# Anyone tried "Shad Crack"?



## mpwarrak (Jul 2, 2014)

http://shadcrack.com/?page_id=28

Does it really work for shad that I net from the lake?


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## scottpriest (Jul 2, 2014)

I love it. Use it all the time.


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## The Foreigner (Jul 2, 2014)

With just salt and good aeration and filtration you should be able to keep shad alive.


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## StriperrHunterr (Jul 2, 2014)

The Foreigner said:


> With just salt and good aeration and filtration you should be able to keep shad alive.



^This is what I use. Although I could use a good de-foaming agent. The amount of air I'm producing causes a good head to form on the water. As of right now I just scoop it off and rinse off the net in the lake when it builds up.


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## brianj (Jul 2, 2014)

StripeRR HunteRR said:


> ^This is what I use. Although I could use a good de-foaming agent. The amount of air I'm producing causes a good head to form on the water. As of right now I just scoop it off and rinse off the net in the lake when it builds up.



throw a potatoe chip in there every now and then - it'll help with the foam


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## StriperrHunterr (Jul 2, 2014)

brianj said:


> throw a potatoe chip in there every now and then - it'll help with the foam



Interesting. Is it the oil from the chip?


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## mpwarrak (Jul 2, 2014)

StripeRR HunteRR said:


> Interesting. Is it the oil from the chip?



I would guess that it's the monosodium glutamate, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, sodium benzoate, and yellow dye #30.  

Wait, that can't be good for the shad can it?!


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## StriperrHunterr (Jul 2, 2014)

mpwarrak said:


> I would guess that it's the monosodium glutamate, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, sodium benzoate, and yellow dye #30.
> 
> Wait, that can't be good for the shad can it?!



I don't know, I tweak after I eat a bag, so maybe it'll make em frisky. 

Wait a tick, I should add 1/4 cup of my morning Monster in with the salt.


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## Msteele (Jul 2, 2014)

I always throw 1 cheeto in there and it keeps the foam off.


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## deedly (Jul 2, 2014)

A little Coffee Mate powder creamer works also to keep the foam down


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## NCummins (Jul 2, 2014)

Foam off works well. I get a 12oz bottle for like $12, only takes 5-6 drops to keep the foam killed in my 20gal tank.


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## jonfishmacon (Jul 3, 2014)

striper soup foam off works great


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## StriperrHunterr (Jul 3, 2014)

Sorry, MP, I didn't mean to derail your thread. Can someone attest to Shad Crack for him before we go tossing more snack foods into bait tanks?


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## EClass (Jul 3, 2014)

I use regular Aquarium Salt. NOT Sea Salt.

You can get it at Petco or Petsmart. I use a handful per 15 gallons. Let it dissolve for 3 mins or so before adding Shad. It is to soften the water and make it easier on the their gills. I believe that the only difference is Shad Crack has one extra ingredient that makes them tranquil for when you first net them or have to transport them. I actually didn't like the way they acted when I used it. Kind of drunk or loopy.

Coffee Creamer for the foam. The actual foam away spritz bottles have a chemical agent in them. They work great but if you spritz too much over the course of the day it will contaminate your water. Start stressing the Shad and they will die off quickly. The cause of the foam is from the oils off their slime coat mixing with the O2 from the venturi. A lot of foam means too much bait for the capacity of the tank. I have a 26 gal and when I have 36-48 shad it foams up quick. If I keep it around 24 I don't get much foam at all.

--E


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## StriperrHunterr (Jul 3, 2014)

EClass said:


> I use regular Aquarium Salt. NOT Sea Salt.
> 
> You can get it at Petco or Petsmart. I use a handful per 15 gallons. Let it dissolve for 3 mins or so before adding Shad. It is to soften the water and make it easier on the their gills. I believe that the only difference is Shad Crack has one extra ingredient that makes them tranquil for when you first net them or have to transport them. I actually didn't like the way they acted when I used it. Kind of drunk or loopy.
> 
> ...



I have a 20 gallon and I usually only get 36. I know I'm slightly overloaded, but I'm well oxygenated with plenty of current. Other than the foam there are no issues in mine. 

How much creamer, and how often? Or how many chips and how often?


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## EClass (Jul 3, 2014)

StripeRR HunteRR said:


> How much creamer, and how often? Or how many chips and how often?



I only do a very small sprinkle and only a couple times per trip out. You will see foam instantly dissolve just like the spritz.

I am going to try a chip just out of curiosity!


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## StriperrHunterr (Jul 3, 2014)

Thankya sir.


