Livebait tank setup help plz
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Category: General Forums
Forum Name: The Boat Shed
Forum Description: Discuss all things boating.
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=91379
Printed Date: 29 Jun 2026 at 2:14am
Topic: Livebait tank setup help plz
Posted By: Tonto2
Subject: Livebait tank setup help plz
Date Posted: 31 May 2013 at 11:22pm
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This has probably been done all before and if so can someone point me to the thread plz. I am contemplating fitting a livebait tank to my little boat, very keen to not have one that just recirculates or aerates the water. I have drawn a few plans and mulled it over for a while but there is no point reinventing the wheel and there are no doubt a heap of good set ups out there, I would really appreciate some pics of your setup and what pump, size of tank etc, that works for you. No idea is a bad idea  Cheers Tonto ------------- slowly going where everyone else has already been |
Replies:
Posted By: petethemeat
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2013 at 2:12pm
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This is on my Fyran 580. Convient space in front of OB well. Still tilts well up. Haven't yet added scoop pickup for filling at speed but this is on the way. Intially had it draining back into OB well but this not a great idea as this is where the bilge pump picks up the clean water when not oving. Doh! Have since fitted outlet which drains outside the well. Tank is from hitech plastics. Just cut a hole in the tank and used the cutout as the lid. Cheaper than proper "hatch" lid. Tight ******* I know.   
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Posted By: Durban
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2013 at 2:23pm
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i used to fish on my m8ts boat that had a live bait tank built into the deck when not in use we place the hatch cover on , it had a bung plug screwed into the hull inside the tank to fill it with water simply unscrew the plug water fills the tank coming from outside , depending how much free board your deck is above the water line . with a deck below the water line this wont work , to empty it screwed the plug back in we just used a bilge pump , this was fitted towards the front of the boat |
Posted By: Norseman
Date Posted: 01 Jun 2013 at 2:29pm
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------------- "Nothing is so strong as gentleness, nothing so gentle as real strength." St. Francis de Sales |
Posted By: Tonto2
Date Posted: 02 Jun 2013 at 7:02pm
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Cheers guys, been toying with the idea of running one hose for the pump and pick up with a "Y" fitting but not to sure if it will create back flow to the pump. Also I have a live well pump as opposed to a bilge pump which allows a wash down hose to be used but these are normally fitted inside the hull.Good ideas there cheerstonto ------------- slowly going where everyone else has already been |
Posted By: CEEBEE
Date Posted: 03 Jun 2013 at 6:48pm
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I simply used a container with a $39.00 battery operated air pump in it. Worked am absolute treat. Very calm fish. Like this one http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/boats-marine/parts-accessories/other/auction-599472824.htm" rel="nofollow - http://www.trademe.co.nz/motors/boats-marine/parts-accessories/other/auction-599472824.htm ------------- I STARTED THE DAY WITH NO FISH AND I STILL HAVE PLENTY LEFT |
Posted By: Tonto2
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2013 at 6:55pm
cheers CEEBEE had a couple of those but always flat batteries when you need them most  ------------- slowly going where everyone else has already been |
Posted By: :Hunter:
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2013 at 7:19pm
| Tonto I will try takes some pictures of my setup tomorrow. Starts with a scoop mounted on a bracket just below the hull line, creates just enough flow when on the plane without blowing the fish away. I mounted a 500gph rule bilge pump on top of the bracket with a hole in the bottom of the pump bracket. This allows the water to go straight up through the bilge pump even when its not running. I then ran a pipe with a one way valve from the bilge pump up to my livebait tank which is a 40l round chlorine bucket mounted on the transom. I installed a cutoff tap where it goes into the tank. I keep it turned off when motoring around to prevent the tank filling. Once it goes into the tank I have a hose connection mounted on the inside. I have a length of hose with a fitting which I clip onto the tank to wash down the boat at sea. I have had 20 Jacks in the tank all day no worries. With the scoop you get a constant supply of fresh water which is the key to keeping livies alive. When I stop an anchor I have the bilge pump set up on a time which goes for 30 seconds every 3 minutes. Have run it all day and it doesn't flatten the battery. |
Posted By: Fishing Addiction
Date Posted: 04 Jun 2013 at 8:34pm
| Would love to see that set up hunter |
Posted By: Tonto2
Date Posted: 05 Jun 2013 at 7:16pm
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look forward to the pics cheers ------------- slowly going where everyone else has already been |
Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2013 at 6:48pm
whats the consensus on intake filters should I be installing one to a 500gph livewell pump, or not really needed? |
Posted By: Ohsoslow
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2013 at 6:57pm
| I've had no need for one on the intake, however I have fitted one to the outlet, as lazy fish seem to get stuck to it, and stop the flow! |
Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2013 at 9:57pm
I'm going to take that "Y" and make it a "T". Buteline plumbing fittings are the go I reacon, luckily I've got the clamping tools for these too,otherwise any old marine adhesive would suffice I'm sure. Hopefully that'll feed the pump sufficiently underway, might need to install a value to the "T" outlet if pressures aint enough. Installation tomorrow.
