Aerators…..

as most u cat boys know……….When we go out on them long nights cattin, the bait tends to loose alot of life by morning. Lots of times, i am running BH’s for bait, so they can take a beating. But i’ve still had some die off on me. I usually got a big cooler i keep em in wiht reasonably cool water.

Is there any particular aerators you guys LIKE or have used and DISLIKE. I am gonna get one before the hardcore time comes. I was looking at the Gander Mt in Wausaw, WI this week and they had alot to offer.

Only problem is some are very WEAK… .and batterys die……. or they end up being really LOUD. I dont plan on hooking it up to my boat battery… to many wires for a little flatbottom, so i am gona get a portable style.

I used a Frabill one last year…. good for small biat buckets…. bad for big coolers.

any insight?

‘Morning MCK,

Dirk uses the Magnum (directly wired to 12v battery). I’ll let him explain his thoughts on this product. I plan on trying out the Mini (4 penlight batteries and portable)

I called AquaInnovations last fall and spoke with one of the owners. You still need to change the water because of wastes ect. The frequecy depends on how much water your container holds (bucket cooler ect.)

Here’s the link Aqua Innovations

The Mini is $50 and the Magnum is $99.

For the last 5 years I’ve been using the blue bucket with a bubbler built into the bottom for minnows (can’t recall the name right now $29.95 retail). That worked great for minnows but it was killing me going through the D size batteries. I’d get about 48 hours from a good D cell. If I tried to streach it longer, I would always end up with a stinky bucket.

The theory behind Aquainovations concept is perfect for the Angler.

I would be interested to hear if anyone else has used these…before I buy one.

PS With my “blue bucket”, it died this year because a mouse took out the styrofoam insulation and wiring. Otherwise, replacement parts can be ordered online very inexpensivly and it was a good bucket (little noisy) for minnows…too small for more than 2-3 suckers or bullheads, the size you would use for cats. The cost of running it…I felt was excessive.

yeah, i saw those at Gander, liked them ALOT. I shoulda looked closer, cuz i thought the Mini ran off a 12v battery. But apperently it runs off 4 AA bateries i belive. I may end up buying that!!

One that hooks up to my boat batery would be NICE, but i carry that cooler around all over the place, and wires to the back of my boat would be anoying…. at least in the boat i use cattin.

thanks!!

I have tried many things with the same problem. Deal with the wires. I have a simple bilge pump with a plastic tube. When you want water in drop the bilge into the river. Then you can use any cooler you like. The coolest part about this is it gives you an emergency pump should you ever hit something. The most important thing is water temp. If I am going out for a long time throw a block or a bag of ice in there too. I have had blue gills swiming in more ice than water many times with no ill effects. I might even sell you my rig as I just got a new boat.

yeah………. i found out it works good if i just put our well hose water in my cooler. its relly cold and they stay alive for a while…….. when i put in river water is my problem……low O2 content cuz so warm i think.

hhhhmmm…….. i know i got a brandnew bilge laying around…….

There are three main factors relating to dead bait:
1. Lack of oxygen.
2. Co2 buildup
3. Ammonia from the baits waste

I thought keeping bait alive would be a snap with the Aqua Innovation aerator but there appears to be a problem. It doesn’t agitate the water which is needed to release the Co2 from a cooler. I think that’s why some of my chubs were dying last summer. Bullheads are no big deal but other baitfish are possibly a problem. It produces all the oxygen bait needs though, easily. If you have a livewell in your boat with a recuirculator, the A.I. should work great, but a cooler requires some agitation. I’ll use two systems at once this summer and I should have very happy bait. The A.I. and the system I have in the pic. I bought the A.I. to reduce noise but wasn’t anticipating the Co2 problem.

As far as the ammonia goes. You need to change the water.

Let know of other suggestions. Good bait is IMPORTANT!!

maybe i can “hardwire” something up the side of my boat and have a plug to plug in a bilge or areator. that way i dont have to undo anoyting gator clips!

I bought a $6 walmart cheapie one and it was so loud that it didn’t do much good when i turned it off all of the time. I got one named “quiet bubbles” or something and it’s a lot better. Tolerable noise levels for $15. Batteries last a while, not forever. I stick a plug in the wall style bubbler when I get home.

I’ve never used this but here’s what my uncle does for his aerator and it seems to work good. He just went to a pet store and got a $20 air pump bubbler with the dual output hoses. It has a dial to adjust the amount of air flow and it comes with a life time guarantee. I think this air pump is sized for a 50 gallon aquarium. It runs off of 110 V so he has a little inverter that steps up the voltage from 12V to 110V. The bubbler doesn’t use many watts so it doesn’t drain the battery excessively, plus the battery is connected to the main motor alternator so it gets charged. He has the inverter tucked under the splash well so it doesn’t get rained on. I don’t know if they can take the rain or not. Also, if you get the bubbler, buy the good silicone tubing that has a blue tint to it. It’s very flexible. These air pumps are pretty quite and really crank out the air. I use one to keep creek chubs alive in the fall in my garage. I don’t have an inverter in my boat however. I think the low wattage inverters cost about $35.

This takes care of the oxygen problem but you still have to change the water to prevent the ammonia/waste build up.

Boone