# Minnow tank



## slabnabbin (May 25, 2010)

What type of aeration pump do use? I don't want to spend a bunch of money on an expensive pump to keep 10$ a pound minnows alive. I'd a filter necessary?


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## Git$um (Feb 11, 2008)

How funny, we just did the same thing. We bought bags of minnows last night, and forgot to give them to Cowboy {sorry Ken**, rather than let them go, we put them in a metal stock tank. I am going to buy a 200 gallon aerator, they cost less than $15 at some stores.


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## slabnabbin (May 25, 2010)

I have a metal stock tank as well. Where do you plan on getting your aerator?


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## FISHROADIE (Apr 2, 2010)

slabnabbin said:


> I have a metal stock tank as well. Where do you plan on getting your aerator?


If you are going to have it outside, and not in a barn or a shed. Be sure to put a sceen or some kind of cover over it. I ended up with a dead squirral in mine, he was trying to get a drink of water and fell in. Birds can do the same thing.


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## Git$um (Feb 11, 2008)

Walmart or petsmart


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## inshore12 (Jul 7, 2010)

I was looking at one at Walmart the other day. It was like 18 bucks


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## tbone2374 (Feb 27, 2010)

*Minnow Tank*

Hey Slabnabbin', here's mine. It's an upright freezer, well insulated, and works well. I have had minnows alive, for the last 4 months. Aeriator pump, and a 5 gallon filter, is all that's needed. I also have a 325 gallon stock tank, with the same set-up, for perch, I trap @ the local pond. I have Goldfish, 1.2 lb Longear, perch, minnows, and one little catfish, for bottom cleaning. I have temperature guage, filter, fountain and filtration pump in each tank. I buy minnows by the pound, and occasionally will have one die, once or twice a week. I feed every other day.


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## fin&feather (Jun 24, 2008)

Here is a tank I built to keep goldfish and koi near our butterfly garden and don't see any reason why it wouldn't work well for a bait box. Ill note my budget was 200 on this build and 50 was liner. (One could prob take this idea and skimp a little with surplus material and a cheaper liner material if desired.) All you need is some 2x12's, pump, pea gravel, liner, and some pvc. You can look at the pic and see the build but let me explain the importance of the pea gravel pit / waterfall on the top aka bog filter. The pump picks up from the lowest part of the pond and discharges into the bottom of the pea gravel box making the water travel up through it leaving sediment deposits before spilling back into the tank via water fall and adding oxygen back into the water. This system takes a little time to get living but once alive you will have a virtually maint free eco system. Only thing left to do is to place plants into the top of the filter to reduce the amount of excess mineral deposits that are collected in the filter from the water. I ran this system little over a year with no worries after reducing the amount of direct light. Sorry I don't have any finished pics but the koi did enjoy the monarch's caterpillars that fell from the bog milkweed I had in ours.


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## mudbug59 (May 2, 2009)

you can find the pump at lowes /hd



slabnabbin said:


> What type of aeration pump do use? I don't want to spend a bunch of money on an expensive pump to keep 10$ a pound minnows alive. I'd a filter necessary?


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## Lonestar Proud (Oct 26, 2010)

Tbone should just go into the bait sellin business LOL! If a feller was gonna use minners with any regularity that'd be a sweet set-up.


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## FISHROADIE (Apr 2, 2010)

Those are nice minner. tanks you have there T Bone.


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## Meadowlark (Jul 19, 2008)

fin&feather said:


> Here is a tank I built .


Tha's a very good looking and functional tank. My complements.

Wondering about water changes...if you designed in something to make that easy? Also, any estimate on how much water you have in the tank? Looks like one could easily add a valve for draining water.

Very well done.


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## fin&feather (Jun 24, 2008)

All you need to do is top it off from evaporation now and then, never had a need for changing it. I dug a sump in the middle and had the pump inside it so it sat lower than the rest of the pond and also installed a valve on the discharge piping for draining / pumping it down if ever nesc. Here is one showing clairity.


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## Reel Time (Oct 6, 2009)

fin&feather said:


> All you need to do is top it off from evaporation now and then, never had a need for changing it. I dug a sump in the middle and had the pump inside it so it sat lower than the rest of the pond and also installed a valve on the discharge piping for draining / pumping it down if ever nesc. Here is one showing clairity.


Very nice job!


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## slabnabbin (May 25, 2010)

Found a pump at academy and seems to work good


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## Lone Eagle (Aug 20, 2009)

All of the above are great. I simplified mine and made things very easy. Went to tractor supply and bought a heavy duty 40 quart black plactic tank. I keep it in my garage. It will support 2 lbs. of crappie minnows. For aireation, I simply use an aquarium aireater with two stones attached. Have about 50 to 55 bucks tied up in it.


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## tbone2374 (Feb 27, 2010)

Lonestar Proud said:


> Tbone should just go into the bait sellin business LOL! If a feller was gonna use minners with any regularity that'd be a sweet set-up.


 And what makes you think I don't use them on a regular basis ... LOL


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## Eastexn (Jan 4, 2011)

TBone, what did you feed to your minnows. I can keep them alive for long periods in a large foam cooler, but they die when I feed them.

Thanks


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## tbone2374 (Feb 27, 2010)

The Better Bait product has some food properties, for short periods, in addition I feed the goldfish flakes for minnows and the small dried shrimp (crill) for the perch. They seem to like it as it's a feedng frenzy, when they see it hit the water! I've also heard of people feeding Cherioes, but I try to avoid, anything that they don't totally consume, as it's that much more filtering necessary.


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## Carver (Oct 18, 2007)

I keep a small stock of minnows ( a few pounds) for a few weeks at a time in an old, large igloo cooler in the garage. I have a 110 v aerator and put live well chemicals like "please release me" or "minnow saver" in it before I start the run. I change about 1/2 the water out about twice a week with a syphon hose draining outside. The replacement water was staged in a laundry tub overnight with chlorine killer and a bit of the blue chems.
Small flake fish food from WalMart most days, but not very much. I just dump the extra minnows from every trip in there and on occasion I don't buy minnows for a week or two until it is emptied completely out. That is when I drain and wash it. Normally I keep it running for a few months at a time and turn them into my lake if I am going to be on the road for a while and not fishing.

It has saved me a lot of money but more importantly a lot of time not having to go find minnows when started to a new destination.


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