Bringing the fish in the garage this winter

[waynefrcan]

Just wondering if any of you in the cold regions overwinter them in an unheated garage? Our winters here are just to cold for the fish. Every year we lose some. Last winter was 8 including 2 large koi. This is with heaters and aerators, so it's not the setup it's the cold & frozen earth here 6-7 months frozen.

Reason unheated is so they don't have to be fed but the conditions are less hazardous then outside. I was thinking a low watt heater just to keep the ice off.

My only question is the water chem, do you still need the good bacteria for this?

Thks
Wayne

 

[Tula]

Are you planning on running a filter? That's where I think good bacteria would be. I haven't wintered fish inside, but it seems like folks do use filters.

I know they're other Canadians on this forum, have you considered asking them if they have any experience doing this?

 

[waynefrcan]

I know the people that overwinter in the basement run filters and everything just like a pond. Not sure if all thats needed in an unheated garage where they are not being fed.

 

[CometKeith]

Hi Wayne. Hate to start thinking about winter already..... but I have some questions.How deep is your pond? There are a lot of people in the Chicago area that don't have deep ponds but build a little tent over them in the winter to keep them warm. This might be easier than taking the fish out. Also if you are losing big fish you could have a lack of dissolved oxygen in the water.

 

[Dave 54]

CK Even with a tent covering the pond you would still get ice, I've even posted my Canadian friends pond with over 2ft of ice over the pond , this whilst covered by of those inflatable garages.
Each year she suffered losses thanx to the icing up of her pond, then we suggested moving them into her Hubbies Workshop
Since she moved them indoors she has reported no further losses , however it would be a good idea to insulate the garage as best you can taking particular attention over any gaps .
Weve done the same with our pond and filter housng and with policarbonate roofing on both the filter housing and pond we maintain an unheated temperature of 7.c .
The colder you winter the greater the chances of it icing up thus causing you greater fish losses, so it has to be seriously insulated against this to be fit to over winter koi and goldfish in especially in a garage ..


Dave

 

[waynefrcan]

Hi Wayne. Hate to start thinking about winter already..... but I have some questions.How deep is your pond? There are a lot of people in the Chicago area that don't have deep ponds but build a little tent over them in the winter to keep them warm. This might be easier than taking the fish out. Also if you are losing big fish you could have a lack of dissolved oxygen in the water.

4' deep and lots of aeration. I did have a period of about 10 days where I mistakenly unplugged the aerators.

 

[waynefrcan]

CK Even with a tent covering the pond you would still get ice, I've even posted my Canadian friends pond with over 2ft of ice over the pond , this whilst covered by of those inflatable garages.
Each year she suffered losses thanx to the icing up of her pond, then we suggested moving them into her Hubbies Workshop
Since she moved them indoors she has reported no further losses , however it would be a good idea to insulate the garage as best you can taking particular attention over any gaps .
Weve done the same with our pond and filter housng and with policarbonate roofing on both the filter housing and pond we maintain an unheated temperature of 7.c .
The colder you winter the greater the chances of it icing up thus causing you greater fish losses, so it has to be seriously insulated against this to be fit to over winter koi and goldfish in especially in a garage ..


Dave

Good points Dave, I was thinking about using low watt heaters to keep the ice off. What about water chem and water changes? Will ammonia spike even with no feeding and water at 5-7 c?

 

[dieselplower]

I would suggest doing some research into Aeromonas Alley. You will want to keep your water colder than 42 degrees or warmer than 62 degrees.
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...=3bSQxlGkB2jHLKrtERwRyQ&bvm=bv.72197243,d.aWw

http://www.michigankoi.com/Over-Coming-Aeromonas-Alley-Koi-Health-and-Information-sc-251.html

 

[waynefrcan]

Ok thanks will look at it. I read a post where Larkin mentioned that the good bacteria dies below 45 F so probably no activity in the cold water and therefor no inbalance, and with no food and waste to contaminate the water it makes sense. Now about water changes, still good idea?

 

[waynefrcan]

I also found out that with low quality fish, even if you do all things correct in the summer months and the fish seem healthy they might still not be good enough to withstand the cold climates. My fish are all Petsmart koi, comets, shubukins, feeder fish, except one black koi which is of higher quality and was bought elseware.

 

[dieselplower]

Most ammonia is produced through breathing so you can bet they will still be producing ammonia.

 

[Dave 54]

Good points Dave, I was thinking about using low watt heaters to keep the ice off. What about water chem and water changes? Will ammonia spike even with no feeding and water at 5-7 c?

Our friend takes her pond filter off the pond and into the workshop the holding tank is full of pond water so they are to all intents and purposes still in their pond.
She doesnt feed her koi whilst indoors keeping the pond at 9.c and does waterchanges every few weeks always matching the temperature of the holding tank water with the hot and cold taps to the correct temperature indoors,
She does weekly water perameter readings of Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate Ph , she also runs an airpump on the setup .
I hope this information helps


Dave

 

[Grammatogoldfish]

I am new to this site and am thrilled to be able to share how I overwinter my pond goldfish. We live in northern Minnesota where it can get to minus 40 F. Our first snowfall can be as early as late October, and we usually have snow on the ground through April. YES, winters are LONG! (but our summers and falls are beautiful!) My pond freezes solid so I bring my shubunkin and sarasa comet into our unheated garage, but I must add that we have a tuck-under garage with common walls to a mud room and sauna/bathroom so the garage does not totally freeze. The goldfish live in their large bin for 6 months of the year with no aeration or food!!! I leave the bin cover ajar, but they are in total darkness and go into a dormant hibernation-type state. The water never ices over on the top.

In the spring, they become more active as the water warms up. Since they've been in total darkness for so long, I slide the cover back a little each day to let in more light as I gradually move the bin outside to the sun and warmth. They are always happy to go back into their pond This is the 4th summer I've had my fish. They are 6-8 inches long now and have thrown many eggs this summer so I have started a nursery and am enjoying being a "Gramma to Goldfish". Hope this helps you, Wayne from Canada.

 

[waynefrcan]

Thats the almost perfect garage wintering experience I wanted, thanks for that. No water changes? Difference here is the garage freezes but aheater should take care of the ice.

And welcome, concrats on your first ever post here!

 

[waynefrcan]

Our friend takes her pond filter off the pond and into the workshop the holding tank is full of pond water so they are to all intents and purposes still in their pond.
She doesnt feed her koi whilst indoors keeping the pond at 9.c and does waterchanges every few weeks always matching the temperature of the holding tank water with the hot and cold taps to the correct temperature indoors,
She does weekly water perameter readings of Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate Ph , she also runs an airpump on the setup .
I hope this information helps


Dave

Thanks I remember this story from last few years. Glad she has solved her problems with your expert help of course.