Do you think this guy is super cooling his koi? ;)

[Mucky_Waters]

Do you think the guy in this video is super cooling his koi?

 

[Lisak1]

50 koi in that pond? Yikes.

Does the photo have anything to do with the video? Or are you just making a funny?

 

[Mucky_Waters]

Does the photo have anything to do with the video? Or are you just making a funny?

I don't see anything funny about frozen koi.
But no, it is simply a warning photo of what could happen if things were to go terribly wrong.

 

[Lisak1]

Ah... I watched the video thinking the frozen fish were part of the story.

 

[callingcolleen1]

Super chilling means the water falls below zero and stays liquid. But it has to be pure water like distilled water or it cannot happen. Its just science. Look it up if you don't know.

CE has a pump that pushes a volcano of water to the surface and her fish are fine. She rarely uses her heater.
Thr guy who made this video only seems to have the one video but he said he has done this before and most of his fine are fine, but he also did say his pond is very overcrowded

Those were not his dead fish.

 

[audioenvy]

Hopefully we can all agree his water would stay warmer if he just let the pond freeze over. But... keeping water warm isn't the only thing needed to keep fish safe during a winter shutdown. On the plus side, he is removing harmful gasses and is introducing new oxygen into the water.

I didn't actually see any fish but if taken at his word this approach has not killed any fish in the 15 years he's been doing it. Since koi can survive at water temperatures fairly close to freezing, one can assume his water is never getting colder than that.

That said, it's not something I personally would recommend as a generally-applicable solution. If he lived in a colder/windier climate he might end up having problems.

 

[callingcolleen1]

Hopefully we can all agree his water would stay warmer if he just let the pond freeze over. But... keeping water warm isn't the only thing needed to keep fish safe during a winter shutdown. On the plus side, he is removing harmful gasses and is introducing new oxygen into the water.

I didn't actually see any fish but if taken at his word this approach has not killed any fish in the 15 years he's been doing it. Since koi can survive at water temperatures fairly close to freezing, one can assume his water is never getting colder than that.

That said, it's not something I personally would recommend as a generally-applicable solution. If he lived in a colder/windier climate he might end up having problems.

THE only problem he might have is that the water below the ice could be displaced as it is turned into a mountain of ice above the pond. You could run a hose every week from the house and top off pond, which is probably what he did, as I have to top ponds up every week due to evaporation. The method does work very well for CE and many others.

 

[callingcolleen1]

this guy from the UK thought his koi were froze and he barely had freezing temps outside....
On closer inspection, his fish was covered in parasites. But titles like his on this video frighten people into thinking they were froze and causing more fear than necessary about cold water...
The video is long, but you will see him put his fish under the scope and see all the parasites on his fish.
Many people in the UK are super afraid of a little winter weather...

 

[adavisus]

A hard freeze in england might happen once every ten years, where the pond stays frozen over for a week.

It would be logical to melt a small hole on the ice every couple of days and take temperature readings from the bottom of the pond, where the fish Winter.

Should be a very reliable cosey 40f down there

 

[callingcolleen1]

If you watched that video, his fish was covered all over in parasites when he looked up close with micoscope. Alot of people in the UK are just terrified of little bits of cold and they frequently heat pond when temps are still above freezing. Then if you look them up on UTube they are always so concerned about disease and parasites as they do not get enough long cold winters to kill them off. I seriously have not had a dead or sick koi in all my 27 years of running my ponds. Can't say the same about some of those fancy fat goldfish as they only seem to live about 10 years. I did have a old comet goldfish that lived to about 20 many years ago. Comets are heathier than fancy goldfish as they are not as inbred.
The point I would like to make, if you watched that whole video he said after checking his fish under scope, he come to the conclusion his whole pond was infested with parasites.

Meanwhile in MY Ice cold ponds with no heater for two weeks and night time temps down to -14 Celsius....