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Tonto2 wrote:Posted By: Durban
Date Posted: 07 Jun 2013 at 11:58pm
the T piece you have at the bottom end will restrict the flow to the left if you have water coming in from the bottom if you want an even flow fit a Y piece but make sure you fit it the correct way otherwise it restricts the flow to the one side the photo will show you how to fit it if you decide to fit one with a Y piece if you do not connect it the way it should be connected it restricts the flow out on one end too .in other words if you connect the incoming flow to one of the Y,s & epect the flow to go out at the other end of the Y & the remaining end this does not work the flow presure is not great at the outgoing Y end but stronger on the other end  |
Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2013 at 8:01am
the left of the 'T" isn't connected to anything, it acts as an unrestricted inflow at rest (internal Ø = pump internal Ø), and whilst underway this shall lift above the water and act as a pressure relief only so as not to over load the pump. The water enters the lower water intake (venturi), and its direct path shall be straight thru the "T" to feed the pump, any excess water intake that the pump doesn't suck thru shall be pushed to the left of the "T" (pressure relief). The only reason I don't want to run 2 separate intakes, is I reacon I'll forget to turn the pump off when under power, which will then be running dry, and I assume shall burn out relatively quickly. And the addition of an external float switch (reverse of a bilge float switch) doesn't appeal. However, if this doesn't work as expected, shall resort to double intakes.
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Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 08 Jun 2013 at 11:08am
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brainwave....if I now want to keep bait alive whilst boat is on the trailer I can plug bottom venturi and recirculate the water using a hose connecting "outlet" to "T"
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Posted By: Tonto2
Date Posted: 10 Jun 2013 at 5:59pm
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Looks like you have gone down to 15mm as your intake be interested to hear about your results ------------- slowly going where everyone else has already been |
Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 11 Jun 2013 at 8:49am
yeah I've only got the reduction at the venturi for when under way, when at rest the pump will suck water thru the larger "T" opening, which has the same internal Ø as the pump, so there's no restriction of flow. I might get to test it out on Friday, in which case I'll do a small report with pics.
