Wintering over our koi in the garage....

[Learning to Care for Koi]

So glad to hear your plan worked out! Was it worth it in your mind to bring them indoors?

Oh, absolutely. It has been a heartache to see the ice melt and find a couple of dead fish. We have ideas about how to improve water circulation under the ice over winter so we will be evaluating the options as we go along.
Then, there is always the issue of predators… Saw our first Blueheron at the edge of the pond last summer.

 

[Learning to Care for Koi]

When they get as big as my aggie and bert it will be impossible to bring them in .Bought mine back in 2005 and they are now over 2 feet long and the older koi get the easier they are to get stressed out .Colleen in Canada keeps hers outside in her bitter cold winters .Kio prefer colder water .

Wow! How great that you have kept your koi alive for 15 years! I have been following Colleen. Her ponds are awesome!

 

[sissy]

her ponds are great and living where she lives it is amazing .I just wish now that I had gone with a pondless pond .I just don't have the time or energy for this anymore .I just came in because I was getting wet from the mist that is coming down .But I did get some weed pulling done and got the new bottom sweeps put on the bottom of the basement doors .

 

[Learning to Care for Koi]

Dear Everyone, I would like to report that after two years we have thankfully managed to keep our koi all alive over winter in the garage tank. Yes, 25 fish plus a few babies that somehow mysteriously manifested at summer’s end. The babies are not koi so the theory is they may have traveled here as eggs on the floating pond plants that came from Florida. We changed about a third of the water every few weeks. The fish were dormant so there was little to no waste to deal with. We kept the pump, filter and aerators running. They have returned now to their outdoor pond. It’s a bit cold for them to start eating but they do seem to come up and say hi, of course I could be imagining it.

 

[Learning to Care for Koi]

I see nothing wrong with your method. I have also brought my fish in a garage for the winter and not a single loss in 3 winters. It is colder in my area of mid Alberta. I was never successful with wintering outside and always had fish loss. And yes the largest koi were dead or sick. IMO conditions must be perfect to be successful in colder regions and it's hard to get them perfect. I always was worried how they were doing but now in the garage I know they are warmer and we get to enjoy them year round.

I built a wood container similar to yours but recently added a intex pool as the goldfish have multiplied. Have a heater for the garage and also in water heaters when it's -20-30 C outside. Do more water changes also.

Question about your pond, is it rock lined, any muck on the bottom? That will effect water quality over winter.

Hello, I just saw this question around two years too late. In any event, we started out with rocks lining the pond but ultimately we removed them all. It was a ridiculous amount of work! But, as you say, has contributed to the health of the pond. What really made the critical difference however was upgrading to a more powerful filter.

 

[Tula]

I'm so happy to read your update! You've obviously found a plan that works!! Thank you for sharing ....any pics ?