Salt is the answer

[bnt55]

If you ever wondered why your shad wont stay alive and keep getting red nosed then you arent using salt. I went to tractor supply and bought a 50 lb bag of pure rock salt for $5 and put a cup in my homemade bait tank prior to putting in a dozen large shad (4"-8"), I didnt use anything other than salt and the difference was remarkable. After 4 hours of fishing in the hot weather, the shad were so frisky I could barely catch them in the dip net and they were flippin all over the boat while I was trying to hook them, let me tell you this has never happened before with just regular tank treatments of bait medic and it only cost me pennies!! I was using the dip net to get the ammonia bubbles off the surface of the tank water and they still werent getting red nosed, with the other stuff they would be red nosed and lethargic in 2 hrs tops.

Does this mean that all your bait tank will need is salt...probably not but I would definately use it as the base for establishing a healthy bait tank environment. Just my $.02

Good luck fishing
Bill

[martygreen]

Salt is the ticket and you can buy you a bottle of Foam Off to keep the foam away,only takes a drop,the salt helps reduce stress on the shad and protects the slime coat from them loosing scales

[Rusty]

What if I wanted to put some gills in with the shad . Will the salt bother them?

[Bambu]

i use non-iodized table salt, 3$ for a 25lb bag at sams club, disolves alot faster. you can use coffee creamer for a anti-foam it works great, but be careful just a little first time i used it the water clouded, live and learn. if you can get it well water works good but you need to get some air into before you put the shad in.

[brother hilljack]

Sounds like good ideas, I will have to try all of it out

[JimmyJonny]

What if I wanted to put some gills in with the shad . Will the salt bother them?

Your bream are fine in the salt. We use herring but now and then I catch a few gills and put them together...no problems.

-Jim-

[72hdflh]

I'll definately have to try this, Thanks for the tip.

[Mickey]

Thanks Bill for sharing the salt idea. Will give it a try. Will this salt cause any damage to your bait tank over prolong use?

[plainsman]

I tried salt on minnows. During hot weather they were dying between the bait shop and lake, less than a mile. A little salt in the bucket kept them in good shape till I got to the lake to put em in the lake and have constant fresh water. It also helped with temperature shock. They stayed alive longer at the lake too.

[Mr.T]

Be careful what kind of salt you buy...

"rock salt" (the kind you might buy to freeze homemade ice cream) has a lot of stuff in it besides salt. Like rocks. Things that will be left over in the bottom of your bait tank when the day is done. You don't want that.

I think what bnt55 bought was actually "stock salt" (pure salt, made to be added to livestock feed, bigger grains that table salt but still dissolves pretty quick). You can also use pure water softner salt (not the pellet kind, just big hunks of pure salt, doesn't dissolve as fast but is similarly cheap, way under $5 for 50 lbs.)

Usually add 1 cup of salt per 10 to 15 gallons of water.

It does several things to the fish that seem to help them survive, among other things it apparently does something to help them take oxygen out of the water easier.

Cool (but not too cool, within 10 degrees of the lake) clean water, a good filtration system, some salt, a little bit of Better Bait if you have it and being careful to not overcrowd your tank are the keys to keeping shad alive. One 6-inch shad to a gallon of water is about as much as you want to add - more than that and you'll need to change the water frequently.