Eel tank source

[chief10]

Goose- i use a black rubbermaid 75 gallon feed tank you can find at a agway dist. they are about $100.00. inside I have a 1800 gph rule pump with a hose attached. I built a plywood top that is bolted to the plastic tank and cut out a 5" +/- for an aerator. during the herring season I can keep 36 herring for a couple days. The bottom of the tank comes with a drain you can attach a hose with shutoff valve. I have a 25' garden hose I run out of my garage and down a slope to drain. I only use the tank to save time on my fishing days ,rather than keep them for long periods of time. In the summer ( june/july most of august) I don't use it. In the fall I'll start buying eels and I'll keep them in there until late november. With eels I barely use the aerator , just the pump. During the herring season I use baitsaver and foam-off they both work well.

[Goose]

Sandman, I hear ya on the ice maker. I bring frozen water milk gal.,its alright but nothin like cubes. Cheif that sounds like a sweet set-up. It looks as if mine will be strickly eel tank. I'm going to use a fish tote, I'm putting a large rubbermaid container inside which I will drill out to act as a strainer to retreive them. Just useing the pump what was your alive/loss ratio??

[chief10]

Goose- the kill ratio was next to nothing. I think taking them out putting them on ice, transporting them to the beach, then bringing the unfished ones home resulted in some dead ones. I also used a small amount of stress coat solution, you can find it at any pet store. it takes the chlorine out. back to the herring tank, I weighted the hose down on the 1800 gph pump so it wouldn't go ballistic in the tank.when I put the first batch herring in I checked on them about an hour later, they were all stacked up in perfect rows about 4 wide, staging into the current made from discharge.

[Jessejames]

Hey guys-Recently registered-first post.

I just started using eels last season and made do with picking up bait as needed. I have a 100gal black rubbermaid tank with a constant input/overflow system pumped from a runoff creek next to the house- seasonally used for ice fishing(shiners), it works great. I 'm wondering how long I can expect eels to last in this thing.

[piemma]

The eels change color based on the color of the bottom of where they are living. I use to use an old Igloo cooler that was white. My eels would turn light green. I painted the bottom black and they stayed black.

[Fishpart]

JJ Welcome. They will last forever, I keep eels in a hole filled bucket in a stream and they last a long time.. If you can keep them shaded even better. I don't know what to feed them, but I know they get hungry. Earthworms maybe...

[piemma]

I have a spring fed pond on my property and for awhile kept eels in a shiner bucket in the pond. Fine until mid-summer when it gets too warm and they die.
As for food, the eels I keep in my tank do get hungry and I found that you can get tiny dried shrimp at any pet supply store. About 3 bucks for a can and it will last you all season.

[RIROCKHOUND]

P,
What about sinking them in the pond (like a metal eelpot with no escape/entry holes... used to use one at the dock till it rusted out (a few seasons) kept em out of the sun a bit too....
B

[Jessejames]

Thanks guys,

I hadn't considered feeding them-figuring the food would just leave with the overflow. I'll have to think about that one?

[piemma]

I did sink them in the pond. The water apparently got to warm and they expired.