Best Before of Baits

[Maceo]

I've found it hard to find info about this on the internet or in books, so I'm gradually finding out by experience and cleaning out the ocassional mouldy furry bait box!

Does anyone know anything about the period of time before baits go off? In particular I'd like to know:-

Ready Prepared Tares - I've had some of these in a maggot box for a month or more and they look and smell the same now as they did when I bought them. Do tares go 'off'? Could I still use them?

Hempseed from tins - I know you can freeze this and I've also made it last a week by keeping it in the fridge, however this does seem to go off very quickly if you just leave it in the shed or whatever. Hemp has caused the most furry bait boxes so far! When I get back from fishing at the end of the day, it's hard to get motivated to empty the seat box and wash all the bait boxes out.

Soft hook pellets - I thought I'd try these last week after seeing them in the tackle shop in a little sealed plastic box. I opened the box up the night before to see what they were like and sniff them etc. When I went to use them on the bank they were so soft they just disintegrated when I tried to put a hook through one. In fact they were so gooey, the only thing I could use them for was to make a pastey ball and chuck them at my float. What a waste of £2.50!

Are these soft pellets usually like this and was I perhaps using too big a hook (I was using a 14) for them? Or was the problem the fact that I'd opened them the night before and let air get to them? The tub didn't have anything to say on the subject....


Hard Pellets - Do these last 'forever' in the folded up plastic bag, or do they have a lifetime a go off? If so how long?

Cereal Groundbait - I've always assumed this stuff also lasts 'forever' when carried around in the tackle box, but I can't find anything that confirms or denies it. It certainly doesn't seem to go off as far as visual appearance and smell is concerned.

Thanks as always for any help or comments...

[chris.oldgit]

As you say
Hempseed from tins - I know you can freeze this and I've also made it last a week by keeping it in the fridge, however this does seem to go off very quickly if you just leave it in the shed or whatever. Hemp has caused the most furry bait boxes so far! When I get back from fishing at the end of the day, it's hard to get motivated to empty the seat box and wash all the bait boxes out.

Like all tackle/bait it needs to be done when you get home, only really takes 5 mins to rinse hemp repackage and refreeze, if you leave maggots/pinkies/squatts in the bait box, dont open the lid indoors, or you will have a houseful of flies, submerge in a bucket of water for 24 hrs, then empty and clean.
g/bait mixes tend to go mildewy, after the packet is opened and left, squash the air out and fold the top over and seal with a rubber band. (lasts a lot longer) before smelling of mildew.

Cant really help to much on the pellet side, have used 10mm tutti frutti from a plastic container, taken out required amount and used, then resealed the container, dont leave the lid off when fishing, never put back bait that have been exposed to the atmosphere, back in the container, they will have obsorbed moisture, they will contaiminate the rest and spoil them all.

had my pot for at least six months

hope this helps

[chazyboi]

pellets last for ever mate ive had some halibut pellets in mi bag for 6 months i think if the baits are shelf life like pellets bolies they have loads of anti oxidants ect fresh baits like hemp ect are naturaly degradable ,,funnily i like hemp when its a couple of days over a bit sour its more pungent i liquidise it and bang it in ground bait

[BoldBear]

I always keep all of my bait either in an old fridge in the shed or in the bottom of the freezer until the wife starts complaining about the lack of room in her freezer.
I empty my bag of bait each time I return from fishing as theres nothing worse than having to clear out stale and smelly bait from your bag the next time you go fishing.

There are some baits that seem to improve with age such as Bread/cheese paste which seems to get better each time you take it out of the freezer and it is sometimes even better if you mix some liquidised raw onion juice in with it; Chub absolutely love it this way and so do large Roach.
Once it starts to feel cold to the touch even on a warm day you know that it is at its best.
I just keep adding to the lump of bread/cheese paste each time it gets used up.

Hempseed: Hemp is best used when it is freshly cooked, Once cooked; unless you are going to use it within a day or two; then this needs to be chucked into a freezer as soon as possible. if you refreeze it after it has been used it will soften inside and you will have trouble mounting it on a hook; in this case I will usually throw it away and prepare some more, or use it in my feed and use an artificial grain on the hook.
Once you get fungus growing on it then I have no real confidence in it and would ditch it.
Tinned Hemp seed will last ages until it is opened then once opened it will only be good for a few days.

Tares: I havent used Tares that much but what I remember of them is that they last much longer than Hemp.

Soft Pellets: These come in different guises, some are jelly like and some are more like slightly softer hard pellets. These seem to last several months if not left open too long; however some of them may have already spent a long time on the shop shelves so you can’t always be sure how long they will last you.

Hard Pellets: These usually last for up to a year if kept dry (even out of the fridge) although my son still uses his for a lot longer without any problems; however they are not that expensive so if you are unsure about them you can always throw them away and buy new; and confidence in your bait is a good thing.

Normal maggots: These will usually last little more than a week or two before starting to change into caster although I have had them last a little longer in a fridge on occasion; but the older they are the more tougher their skin gets.

Pinkies: Pinkies seem to last up to 3 or 4 weeks in the fridge before starting to change into caster but their skin too gets tougher as they age.

Squatt: Similar to Pinkies I think; although Mine have never needed to last that long as I use them as loosefeed during the cold winter months and have never needed to bring any back home after a match.

Caster: Although these are a brilliant bait; They need to be fresh and with no preservatives added (which occasionally happens).
Caster will not be very good as a bait once it starts to decay, therefore any caster bought back after a days fishing will be a waste and could even end up repelling fish rather than attracting them.

Luncheonmeat: If I have any left I wrap it in tin foil and put it into the freezer.Sometimes I coat it in some ground spice first and when it next thaws out the flavour becomes enfused into the meat.

Boilees: I buy or make up my boilees once or twice a year and keep them in the freezer, you can tell when they have past their best as they start to get white powdery deposits on them and start to smell but I don’t keep them in the freezer for more than around 6 or 9 months max.
Some milk and egg based ingredients actually seem to get better just before they start to go off as the amino acids start to break down so don’t be too eager to throw them out without trying them first.

Shelf Life Boilees: I don’t have a lot of confidence in these so I don’t use these; however I am told that they are a lot better than they used to be and some of them are very effective, but I reserve my judgement.

[chazyboi]

bold bear funny you should say about improving with age my missy made some bread very yeasty in flavour wernt impressed so i left it in fridge for a bit decided to use it for bait me and wee lu went out put three rods out one with the stale smelly bread cut into cubes as by then it was a bit on the stiff side and other 2 with boilies only 3 fish of the day were 3 huge tench to the bread