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## Dustin Pate (Jul 3, 2014)

StripeRR HunteRR said:


> I have a 20 gallon and I usually only get 36. I know I'm slightly overloaded, but I'm well oxygenated with plenty of current. Other than the foam there are no issues in mine.
> 
> How much creamer, and how often? Or how many chips and how often?



What size shad are you guys using to only have 3 to 4 dozen in the tank? 

I have a 30 gallon Super Bait and I will limit numbers on big (8-14") gizzards but normally I will have a mix of threads, gizzards and bream with ,many times, over a 100 baits total with no problems. 

I use well water then add a couple handfuls of salt and the recommended level of The OXYGENATOR, U2 Pro Formula Livewell Fish and Bait Booster. At some point I will hit it with Foam Off as well.


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## StriperrHunterr (Jul 3, 2014)

Dustin Pate said:


> What size shad are you guys using to only have 3 to 4 dozen in the tank?
> 
> I have a 30 gallon Super Bait and I will limit numbers on big (8-14") gizzards but normally I will have a mix of threads, gizzards and bream with ,many times, over a 100 baits total with no problems.
> 
> I use well water then add a couple handfuls of salt and the recommended level of The OXYGENATOR, U2 Pro Formula Livewell Fish and Bait Booster. At some point I will hit it with Foam Off as well.



Point of clarification. I'm mainly a herring guy. I will get a couple gizzards here or there, but high 90% of the time it's just herring. 

I'm saying I'm overloaded using the aquarium metric of 1" of fish per gallon of water. In a 20 gallon aquarium you're only supposed to have 20 inches of fish, total. 

I use water from the bait shop, chilled with ice bottles if need be, with the salt they give when they fill up. Nothing more.


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## EClass (Jul 3, 2014)

Dustin Pate said:


> What size shad are you guys using to only have 3 to 4 dozen in the tank?



Lately 7-10" Giz. The Giz foam up the tank a lot quicker than threads. I can usually hold 48 4-5" threads with minimal issues. I have a danco so O2 is plentlful. Its Ammonia build up that I fight with. When I get over 60 water really murks up quick and their noses get red from Ammonia. Especially if I have a floater or 2 that I missed. I will throw in some Stress Coat and Ammo Lock when I try and hold that many but usually have a 20% kill ratio.


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## Dustin Pate (Jul 3, 2014)

EClass said:


> Lately 7-10" Giz. The Giz foam up the tank a lot quicker than threads. I can usually hold 48 4-5" threads with minimal issues. I have a danco so O2 is plentlful. Its Ammonia build up that I fight with. When I get over 60 water really murks up quick and their noses get red from Ammonia. Especially if I have a floater or 2 that I missed. I will throw in some Stress Coat and Ammo Lock when I try and hold that many but usually have a 20% kill ratio.



10-4 The big gizzards will make a mess for sure.


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## Big7 (Jul 3, 2014)

I don't do it often enough to know on the shad and herring
in my "stock" live well that has a divider for bait.

Anyhooo... What I do know is Hills Landing in Cross, SC
at Santee-Cooper has a sealed block structure,
looks much like a small version of a trout hatchery with
an awning  on top. 

They use pool salt.

They buy thousands at the time from locals that
catch bait for income. Blueback's, shad and mullet.

Guess they are confident with pool salt due to
the investment in the bait.

May not apply to smaller rigs though.

Just throwing that out there based on what I've seen
and helped them do.


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## brett30030 (Jul 3, 2014)

I don't know it for a fact, but knowing Shawn; i would bet that Shad Crack has much more than salt in it. If i ever get over his way i plan on buying some and trying it out. He knows his stuff on bait, and i doubt that there is a better product on the market since he makes it up himself. I doubt he cares much about the cost per unit, etc; just that it works.


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## striper sniper (May 30, 2017)

I would love to figure out the ingredients, we went on a trip with 20 other boats several years ago and some guy brought bluebacks in a truck to all the boats. Everyone's bait looked like crap and was dying except one guy who used shad crack. His bait looked perfect. I won 2 small bags in a raffle at a fishing event a while back, yesterday I had 3 dozz baits left over and wanted to use them the next day as we were camping. They had started looking black and really bad. I added a bag and this morning they looked as good as they did from the bait store. I'm a believer, I know 99 percent is salt but there's a few other ingredients he uses. A buddy of mine said it smells like clove so wondering if that's one of the additives.


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## castandblast (May 31, 2017)

Glad you had a good experience with it. I tried it a couple times. I believe its salt, dechlorinator, and ammonia treatment. I catch my own bait every morning before I go out and haven't seen enough results to keep buying it every trip. Maybe if I was travelling with shad in for long distances.  I use pool salt and a dechlorinator for aquariums. 

Now, I do love Striper Soup's foam off spray. That is good stuff!