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Posted By: Tonto2
Date Posted: 11 Jun 2013 at 2:44pm
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Awesome ------------- slowly going where everyone else has already been |
Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 08 Jul 2013 at 8:40am
finally tested this yesterday, works well at rest and underway. the pressure buildup inside the tank kept blowing the tank lid off, which I've drilled additional drain holes to release this pressure and stop it from happening....sign of a good pump i spose. complete & final installation today, will try to get some photos uploaded |
Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 08 Jul 2013 at 5:23pm
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completed installation: pump intake & venturi  500 gph pump inside livewell  I've run the wires thru a small pipe, glued (marine adhesive) into the corner to make sure wires stay clear of fish and hands. Didn't quite need to be so messy though. wires continue thru to simple switch in battery compartment.  outoutlet at the top  I've added a few extra little drain holes, as the pump was slowly pressurizing the tank to a point where the port hole lid (screw on) was popping off from excess pressure buildup. |
Posted By: Time_Bandit
Date Posted: 08 Jul 2013 at 6:08pm
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what sort of boat you got mate ? ------------- “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” |
Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 08 Jul 2013 at 6:27pm
this  |
Posted By: Time_Bandit
Date Posted: 08 Jul 2013 at 7:17pm
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do you find it hard to get the live bait out of the tank ? ------------- “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” |
Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 08 Jul 2013 at 7:51pm
yeah thats half the fun
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Posted By: Structfab
Date Posted: 09 Jul 2013 at 2:30pm
stole the missus' kitchen sieve this morning to use as a net....worked primo
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Posted By: SliderC
Date Posted: 11 Sep 2017 at 11:03am
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Has Anyone had any luck using this sort of setup on a boat? How long do Aerators keep the fish alive for? https://www.marine-deals.co.nz/live-bait-tanks/hi-tech-live-bait-tank-45l-with-portable-aerator-kit |
Posted By: MikeAqua
Date Posted: 11 Sep 2017 at 12:01pm
From a fish survival/energy perspective, water-changes are more effective than aeration at managing both nitrogen and oxygen. Over periods of minutes, oxygen matters. Over a few hours nitrogen starts to matter too. Water changes reduce temperature, which helps the fish too. Keeping the tank dark will calm the fish so they do less swimming, burn less energy. Healthier, more active fish last longer as live bait. |
Posted By: SliderC
Date Posted: 11 Sep 2017 at 1:30pm
| Cheers mate |
Posted By: gongfisher
Date Posted: 11 Sep 2017 at 6:41pm
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Mount your pomp on one of these. Work brillliant and works at speed by force feeding or stationary with pump on. Just have to drill matching hole in base of pump. Spend 10 bucks extra and get a rule pump. Then will get 2-3 years out of a pump. https://www.marine-deals.co.nz/live-bait-tanks-pumps/transom-mounting-bracket-for-live-bait-pump |
Posted By: diverboy
Date Posted: 02 May 2021 at 4:41pm
| I am wanting to fit a livebait tank to my planing launch, the back platform goes up and down so not suitable to mount under water. So I want to plumb a saltwater pump into a portable fish bin. Say 60 litres. I want to be able to store crayfish in this bin for a few days, sometimes when the boat is stopped. Question. What is the minimum or a sensible flow rate of water I need, what sort of pump is recommended that is reliable and economical on power usage. Cheers and thanks |
Posted By: Steps
Date Posted: 02 May 2021 at 6:06pm
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Economical power usage.. Think like this power is voltage (pressure) and the amps (volume) .. Which is Volts X amps+ total power on Watts..So u need low watts. And water works basically in the same manner as electricity.. Sounds like a bit of a temp set up required? You dont need pressure as not pumping high distance or need for high pressure wash down. Therefore a elcheapo bulge pump would do the job... Even just hung over the side of the boat. Most fish bins are 50L so lets estimate bin will hold 45L. A small $40 500gal/hr bulge pump will change the water about ever 1.5 to 2 mins and will draw around 2 to 2.5 amps Also what you could look at is a 5 or 10w 12 volt solar panel... may not have enough out put if clouds over , but even semi sunlight it will pump no problems. I have used one like this to heat the swimming pool thru irrigation coils. I also use a 10w solar panel plus a charging modulator to maintain my battery(s) while boat is not being used. When plumb, make sure the outlet of the tank is considerably larger than the inlet.  |
Posted By: Bigfishbob
Date Posted: 02 May 2021 at 7:34pm
I run exactly the same setup interms of pickup and pump location. My tank is only about 20 litres, but keeps a good number of macks alive and kicking all day with pump running. ------------- www.waikatosportfishing.co.nz |