I finally found fantastic fish bags.

[Guppysnail]

Fish bags for me are usually too short to tie easily with a gimpy wrist. I also have all smaller critters so I spend a great deal of time taping corners just so that way the fish cannot get stuck. 
 

I found fish bags that are loooong! And factory sealed round at the bottom 😍🤩

 

 

Brand ALFA Fishery on Amazon. 

[TOtrees]

Great find, and thanks for sharing! They're available on Amazon in Canadia too, though I'm sure the markup is stoopid.

I buy my bags direct from a plastic bag maker, they make a fish bag specifically. 2mil and 3mil thicknesses, with many size options. Their unit prices are lower for the same width bag, but they don't have shaped bottoms, they're shorter than 22", and shipping is extra. I'll give these bags a try!

Edited June 2, 2023 by TOtrees

[Odd Duck]

Just in time for me!  I was just about to order fish bags!

[Dans-Fish]

If you're having issues tying bags, look into an impulse sealer. You can pick one up on Amazon for about $40.

[Odd Duck]

On 6/2/2023 at 6:17 PM, Dans-Fish said:

If you're having issues tying bags, look into an impulse sealer. You can pick one up on Amazon for about $40.

How do you keep a good amount of air/O2 in the bag with an impulse sealer?

[Dans-Fish]

On 6/2/2023 at 7:01 PM, Odd Duck said:

How do you keep a good amount of air/O2 in the bag with an impulse sealer?

You can inject oxygen. Seal it like 95% of the way across, inject oxygen, then seal all the way across. If you're not using O2, you can clamp, but not seal, the bag higher up and slide it down before sealing.

[Odd Duck]

On 6/2/2023 at 8:04 PM, Dans-Fish said:

You can inject oxygen. Seal it like 95% of the way across, inject oxygen, then seal all the way across. If you're not using O2, you can clamp, but not seal, the bag higher up and slide it down before sealing.

That’s what I was trying to wrap my head around.  More multi-step to seal, but less strain on hands.  👍🏻  I just rubberband bags now but I have a heat sealer as part of my FoodSaver and was trying to figure out how I could adapt it.  I don’t think it will since there’s no way to clamp and hold pressure then slide the bag up through the sealer since closing and locking the lid is necessary to clamp the bag then activate the sealer.

[Torrey]

For @Odd Duck and @Guppysnail who have some of the same issues I do, most DME stores have used oxygen compressors for sale pretty cheap, thanks to the pandemic.

If you twist the bag around the airline, and then keep twisting as you remove the airline, it's easier to keep the water/air ratio.

And if the receiver will accept duckweed, it keeps ammonia levels in the bag nearly non-existent, but doesn't seem to decrease oxygen saturation of the water.

Is that because duckweed is a floating plant?

[Guppysnail]

On 6/2/2023 at 10:02 PM, Torrey said:

And if the receiver will accept duckweed, it keeps ammonia levels in the bag nearly non-existent, but doesn't seem to decrease oxygen saturation of the water.

Is that because duckweed is a floating plant?

that is such a good point. I will be putting some duckweed in everything I take to the swap next month. 🤗

 

[Lennie]

Gimme! 

[Odd Duck]

On 6/2/2023 at 9:02 PM, Torrey said:

For @Odd Duck and @Guppysnail who have some of the same issues I do, most DME stores have used oxygen compressors for sale pretty cheap, thanks to the pandemic.

If you twist the bag around the airline, and then keep twisting as you remove the airline, it's easier to keep the water/air ratio.

And if the receiver will accept duckweed, it keeps ammonia levels in the bag nearly non-existent, but doesn't seem to decrease oxygen saturation of the water.

Is that because duckweed is a floating plant?

 

I’ve got O2 available via my oxygen generator and it’s not a problem keeping it in when using rubber bands since I do just like you, start to twist as I pull the airline.  I just can’t figure out how to use it with my FoodSaver sealer since I can’t access the top of the bag to keep enough of the O2 (or air) inside while using this sealer.  😆  I’m also not willing to buy an impulse sealer when I don’t have any problems doing rubber bands.  I don’t do up nearly enough bags to justify buying a sealer, and I’m not shipping at this point anyway, just selling local.

I don’t know if duckweed keeps pulling out nitrates if there’s no light getting to the plant.  Maybe someone can answer that, but I can’t.  In the dark, duckweed isn’t going to be producing any oxygen, it will take in O2 and produce CO2 when in the dark.  It will start producing O2 and taking up CO2 once light hits it again, but it’s reversed in the dark.

[Torrey]

On 6/3/2023 at 7:07 PM, Odd Duck said:

don’t know if duckweed keeps pulling out nitrates if there’s no light getting to the plant.  Maybe someone can answer that, but I can’t.  In the dark, duckweed isn’t going to be producing any oxygen, it will take in O2 and produce CO2 when in the dark.  It will start producing O2 and taking up CO2 once light hits it again, but it’s reversed in the dark.

I need to test ship to someone who can test oxygen saturation in the water!

I do know that the test shipping my friends in NC have been testing with me, they said no ammonia when the fish got there, and what they shipped me didn't show any ammonia.

