MARTINO: Tips for keeping minnows alive during summer’s heat

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Without question, the use of live bait accounts for the majority of all fish caught.

One of the most common preferred types of live bait are minnows. Around here, that usually means fathead or bluntnose varieties. But keeping them alive and frisky during the heat of the summer can be a problem. There are few things worse than reaching your fishing hole and popping open the lid of your minnow bucket to see the tiny fish floating lifeless on the surface.

Bait shops have a luxury of large tanks and other useful machines to keep minnows alive. They make use of electrically powered aerators to oxygenate the water. They also have air pumps, filters, foods and medicine, which they provide to keep minnows frisky.

It doesn’t take long for beginning fishermen to realize that lively minnows catch more and bigger fish than sluggish ones. Experienced anglers typically pick the liveliest minnows first, slowly picking their way to the slow or dead ones.

Keeping minnows alive in the winter is much easier due to the cooler temperatures. I have personally kept minnows for weeks on end during our cooler seasons. But when the weather starts eclipsing the 80-degree mark, keeping them alive for more than a few hours can take some work.

According to Tony Gergely, president of Sure-Life labs, most minnows sold in bait shops start life at large bait farms. When a hatchery pond is harvested, minnows are put in long raceways and held for a few days to let them purge themselves before they are shipped. This keeps them from fouling the water with their excrement before they are shipped in large tank trucks.

A chemical is put in the tanks to somewhat tranquilize the fish. This slows metabolism during the shipping process which reduces their demand for oxygen and keeps them from dashing around the tanks injuring themselves. Dead minnows affect a wholesale bait dealer’s bottom line and many precautions are taken to safeguard them. Shouldn’t we do the same to protect our investment?

Naturally the best way to keep them alive is with the use of an aerator. They make all kinds, at all price points, and can be essential, especially during the dog days of summer. If you don’t use an aerator there are other ways to help keep your bait lively. One method is to pour a small capful of hydrogen peroxide into the water which helps promote the creation of oxygen and retention.

Frequent water changes can help keep oxygen levels adequate as well as removing any “floaters.” One caveat is to never use municipal water due to the chemicals in it. Well water is preferred or in the case you don’t have well water, distilled water is just as good, as long as it is cool. Many times people replace water from the lake they are fishing. Although during summer’s heat even lake water can be too hot for proper survival rates.

One of the best ways to cool bait water is to put ice cubes in a baggie, then drop the bag and cubes in your bait bucket. Warm water loses oxygen much faster than cold water so you should maintain cooler water for your minnows. Keeping ice cubes in a zip-lock baggie helps prevent cold spots while also reducing the chance the ice has been made with water containing chlorine which will contaminate bait water. Drastic changes in water temperature can shock bait into dying.

As far as containers go, avoid any type of metal container during the warm days of summer. Minnow buckets that are insulated help keep the water cooler slowing oxygen depletion. Flow through types are also good when they can be placed in the waters you are fishing.

Keeping minnows alive should be one of your main concerns, especially when storing them in a normal bait bucket. As with anything, you get what you pay for. So when purchasing a minnow container get the best you can afford.

If you can provide these fish with adequate requirements, you can keep them alive for days. Not only is it less expensive in the long run, but your fishing success will benefit as well.

You are viewing this post: MARTINO: Tips for keeping minnows alive during summer’s heat. Information curated and compiled by Kayaknv.com along with other related topics.

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