 

[adavisus]

The UK has a prolonged period of borderline temps for koi, where fish are barely active or have any effective immune system, while parasites and diseases are still active and the fish are vulnerable

Colleen your waters are colder longer when both fish, diseases and parasites are not active

 

[MitchM]

The UK has a prolonged period of borderline temps for koi, where fish are barely active or have any effective immune system, while parasites and diseases are still active and the fish are vulnerable

Colleen your waters are colder longer when both fish, diseases and parasites are not active

I would agree with that.
If the UK water temperatures are constantly fluctuating above and below the temperatures where parasites are active, I could see where the koi are at a disadvantage in UK water temperatures, so keeping koi in Canada is easier, not more difficult.
That would be a good reason for heating pond water in the UK.

.

 

[Mucky_Waters]

I would agree with that.
If the UK water temperatures are constantly fluctuating above and below the temperatures where parasites are active, I could see where the koi are at a disadvantage in UK water temperatures, so keeping koi in Canada is easier, not more difficult.
That would be a good reason for heating pond water in the UK.

.

Or maybe it would be a good reason for cooling it.

 

[adavisus]

Steady cold can be a vice, where the physics of water set a slowly thickening plate of ice over a pond, and if it is deep enough a pool of denser 40f water is locked down below, cosey for fish

In cool UK waters, dithering between 30f- 60f that thermocline between dense water and lighter 30's water is doing topsy turvy for some seven months. Bad luck if the beast from the east swings in and your aerator is sending -20f air deep in the bottom of the pond. How long does your freezer take to ice up.... especially if your gills are constantly sucking up the crystals

Take your pick what bumps off the lot, a cold snap in super cooled water or lethal gas from decomp when the pond seals over for more than a couple of days. Especially when pests have weakened the stamina of fish

Folk have some success covering ponds for Winter, allowing 50f ground warmth to rise through the pond, and extra warmth from sunlight keeps fish active, feeding and stronger through the Winter months. Keeping sharp cold Winter air from cooling and freezing over a pond

 

[MitchM]

Sometimes Mother Nature can create conditions where it's just not possible to keep a hole open in the ice through circulation or aeration.

 

[adavisus]

As long as you can walk to the pond with a pan of hot water, its doable. Every other day will do.

Might be tricky when the power is out. Covering a pond with a cold frame is good, when the sun is on it, that good old solar power can really keep the ice at bay

 

[MitchM]

No, a pot of hot water is not going to do it.

 

[adavisus]

How deep is the ice. A pot of water might melt 2" deep at a time

 

[MitchM]

6 inches of ice will form within the first month or so after the initial ice over.
That leaves 5 more months of ice cover. (for me anyways)
You can have situations where you have 6 inches of ice, a heavy snowfall during the day and night that sinks the ice cap below the pond water line which forms a slush above the existing ice cap and come out to 12" of ice the next morning.

I agree that a pot of water would work with 2 inches of ice.
I presently have 2 feet of ice, however.

.

 

[Faebinder]

If you watched that video, his fish was covered all over in parasites when he looked up close with micoscope. Alot of people in the UK are just terrified of little bits of cold and they frequently heat pond when temps are still above freezing. Then if you look them up on UTube they are always so concerned about disease and parasites as they do not get enough long cold winters to kill them off. I seriously have not had a dead or sick koi in all my 27 years of running my ponds. Can't say the same about some of those fancy fat goldfish as they only seem to live about 10 years. I did have a old comet goldfish that lived to about 20 many years ago. Comets are heathier than fancy goldfish as they are not as inbred.
The point I would like to make, if you watched that whole video he said after checking his fish under scope, he come to the conclusion his whole pond was infested with parasites.

Meanwhile in MY Ice cold ponds with no heater for two weeks and night time temps down to -14 Celsius....

Agree with all that is said above. Common, Comets and Shubunkins will do fine. Put a small trough heater if you got some fancy goldfish. Not all the fancies need them, but some do.