I drove out, and drove back with WCMM in April (fish spent 2 weeks in their bag) and I put a battery operated LED light taped to the lid of the cooler.

4 hours off, 4 hours on, and I opened the bag when we were at a friend's for 3 days to test water quality (0 ppm ammonia, nitrites & nitrates) and see if I needed to do a partial water change (didn't). Water was still in great shape when we finally got home, however I had pneumonia 😔

Not only did we not lose a single fish, they bred during transport and I had eyelash sized fry with shiny, electric blue eyes😳

If we could develop packaging that included non heat producing lights, didn't leak, and included live plants with fish, shipping would be *so much less stressful* for fish!

 

[JettsPapa]

I'm late to this party, but I wanted to mention first that instead of taping the corners of traditional fish bags you can add a second bag, inverting the first one in the second.  By doing that both ends will be rounded off, and the second bag is insurance in case one of them leaks.

Second, regarding adding duck weed, I always add a good sized portion of live plant (usually guppy grass or hornwort) when shipping shrimp.  I theorize that it will have some beneficial bacteria on it, which should help keep ammonia from building up, but mostly because it gives the shrimp something to hang onto.  It's also possible that it helps some with returning oxygen to the water, though in a dark box it's probably not much, if any.  I rarely have any deaths, even when shipping 100 or more.

[Cinnebuns]

I was just thinking of ordering more bags so ty!!

On 6/5/2023 at 10:59 AM, JettsPapa said:

I'm late to this party, but I wanted to mention first that instead of taping the corners of traditional fish bags you can add a second bag, inverting the first one in the second.  By doing that both ends will be rounded off, and the second bag is insurance in case one of them leaks.

Second, regarding adding duck weed, I always add a good sized portion of live plant (usually guppy grass or hornwort) when shipping shrimp.  I theorize that it will have some beneficial bacteria on it, which should help keep ammonia from building up, but mostly because it gives the shrimp something to hang onto.  It's also possible that it helps some with returning oxygen to the water, though in a dark box it's probably not much, if any.  I rarely have any deaths, even when shipping 100 or more.

I always do the first thing you mentioned but mostly to avoid leaking while shipping. I never thought about this benefit to it too!!

Ok, I have a question tho...

I have 2 bag sizes right now. One is too small and one is too big for what I'm wanting. I can find a use for them but they just aren't what I am used to. Sizes confuse me. What size is the "normal" bag size. Like if I were to get a few guppies at my LFS, what size bag would they put it in?

[Guppysnail]

On 6/6/2023 at 5:00 AM, Cinnebuns said:

What size is the "normal" bag size

Every small LFS I go to uses different bags and the two I frequent the most have many sizes. The smallest on uses very thick very long and somewhat oversized. I don’t have an answer for normal.  

[JoeQ]

Are you in the hobby/business side of shipping small order live stock!!! 😀

[Guppysnail]

On 6/6/2023 at 10:02 AM, JoeQ said:

Are you in the hobby/business side of shipping small order live stock!!! 😀

Mostly hobby but I end up with to many babies. I usually only ship to friends but I do sell and ship to folks on the forum (where I find most of my fishy friends 🤗) I’m not on the business side though. I don’t actually breed for profit my fish just don’t realize I do not need that many babies. 🤣

[JoeQ]

On 6/6/2023 at 10:55 AM, Guppysnail said:

Mostly hobby but I end up with to many babies. I usually only ship to friends but I do sell and ship to folks on the forum (where I find most of my fishy friends 🤗) I’m not on the business side though. I don’t actually breed for profit my fish just don’t realize I do not need that many babies. 🤣

Where do I send my wanted to too!!? 🤣

[TheSwissAquarist]

On 6/6/2023 at 4:55 PM, Guppysnail said:

I don’t actually breed for profit my fish just don’t realize I do not need that many babies. 🤣

I seem to lack that instinct. 100 odd Endlers in a 8 gallon. Water changes galore! 

[JettsPapa]

On 6/6/2023 at 4:00 AM, Cinnebuns said:

Ok, I have a question tho...

I have 2 bag sizes right now. One is too small and one is too big for what I'm wanting. I can find a use for them but they just aren't what I am used to. Sizes confuse me. What size is the "normal" bag size. Like if I were to get a few guppies at my LFS, what size bag would they put it in?

If you're shipping guppies, and don't want to buy a bag size in the middle, you could use multiple smaller bags.

[Cinnebuns]

On 6/2/2023 at 7:51 AM, Guppysnail said:

Fish bags for me are usually too short to tie easily with a gimpy wrist. I also have all smaller critters so I spend a great deal of time taping corners just so that way the fish cannot get stuck. 
 

I found fish bags that are loooong! And factory sealed round at the bottom 😍🤩

 

 

Brand ALFA Fishery on Amazon. 

I'm ordering these now. One question that doesn't really change if I'm ordering them or not but I'm just curious. Do they come with rubber bands or do I need my own?

[Guppysnail]

On 7/22/2023 at 8:08 PM, Cinnebuns said:

I'm ordering these now. One question that doesn't really change if I'm ordering them or not but I'm just curious. Do they come with rubber bands or do I need my own?

They do not come with rubber bands.