a Yeti. Wife says we are not buying a Yeti for fish storage..ha
No, my jon boat doesn`t have a live well.
What do you guys use that do not have live wells?
Thanks!
If I am keeping they go in a cooler on lots of ice. If not they quickly go back in the water
Just an igloo cooler and bag of ice. Works for me. Doesn’t have to be fancy.
28 quart lifetime cooler on ice. will hold all I want to keep and clean in the summer. $94 at Walmart. just as functional as a 35 quart Yeti
I’ve got a live well but in the summer if I’m keeping fish I toss them in a cooler full of ice. No way they will stay alive in a live well with 90 degree water temps.
Regards
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Soft sided cooler with ice for me.
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YETI cooler with ice in summer.
Run of the mill cooler and ice for me, not sure of the size but it fits OK in my rowboat.
if you have a live well it needs an ice block dropped in when you hit the water , if not right into an ice chest with an ice block , remember to rotate the fish after you have a few so the ones not on the actual ice get to chill on it , sometimes the fish on the pile dont get chilled if you don't rotate them and not sure about you but I hate to see a washed out pale crappie in my ice chest .
but to be sure it is way way WAY easier to just toss them back where they originated from .....:Rofl
I fill the livewell with ice. If I was bank fishing I would be putting them on a stringer and then icing on the way home depending on the distance I have to travel.
Cooler and ice. My new boat has the drain in the bottom of the lw with a stand pipe fitting. I cut the aerator on and it fills to the stand pipe. Even white bass are alive when I load the boat
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Cooler and a heavy plastic bag of ice, we lift the bag up drop in fish set the bag back down on the fish....repeat.
I have a front live well with recirculation. When it gets hot, I put a bag of ice in it and it works as a cooler so to speak. Will keep the water cold enough to keep the fish fresh. I would use a cooler but it would just take up too much space in my boat.
Cooler from Walmart. Think I paid $60 for it. I can put two bags of ice in it with some water and keep fish all day in Oklahoma heat. Also skinning chilled fish is less messy and just easier than warm fish.
I have a regular igloo cooler I use in the summer. I buy two bags of ice and the fish go between the two bags. It works great during the summer months.
In cooler with ice and water. Make a slurry and that way the fish are surrounded by very cold water and ice. If you just throw the fish in on some ice, some of them will not get chilled enough to keep them fresh.
I use recirculating insulated live well. Works great even in the heat. Have added a line from minnow aerator but have not had to use.
This would keep them alive to home leaving the recirc running but do to change in state regulations, no lake water can be transferred or leave lake. Since then I leave in livewell until done then move to ice for ride home.
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orca 48 quart .
Roadie with a gallon block of ice I make in my shop freezer. It is shaped in a rectangle using a kitchen storage container I bought at Walmart. I spray very lightly with Pam Non-Stick spray so when the water freezes the taper in the body of the container forces the block free. The ice just drops out. My fish are forced to be right against the slab of ice speeding the cool down.
Quote:
Originally Posted by PawPaw Gene
A slurry does an exceptional job because it kills so quickly. I like to add a dash of rock salt to drop the temperature down a few degrees, too.