DIY - November 2009

Chilly-bin bait tank

(Top) The pump and filter used in the aeration system. (Bottom) The portable live-bait tank uses a pump system set into a section of closed-cell foam.

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DIY - Chilly bin bait tank

While my Ramco 580 has a small built-in live-bait tank, I find the larger, more portable model I have created from an old wheeled chilly-bin does the job so much better.

Using a piece of closed-cell foam cut to measure, the pump unit is held in place within the chilly bin and floats the pump suction just below the surface.

The recirculating pump on this unit is a standard 360gph sump pump, and I created a small air bleed using a ballpoint pen ink tube, fitted into the pump suction, to aerate the water. Also included is a standard 130-micron irrigation filter to keep the water as clean and purified as possible.

Power is 12 volt, supplied by a wire attached to the boat battery via alligator clips, making the whole unit portable from boat to boat if required.

As can be seen from the photograph, the outlet tube is drilled along the top edge to allow air to escape the length of the tank; the end of the tube is left open to allow full discharge from the pump. While the aerator will keep the baits alive on its own, I refresh the tank on a regular basis with a bucket of seawater.

Another key aspect of the live-bait tank concerns the good seal fitted on the chillybin’s lid, which stops the water sloshing out when the boat is underway.

The rounded internal corners allow the baits to swim unimpeded, rather than becoming jammed, as can happen with a square-cornered tank. Being on wheels, I can move the tank around the cockpit to wherever it’s needed.

This a system has worked well for me, allowing live baits caught on the coast to be transported to the offshore pins, where the kingfish await their delivery.

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