DIY Livewell

[Royjulius]

I'm tired of dragging my floating basket around. I looked at the Hobie livewell, but it's expensive ($312) and looks like a hassle to prime the pump. Also, you have to reach in there and cap off the pump if you want it to hold water. I googled my problem and found this. I've ordered my container already, (Amazon) and it was only $27 including shipping. I will use it for trout and panfish. I plan to just have ice water in it and when I catch a keeper it will get instantly iced down like the saltwater guys do. Then I won't have to worry about plumbing, and when I'm done I can just throw it in the Tahoe and take it home to the fillet table. I'm stoked to not be dragging anything around, and to have my catch be fresh and cold.

http://www.saltwaterkayakfisherman.c...ox-part-1.html

[bassboogieman]

I had a buddy build one for his Hobie PA-14 utilizing a cooler. Attached a pump to fill via one of the scupper holes, a valve to switch between fill and recirculation, and a spray bar for aeration. The coolers insulation helped with overheating in summer as a live well and doubled, in its original use, as a cooler with ice when fish were kept for eating.

If you want a cheap method of keeping fish for the table, those insulated (plastic) grocery bags with ice will hold fish for several hours. They fold up for storage and are easily transportable. I use a regular 28 qt. cooler as I have plenty of room on my PA-14, doubles as tackle storage when I'm not looking to keep fish. Good luck with your choice, methods certainly vary due to space on the kayak or personal preferences, but that should work just fine.

[basscatlildave]

That pet food container looks good.

[Royjulius]

That pet food container looks good.

They have 4 different sizes too.

[Vrybusy]

Nice!

[Royjulius]

I got it yesterday and it fits perfect! I got the 40. I'll take pictures this weekend and post.

[Basstronaut]

Very interested in seeing how it turns out!

[Royjulius]

Its been 100-110 degrees here lately and us Northerners aren't used to that, so I haven't been out to take pics yet, but I will soon.

[Royjulius]

75 degrees today. What a break. Here's the "Jug" on the yak. I don't plan to plumb this into a livewell, I just want an ice-water tank for my eating fish. I want to keep it simple because my bass boat already does all the fancy stuff. I'm going to paint the tank green and the upper beveled "spout" orange to help with visibility. Or....should I leave it white to reflect sunlight and stay cooler?

[weedsnager]

What are the inside dimensions? (Bottom length and width )

[Royjulius]

What are the inside dimensions? (Bottom length and width )

Here's the link for their page. It will have the different models' dimensions. https://vittlesvault.com/products/outback-collection/

[sgt93]

Looks like a nice solution.