Leaving fish in an ice chest

I know that some of you put your fish in ice chests while you are fishing.
How long will the fish stay good in an ice chest?
Do you put ice in the bottom of it?

In cold weather I don't use anything and them kittys will still be mostly alive after 6 hrs as long as I keep the lid closed. Once the lid won't close anymore it's time to quit anyway:)

freeze you a 2 liter bottle of water last all day in your ice chest. 2 if you have room

thanks everyone

From a friend who has a seafood restaurant. Catfish will keep for three days if properly covered with ice in a cooler.

I throw my fish on top of ice as I catch them. I have several times waited till the next day to clean them with no problem. I cannot afford an expensive ice chest but my cheap igloo works great.

I'm a bank fisherman, and I like to keep mine at the edge of the water in a toad sack. This way, I don't have any problems with snakes.

Igloo for $500 Bob. Does just fine.

Mine must not be an igloo because I paid about 30 bucks for mine at Walmart. I just put two bags of I've in them the morning of my trip. If I do not clean my fish the first day I buy more ice to cover them on top. The ice chest ends up a bloody mess and smells bad when done. I take it to the car wash and pressure wash it after I am done with it.

I use lots of ice and fish are good for 24 hours. I often clean them the next day.