Tell me about your kill bag

[JeannaJigs]

I need one. Looking for input from those that have used them on which one may be better than another and why, etc. Coolers in boats suck. Looking for something that can keep a couple salmon bodies cold on those hot days. Water logged fish hanging over the side of the boat suck.

 

[JimBob]

Why does a cooler suck?, throw some ice or snow on em' go home and clean and your done.

 

[rippin fish lips]

Why does a cooler suck?, throw some ice or snow on em' go home and clean and your done.

I'm thinking a cooler is a problem because of space in her boat? Wish i could help on this one. I usually just hang em off the side of the boat. Butr water logged fish do suck..

 

[JeannaJigs]

Takes up unecessary room and is unecessary weight. The less crap in a boat the better. A kill bag can just hide under the bench and be out of the way.

 

[Combat Chuck]

I got the katchkooler for christmas and its pretty cool. One mistake I made was putting ice in it and didn't leave it sitting upright. As the ice melted it leaked out the zipper and all over my gear (I hope fish goo doesn't leak out). The ice packs would be a good idea. Also, Ive been putting the fish in a garbage bag so that I dont have to scrub the fish goo out of it!

 

[eugene1]

I know some people say they get pretty skanky after use but I never had any issues. I always hose it out after the day's use and let it air dry upside down. I just use cube ice in it, frozen water bottles look like a good idea. It does leak but not too much if mounted/sat upright. I thought about putting a garbage bag in it, but I thought it would get punctured pretty quick by the fish fins?

 

[JeannaJigs]

Water bottles seem like a good reusable easy solution. As does a garbage bag. Chinook stank doesn't leave anything. When I was sanding inside my boat even after cleaning it thoroughly I could smell that chinook stank permeating the air. So nasty. I remember Andy put the cooler inside the bench of his boat without a drain plug or bilge and used a shop vac to suck out the ice water...and then that shop vac would sit in the garage until the next time and it would get full so he would go dump it out and oh my god the smell. That cooler always stank and the poor shop vac.

 

[Kellyannam]

I don't use a fish bag, and I'm not sure how cheap and oakie you want to go (which would be my route). But I've read online about people making their own with reflective foil bubble insulation and/or using a water tank insulation jacket made of the foil bubblewrap.

One states:
"A few suggestions...
Pick up some silicone adhesive for the seams that you plan to seal. It's flexible, waterproof, oil proof, etc. After running a bead of the silicone put a 2" x 4" on the seams with some weight on top. After the adhesive cures, use your foil tape to cover the seams.
When you put a fish in the bag, you'll want to cinch it closed to keep the cold in. Tape doesn't work well on a wet bag, and you don't want to tie it with rope/docking line as that will bruise the side of the fish that's on the deck.

I have no idea how well these suggestions would work. If you have a heavy duty sewing machine, it would be cool to make your own by maybe getting a bunch of those cheap, big foil lined lunch bags and cutting them apart and sewing them all together and attaching a zipper and straps? I've made bags and totes on my old machines (got rid of them when I moved ) and they are pretty easy to make, so I don't think a fish bag would be that difficult.