Bait bucket aerator

[ronaldlee]

Can anyone recommend one of those little "D Cell" battery powered bait bucket aerator? From reading all the reviews I'd guess a lot of them are close to junk. Thanks for any information,
                                                              Ron

[bubbinator]

Check the Bass Pro Shop catalog and CAbela's. I think Frabill-the Net makers-put out some and they are backed by BPS. Local BPS here in Prattville, AL is great about no questions asked returns within reason. I've used them(the aerators) in the past and they seem to work. Short term-thereare some tablets sold by Bait Shops that treat the bucket water to aid minnow life. They've worked too-got bait alive to the lake where bait-well water took over.

[KNIFE_NUT_1981]

I have 2 insulated bait buckets made by frabill called the "cool keeper" and 2 frabill "bubble box" aerators to go with them. The bucket has 2 little plastic hoops on the edge of the lid, one for a small minnow net, and the other for attaching the "bubble box". Got them both at Wal-Mart (bucket and aerator sold separately, of course)... I've had them for years, never had any trouble with them, and the combination works great. Batteries last about 36 to 48 hours running constantly. I've kept shiners alive for 3 or 4 days in them! After that kind of success, I wouldn't think of reccommending anything else.

[LunaticFringeInc]

Check the Bass Pro Shop catalog and CAbela's. I think Frabill-the Net makers-put out some and they are backed by BPS. Local BPS here in Prattville, AL is great about no questions asked returns within reason. I've used them(the aerators) in the past and they seem to work. Short term-thereare some tablets sold by Bait Shops that treat the bucket water to aid minnow life. They've worked too-got bait alive to the lake where bait-well water took over.

I got one of these from BPS as a package deal with a floating minnow net, air pump and lid for fitting on to a 5 gallon bucket.  It works great and has served me for a couple of hard seasons of repeated and long use.  Itll run for at least 12 hours in my experience off 2 x D cell batteries.  Do replace the air stone periodically as the pores clog after a while.  I prefer the "wood" air stones due to the finer bubbles it puts out.

[Empty Quiver]

Don't know if this is known to southerners, probably is but here you go.


I primarily ice fish, true story, you can walk on water . I can keep minnows for days heck sometimes weeks, no aerator. Two things, one is a clean bucket, better yet I get a plastic bag full of bait and insert this into, ... second thing, an insulated bucket. Those minnows sit on the back porch where the temp stays about 33 degrees, I occasionally lose a batch to freezing but it is rare. I have taken the bucket into the basement with an aerator and lost them in just a couple days, now the porch is the ticket.


While fishing if those minnows start getting warm, in the HEATED fish house we will rejuvinate them by trading water and throwing ice into the pail roughly half full with ice or snow.


Were I concerned with bait I would get a good insulated bucket. Keep it clean, Styrofoam with the pores cannot be kept clean, I use a bag. I would take lake water home and make plenty of ice to add to the bucket throughout the day. my minnow bucket looks like a Coke from Mc Donalds. The minnows sort of go into suspended animation in that cold water, which by the way will hold conciderably more O2. I imagine plain ice would work but the chlorine might play hell with the minnows at some point.

[Empty Quiver]

Don't know if this is known to southerners, probably is but here you go.


I primarily ice fish, true story, you can walk on water . I can keep minnows for days heck sometimes weeks, no aerator. Two things, one is a clean bucket, better yet I get a plastic bag full of bait and insert this into, ... second thing, an insulated bucket. Those minnows sit on the back porch where the temp stays about 33 degrees, I occasionally lose a batch to freezing but it is rare. I have taken the bucket into the basement with an aerator and lost them in just a couple days, now the porch is the ticket.


While fishing if those minnows start getting warm, in the HEATED fish house we will rejuvinate them by trading water and throwing ice into the pail roughly half full with ice or snow.


Were I concerned with bait I would get a good insulated bucket. Keep it clean, Styrofoam with the pores cannot be kept clean, I use a bag. I would take lake water home and make plenty of ice to add to the bucket throughout the day. my minnow bucket looks like a Coke from Mc Donalds. The minnows sort of go into suspended animation in that cold water, which by the way will hold conciderably more O2. I imagine plain ice would work but the chlorine might play hell with the minnows at some point.

[mcwoodduck]

I have one I modified when I moved from NJ to VA and moved my fish tank.
I added a cord so it would plug into a 12 volt.
Are you fishing from a Boat?  I'll sell you mine kinda cheap.\PM me if you're interested.
Oh bought it at a boat Store   Boat/US or West Marine about 20 years ago.
Still works.

[KNIFE_NUT_1981]

Yeah EQ, climate is the major factor in keeping bait alive. I normally use all my bait the day I buy it, but the few times I've bought more than I needed, the heat is what killed them. Here in LA, I have found that bringing the bucket inside where it's cool, and keeping the aerator running constantly is the best way to keep them any length of time. If you're like me, and only buy enough bait for a day's worth of fishing, and don't plan on keeping them more than a couple days at a time, the "cool keeper" and the "bubble box" are the way to go. It will keep them alive at least until the water gets too hot, and EQ's ice in the bucket trick works well if you're out in the hot sun fishing all day. Never been ice fishing, never even walked on any ice... Try that down here, and you'll end up with a cold, wet @$$!

[gypsyman]

I know this is a late reply, but, thought I'd throw my .02 worth in. We bought an insulated bait bucket at Bass Pro early last spring. Most of the time we're using worms for walleye. But, here in the late summer and fall, perch fishing picks up on Lake Erie. And we use shiner minnows. Just last Sat. we were out for about 5 hours perch fishing, and the bait bucket worked very well. It's called Cool Bubbles, made by a company called Marine Metal Products. It uses 2 D cell batteries, and it kept the minnows very much alive and active. Highly recommend it. Says the pump is made in Taiwan, but everything else is made in USA. gypsyman