Las Vegas 1000 gallon pond and heater???

[Killemall]

Hi Colleen. What type of heater do you use?

 

[Lisak1]

After a week of reading I'm starting to slightly understand this cold weather stuff. Never had to think about this with my Hawaii pond builds.


So I'm in vegas which is apparently zone 9b..

From what I've been reading all across the internet zone 9b can safely have just about any fish I want all year (within reason ofcourse)

Most things I'm reading are saying zone 9b dosent need any winter precautions.

I dont really trust the internet so I researched a ton of pond heaters and their reviews..

For zone 9b and 1000 gallons it states that 250 watts from a KnH submersible will keep my pond around 55 degrees.

I guess we will see as I ordered it and will install in the next few weeks.

I'll also be ordering a 55 gallon vepotek cylinder tank to keep the guppies nice and warm in house.

Thanks for help. Feel lucky to be 9b for sure!!!!!!

That's not a heater... that's a de-icer. It will keep a hole in a frozen pond, but it won't heat the water any appreciable amount.

 

[Lisak1]

Hi Colleen. What type of heater do you use?

@callingcolleen1 - thanks for the info. If you can keep guppies in an outdoor pond, it's definitely possible!

How big is your guppy pond?

 

[Killemall]

As far as the deicer. Read around 100 reviews on it and most said it kept their water temp around 55 degrees

 

[Killemall]

That's not a heater... that's a de-icer. It will keep a hole in a frozen pond, but it won't heat the water any appreciable amount.

I can only go off the owner reviews.....

They all swearing their whole pond heated to 55 degrees. Not just a 2 foot hole in ice.

In zone 9b it seems I dont really need much..

So hoping it will give just that little oomph on the rare nights it hits high 30s

 

[Lisak1]

I can only go off the owner reviews.....

They all swearing their whole pond heated to 55 degrees. Not just a 2 foot hole in ice.

In zone 9b it seems I dont really need much..

So hoping it will give just that little oomph on the rare nights it hits high 30s

Hmmm... here's what the description says on Amazon:

"Please note: These deicers will maintain a pond temperature of just above freezing and cannot be adjusted to higher temperatures."

But I guess time will tell.

 

[brokensword]

I can only go off the owner reviews.....

They all swearing their whole pond heated to 55 degrees. Not just a 2 foot hole in ice.

In zone 9b it seems I dont really need much..

So hoping it will give just that little oomph on the rare nights it hits high 30s

yeah but are these reviewers giving details like how many gallons this 'heater' is trying to heat? Do they tell you which zones they're in? If their pond is covered or open? If the pond raised or inground? Does this heater tell you how many gallons it's rated for? Is it thermostatically controlled? Too many factors to easily make such an assumption on your pond, imo.

 

[Killemall]

Actually it goes into grand detail.

 

[Killemall]

It states that zone 7 and above at 1000 gallons is 250 watts.

I'm zone 9.

Better than nothing and $12 a month is easy on the wallet

 

[BKHpondcritters]

OK, I realize you're going to do what you're going to do, and what you believe is best for your pond & fish. I (and I'm sure all the other posters discussing this with you) are really hoping this will be a good working unit & situation for your fish.
I just want to point out a couple of things. First, if you're actually in Las Vegas, your hardiness zone is either 9a or 8b (not 9b) and that extra 10 degrees can make a big difference. Your 'average' overnight low of 35-ish is just that - an average. So, some nights will be warmer, some colder. You need to plan for worst possible scenario, not best possible if you want to be really safe.
Second, that de-icer is thermostatically controlled, which means that unless it's malfunctioning it won't even turn on until the water temp is nearing freezing (probably around or below 40 degrees or so) I don't care what the reviews claimed - according to the manufacturer it is NOT a heater & will not operate as one. If it was, I'm sure they'd be saying it would do that.
Again, do what you want. We're just trying to help you avoid having problems when it's cold out & too late to do anything about it.

 

[Killemall]

I looked on the zoning map for where my house was specifically and it came out to zone 9b. Areas just a few miles away were 9a. Didnt see any 8s near me but vegas is a good size place.

I can only read and try.

Coldest I've ever seen it where I'm at is 30 degrees. Actually a light snow that night!!!

Average night time I've seen in my area is 40-45ish.

Appreciate the help.

Only time we I'll tell..

 

[Killemall]

Now I looked at a differant map and it says I'm zone 9a.

Thank you for getting me to take a second look

 

[Killemall]

Interesting...

Seems 30 is about the coldest night of the year on most years.

Air temp and water temp are 2 very differant things according to what you guys have been teaching me.

Gonna be a learning experience for sure

 

[Killemall]

I feel like a Guinea pig lol. Oink Oink.

The saga continues.

I have the 250 watt KH deicer....

And also a 300 watt Aqueon heater...

Currently the weathers been around 100 degrees and here in Vegas at 7.30 PM my pond temp is at 69.7-71 F.

I've shelved the 250 watt deicer for now.

I'm really trying to see if I can create a nice warm spot that can stay 70 plus degrees even on the coldest of nights where it can get down to 30F here in zone 9.

It's not easy. My temp gun only can measure the surface water...

However my feet tell me that it's a few degrees warmer down by the 300 watt heater lol.

If anyone knows an easy way to get the temp at the bottom by the heater then please let me know

 

[BKHpondcritters]

The thermometer in my pond sinks... I have it tied to a cord & pull it up when I want to look at it. I'm pretty sure there are higher-tech versions, but I'm old & prefer 'simple' (I find it more dependable)