How long can a fish be in a bag

[vetteguy53081]

Hello everyone. I recently ordered from an online store, and they are going to be shipping my order out tomorrow night, for delivery the next morning. I was wondering if my fish would be safe if I were to acclimate them in the afternoon, around 2:45. Would they be able to last that long in a bag? I put this as an emergency because this could be life or death for my fish. Thank you.

Yes , they are packed for 24-36 hours and Ive seen fish in transit 48 hrs which survived. Acclimation will be important if extended but you will be fine

 

[Tamberav]

The warranty is likely void if left outside, I would just have them shipped when you can be around to accept delivery.

 

[hikermike]

I , in the past made a trip to the Baja. There I collected some small fish, invertebrates,(crabs and shrimp), and some snails. also some rocks with sealife . I packed each item in a separate plastic bag one day (1/2 gal. size) and filled them 2/3 d's full with O2. Next day drove home spending about 2 hours in line waiting to get through customs where they were perplexed as to which law would apply. They decided that I wasn't a sport fisherman since they weren't big enough to eat and there were only 1 or 2 of each kind so wasn't an importer needing a license so was let through without any further ado. (Probably wouldn't happen these days.) Got home late to LA and had to work next day so couldn't unpack till the evening. EVERYTHING survived. 3 days. So O2 makes a big differrence! (Having collected from tide pools in Baja probably meant they were already "selected" to survive heat) HOWEVER, whenever accepting any shipment that's taken a long time remember acclimation is very different from bringing a bag home from the LFS so follow the instructions carefully! As soon as you open the bag, the CO2 rushes out immediately, the protecting acidity drops yet the rising toxic ammonia is still there and the solution may be suddenly very toxic.