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## fishingdave (May 31, 2017)

striper sniper said:


> I would love to figure out the ingredients, we went on a trip with 20 other boats several years ago and some guy brought bluebacks in a truck to all the boats. Everyone's bait looked like crap and was dying except one guy who used shad crack. His bait looked perfect. I won 2 small bags in a raffle at a fishing event a while back, yesterday I had 3 dozz baits left over and wanted to use them the next day as we were camping. They had started looking black and really bad. I added a bag and this morning they looked as good as they did from the bait store. I'm a believer, I know 99 percent is salt but there's a few other ingredients he uses. A buddy of mine said it smells like clove so wondering if that's one of the additives.




Make your own shad keeper, this is my secret formula i developed 5 years ago to keep bait in a kayak tank.

Pool salt from lowes, just make sure it has no additives.

Crystal clear vanish to remove the chlorine.

And Tricaine methanesulfonate or MS222 it is called, this is for sedation. Can use clove oil as a alternative.


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## j_seph (May 31, 2017)

brianj said:


> throw a potatoe chip in there every now and then - it'll help with the foam


or non dairy creamer powder


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## j_seph (May 31, 2017)

fishingdave said:


> Make your own shad keeper, this is my secret formula.
> 
> Pool salt from lowes, just make sure it has no additives.
> 
> ...


Why do you want to sedate your bait?


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## fishingdave (May 31, 2017)

Threads will keep longer if they are a little calm when in captivity. Never a problem with alwifes or bluebacks.


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## j_seph (May 31, 2017)

StripeRR HunteRR said:


> Sorry, MP, I didn't mean to derail your thread. Can someone attest to Shad Crack for him before we go tossing more snack foods into bait tanks?


Should try some cheerios, 1 box to the gallon and a big spoon


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## castandblast (May 31, 2017)

fishingdave said:


> Threads will keep longer if they are a little calm when in captivity. Never a problem with alwifes or bluebacks.




I've heard of people using this but i always thought the more frisky or lively the bait the better. Have you experimented both ways?


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## fishingdave (May 31, 2017)

Yes cast and blast. Years ago i fished from a kayak. Use to catch my own bait and due to the size of my bait tank i could only keep a small number of threads on board. Going back to the days of keeping saltwater fish and transporting them i remember the use of MS222 to slow down the fish for transport. It does work. I now fish out of a boat and have a much larger bait tank so i do not need to mess with this anymore. I just use salt and dechlorinator when needed. I use ice to cool the water in the summer and SURE LIFE foam off to get rid of the foam if needed. The foam is protein that attaches to the air bubbles in the water. I have taken potato chips to get rid of the foam but have always eaten them before giving it a try so I do not know if they work on foam.


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## castandblast (May 31, 2017)

gotcha. I think we are in the same boat if you will. I have a 40 gallon super bait tank. I use tap water and treat it with salt and dechlorinator the night before. I add ice in the morning as needed. I try not to keep an open mind on these things, but my method has been working and I don't want to fix it if its not broken.  Especially with the results i've been having the past 2 years.


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## brianj (May 31, 2017)

how quickly does declorinator work?  i usually fill take with lake water scooped with 5g bucket.  seems like filling with hose would be much easier


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## little rascal (May 31, 2017)

*Shad Profeesor and Crack*



> I don't know it for a fact, but knowing Shawn; i would bet that Shad Crack has much more than salt in it. If i ever get over his way i plan on buying some and trying it out. He knows his stuff on bait, and i doubt that there is a better product on the market since he makes it up himself. I doubt he cares much about the cost per unit, etc; just that it works.



Yea, he might could of chimed in if they wouldn't have banned him for whatever reason??
If you'll season your water and get the good bacteria in it you'll almost need to add nothing to it, don't ever wash your bait tank's out.
That's why Souper Shad rock! It's all about the good Bacti!


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## j_seph (Jun 1, 2017)

brianj said:


> how quickly does declorinator work?  i usually fill take with lake water scooped with 5g bucket.  seems like filling with hose would be much easier


I put it in, then go to bait store or even catch bait soon as I can so my assumption would be right away


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## castandblast (Jun 1, 2017)

brianj said:


> how quickly does declorinator work?  i usually fill take with lake water scooped with 5g bucket.  seems like filling with hose would be much easier



I think it works pretty quick. I fill my bait tank and treat it the night before. Mainly because when I wake up at dark thirty to catch bait, all i have to do is jump in the truck and go.


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## fishingdave (Jun 1, 2017)

brianj said:


> how quickly does declorinator work?  i usually fill take with lake water scooped with 5g bucket.  seems like filling with hose would be much easier



The Vanish powder i use works in seconds.


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