Keeping fish cold Poll

[NoSlack]

After Marc's thread about insulating his fish hold or getting a bag I started wondering what everyone does to keep thier catch cold. I don't have a fish hold, so it's always been an insulated bag on the swim step for me.

If it looks like everyone is disappointed with thier fish holds ability to keep ice, maybe we could come up with a standard bag that would help with the problem.

Mike

You can make multiple picks on this poll

[Hamachi Girl]

After using the kill bag I got with the boat, I’ll never go back to lugging around a huge cooler again. My ½ ton fish hold only has a small hatch for access so it would be a real pain in the ass to clean out well. The last thing I want is my girl smelling like rotten fish.

Only downsides to the bag are it covers up the stern light if we’re heading out in the dark… and of course the name on the transom. But everybody knows I’m the only guy with a sexy brown 23’.

BTW: Costco has some small insulated bags for $5. I bought three of the suckers. They are cheap as hell and made in China, but at $5 each I can use them a few times and huck them in the trash.

[NoSlack]

Those $5 bags at COSTCO are great for ice but are going to be hard to keep the fish blood from soaking into the outside skin. We use one for going to the store and it's held up for years.

Mike

[Royal Hook]

I've have always used some sort of a cooler w/ ice depending on what type of fishin I'm doin. Quite cumbersome!! The large bag hangin off the transom seems to be they best method to store fish but just haven't pushed the button on one yet.

[Malu Lani]

We bleed them in the kill bag and transfer to the fish hold when they quit kicking.It makes it easy to clean the hold this way.

[Zarco]

I usually load the 1 ton fish hold with 2-3 20lb blocks of ice. Then another 3-4 40lb bags of cubes ice. As soon as the first fish hits the deck I'll toss a handful of rock salt in there about 6-8 inches of salt water. Could probably go a few days like this. Fish get rotated often and always sashimi grade when done.

[Freespool]

I have ice machines at work and I fill the fish hold with ice. If i am going for a few days I bring two 130 quart coolers to work on Monday and start filling the fish hold. The first load is enough to get the hold cold and is mostly melted by Tuesday. Then I do the same thing every day till Friday and the ice has lasted for over a week doing it that way. Thank God for the ice machines at work.

[Endless Summer]

I have a 1/2 ton hold with a small opening but I plan on purchasing a bag from Mike that will fit in the hold. Fill it with ice and see how it goes. I would think the hold would be better just because its out of the sun.

Marc

[Libre]

i used the fish hold on my boat all them time when I first got the boat but the location is right next to the door to the inside and I kept getting crap inside. Floppy kicking bleeding fish no bueno in the galley. Between that and the pain in the ass cleaning it I use a kill sack on the deck. Saves tons of time for cleanup. Oh and I made fish soup a couple times too due to the heat and water that gets in the fish hold.

Only problem now is the bag gets in the way all the time. I'm too nervous of losing it to put it on the swim step.

I could use a better setup. But I'm also lazy...

[Malu Lani]

We close the cabin door when it gos full speed on the fishing.

[Blackbird]

Mike, Sounds like most of us 23' guys are in the same boat so to speak.:rolleyes:

The Bird has an o.k. size hold, but almost too small a hatch lid to stuff the right size bag down in there. I would be up for a bag that would fit in there perfect. Would the bag flex a little more if the foam was cut and sewn into a few strips on the sides instead of one big sheet to finagle into the hold? I'm in if were making a run on them. Let me know if you need any help Mike.

Thanks, J

[NoSlack]

Jay
I don't have a fish hold so I have no idea how big a project this would be. We both have a 23' flybridge but my under deck is all fuel. The boat was built for marlin fishing in Mag Bay. 3 fuel tanks and no fish hold.

I assume your fish box would be port or starboard of the tank. Shoot me a photo or drawing with some dimensions and I'll give it a look.

I know the hole on the 26' is like an extra room with a fair sized hatch. Coming up with a bag that would take up a third of that space and be fairly easy to get in and out should be fairly easy. The only down side to a bag in the hole would be getting it in and out for cleaning after every use.

Anyone with a 26' want to share some dimensions of the hole and hatch?

Mike

[Blackbird]

Wow, thats alot of fuel Mike. Gotta be a good feeling going offshore never running dry.

Mike = "Fuel ??? We don't need no stinkin' fuel!"

Always liked the second station on No Slack too. Thats on my to do list.

You are right about the hold. Port side of the fuel tank. Its really more of a storage area as its not sealed completely, you can see the fuel tank over the stringer. All the more reason for a bag to contain the ice. I'll take a couple pics and measurements this weekend.

Any chance you could use Kevlar thread for these or anything else? Strongest thread known. I have a bunch of big spools of small diameter laying around if you want to try it. Can ship it down to you. P.M. your address.

J