Thread: Dead Crappie

Originally Posted by DMW1960

On my 2008 Lowes my 2 livewells have the normal water pump that does a good job. But with them having on board minnow buckets the water pump was only good when I am on the water. I buy my minnows locally and keep a stock tank full in the back yard. And normally I have at least an hour road trip to and from the main lake I fish at. So I use Bait Saver that I get at Bass Pro. Plus for a few dollars I installed a air pump system in my front livewell that got from BP. It don't use much power and I put a time switch on it with a manual switch. Last weekend wife and I went fishing and we got done and I just turned on the manual switch. We ended up driving the long way home we also did some site seeing. It was a good 5 hours from the time we left the water until I pulled into the driveway. All the crappie were still alive along with the catfish that we caught on crappie jigs! I don't like cleaning dead fish! Since I put the air system in I don't even have dead fish even during the hotest summer fishing trips.

What kind of air pump are you using? Have you got a picture of the setup by any chance?

My old bass tracker's live well filled from the bottom and had an over flow drain at the top, so I just turned on the pump and it changed the water in it.

In the summer I have put ice in the live well many times.

try using the "release me" powder that BPS sells. I used it all last year and never had to flush livewell with fresh water. Fish held their slime and stayed very lively.

The gills gotta be red and the eyes clear. Anything with pink gills and foggy eyes is spoiled. Crappie can live in a mud hole, one of the toughest fish next to cats, but when temps get high they can spoil inside of a half hour. Ice in the livewell on the way home.

In spring I've had em jump out of a five gallon bucket after a half hour ride in the livewell.

Originally Posted by JIG Gene-e

The gills gotta be red and the eyes clear. Anything with pink gills and foggy eyes is spoiled. Crappie can live in a mud hole, one of the toughest fish next to cats, but when temps get high they can spoil inside of a half hour. Ice in the livewell on the way home.

In spring I've had em jump out of a five gallon bucket after a half hour ride in the livewell.

I have always been told as long as the gills are pink they are fine. Been going off this for 20 years and never once had a problem. Even if you ice them down right when you catch them they will still turn pink within a day. I say EAT EM...

could you just place a bag of ice in the live well to keep fish at least from getting spoiled if they die?

Just put 'em on ice and don't worry about it. Alls you have to worry about is limiting out. :D

aj

Originally Posted by Arkie John

Just put 'em on ice and don't worry about it. Alls you have to worry about is limiting out. :D

aj

Good advice... I only use the live well when fishing a tourney.. That said, keeping the water cool is not the most important thing.. It's more important to keep the oxygen level up.
If you are determined to keep them alive in the live well, get a bubbler system. They sell them at Academy, and Cabela's. Clips on your battery (or you can wire it in to a switch/remote) and you can run Aquarium tubing to your livewell.. Better yet is to install a "Max Aire" system in your livewell. I have one and love it..

Last but not least, putting the bubbler system in will let you drop a stone in your minnow bucket as well.. You'll see a HUGE difference in your minnows ---- "Lively"

Hope this helps

only thing about running the live well to try and keep cold water in it is that the surface water you are pumping is usually warmer than the depth the fish came from and just like minnows a coupkle degrees can make it or brake it lol.

just what i've been told and seen .

Scott

Freeze some water bottles and keep them in the ice chest. When the water temperature starts to get warm place a bottle in the well.