So I got bored a couple weeks ago and decided to build a bait pen. Stopped at lowes about 30 bucks worth of stuff.
Tried it out this weekend. Put about 3 dozen or so menhaden and a couple finger mullet in overnight. Tied to dock in creek. Next day about half the menhaden were dead, a quarter were red slightly bloody on the sides mostly, the remainder were fine. Mullet looked fine. I think it needs a center pole cause it tends to collapse a bit, mesh is plastic.
I figured the fish were rubbing on sides of mesh, maybe if I let some slime build up that will help. I’ve heard menhaden hard to keep, maybe ill stick to mullet. Gonna try shrimp in fall. Love some tips / suggestions. Also if I try to keep them for more than a day do I need to feed the? How often?
Awesome build and pictures. I was thinking about something similar, but was lazy and going to convert a trash can
Let us know how this works out in the near term. I really appreciate the info learned, like needing a center pole.
Your comment about the menhaden got me laughing. If I look at them wrong they die. If you can keep them alive for even a day or two, you have a great build that will keep mullet / shrimp indefinitely.
What are you planning on feeding them (assuming they last that long). I was thinking dog food, but have not done any research to see if that is the right choice or not. I do however, have 2 big dogs and lots of dog food laying around.
I hadn’t thought of otters…I though the mesh would be slick because its collapsible when not needed. Though it may get brittle over time. I don’t have a dock, pen is at a friends and I may have to pull and store it sometimes.
I may make another with a trash can, as it wont deform when the current pushes against the dock. What pattern / spacing did you drill the holes in the can? Do they need to be close together like 1-2 inches or can you get by with fewer holes?
I was thinking of feeding with dry dog food in a mesh sack hung from the top. Do you guys try to keep it stocked all the time of time or just put bait in a day or two before you need it?
If you have a good bait pen keep it stocked. I bought a couple pens from Rob’s reel baits. His site is shut down it seems but the guy makes an incredible product hell some of the pens he builds are big enough to fit a truck in. Mine have sat in the creek a few years now without any damage from otters or anything else. Mine are the same concept as yours with much heavier mesh material to avoid that flemsiness. I do have to pull them out every spring for a powerwash and to replace the float noodles. I’ve only kept menhaeden a few days but pinfish, mullet, shrimp and mudminnows can last an eternity in it. What size are your mesh holes? The trash cans work well too
Built one out of the same material a few years back and had the same problem Preston mentioned with otters chewing through it. Pulled it out and wrapped it in chicken wire and that took care of the problem.
The next time we used it, the otters were actually sitting on top of it barking at us as we approached to get our bait!
All this talk about bait pens reminded me I will soon have a place for one. Got up early this morning and went to work. I had the choice between a 30 and 55 gallon drums. I went with the 55 as bigger is better and it had a top so I would not have to fabricate a one. Everything put into it so far is stuff I had laying around. All hardware is through bolted with 8-32 SS machine screws and acorn nuts so there is no threaded portions to snag. Hole size is 5/16". I think I should have enough as there is a good current where it is going. I did not want too many as the majority of bait will be shrimp, MM, and some FM.
If drilling holes in poly, make sure to have a very sharp drill bit. It will cut cleanly and not leave any raised edges or tear out. I still went back and torched all the holes to ease the edges. I added a lock for the lid after the pictures…very simple pin mechanism that is reached through the bung.
All I that is left is to belt the top with some floats.
I made something simular to this to use as a livewell it the lake. I made mine to float with about 3/4 of the drum submerged while laying horizontal. I used a jumbo noodle ziptied to the inside to make it float… It works really well for holding my catfish throught the weekend at the lake until I am ready to clean them. If you want yours to float, you could add a noodle on the inside arounf the rim and it would float with the lid just above water.
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Hairball that turned really nice. Cleats are a nice touch. Hope you get it slimy soon.
After having mine in for a couple weeks - no bait this week cause I’m going out of town - it floats on its side a bit even though i put some rocks in bottom. And gets deformed against the dock when the current is brisk. going to add a center support see if that helps.
But i like the barrell / trash can better. That’s the way I’m gonna go next time. Gonna give the mesh one a shot this season.
quote:Dang, hairball, that's a lot of hole drilling Nice pattern too. Real nice job
Don’t remind me of all those holes!
Actually it wasn’t too bad. I planted myself in a patio chair and enjoyed the breeze for a couple hours. I used a piece of 1/2 inch square hardware cloth as a template. I also served to center the drill bit allowing me to drill a hole about every second.
Great idea using hardware cloth for a drilling template. I was wondering how you got them so uniform. I think I might have just backed up and shot it repeatedly with buckshot
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