20 Gallon Bait Tank Build Project

[Blue_Runner]

Spare first, I'm not the pro...Reel is the pro! You could probably get by without the fancy tank in the winter but insulation becomes extra important in the summer.

In the summer if the water in the tank gets too warm it will kill the shad. To combat this you need to insulate the tank as well as either add ice or some type of frozen water bottle to keep the water cool. Additionally the surface temps on the lake are much warmer and contain less O2 than the deeper cooler water, which is why the stripers go deep in the summer to begin with. Reel said you need to get the baits down quick in the summer so they'll be able to stay alive long enough to entice Mr. Linesides. If you try to fish them on top in the warm water they die quickly. I wouldn't think the shad would die going from warm to cold because the colder water should have more oxygen but maybe the sudden temp change just shocks them?

So that is water temp, now as you mentioned you have to worrry about the filtration and controlling the chlorine, ammonia, foaming, o2 content and sluffed off scales. Which is why you need the filtration system, an additive to remove chlorine (from using tap water or adding ice) and something to help slime and harden the scales like rock salt.

I'm learning and hopefully if I ever get this keepalive filter I ordered a long time ago I'll report back with some actual experience on this topic.