MINNOWS—Tips for dealing with the Summer Heat!
    1-For transport to the home, boat, or fishing spot: NO water, except for moisture, is the best method. In the Ziploc bags we sell them in, they will survive just fine without water (keep moist) for 4 to 6 hours if properly taken care of. The bag should beeither left open, or opened frequently to refresh the air. Don't forget to keep them cool! Nothing kills minnows faster than extremes of heat and cold. Keep them out of the sun in
a baitwell, a covered bucket, or loose in a cooler with a layer of damp cloth or paper in between them and the ice (directly on ice, they die).
    2- If you are concerned about the lack of water:  If the bag/bucket has water added, survival time has just dropped to a matter of minutes (around 30 or less in most cases), since the minnows will use up the oxygen  in the water and drown. Surprise, a fish can drown! It is all right to use a bucket with water in it, if you are going to be able to refresh the water every 10-20 minutes.
    3-Overnight Storage. If you live on the water, no problem. Just use a flowtroll, floating bait box, or even a minnow trap (put plugs in the trap holes to keep the eels out), and keep them in the water. During the hotter summer days, add some sinkers (8-10 oz) to the storage container to keep the minnows in cooler water---but don't sink the box to the bottom, or forget to pull it up!  For those of you not on the water here’s what you do: Use a baitwell if you have one. You can also set up a saltwater fish tank, but it is time consuming and expensive. Much more handy is keeping them in your refrigerator. There will be some losses, but most will survive, and you can go fishing again the next day. For refrigerator storage, use a Tupperware or similar container with the lid laid loosely across the top to allow air flow. The container should be large enough to hold the minnows in one layer (piling them in too deep causes suffocation for the minnows at the bottom). A moist towel in the bottom is optional, but they are probably better off with that extra padding than without. If it is going to be several days before you'll go fishing again, it is probably best to just release them from the boat when you are done fishing for the day.
Hey, while you’re out there taking care of your minnows, don’t forget to take care of
yourselves—bring along lots of stuff to drink, and don’t forget to wear your hat and
sunscreen! ——MizMo