Newbie's First Winter

[lynntran]

Hello everyone! It's been a heck of a busy summer but I managed to survive my first warm season with 2 ponds in a new home. The small pond is going away for the better but I'm keeping my koi pond. Sooooo...

The days are getting cooler. 70s in the highs and 50s-60s in the lows. I wanted to see if anyone could give me a few pointers in knowing what and when to prepare my pond koi for the deep sleep.

I've read to slow down feeding your koi when it gets cooler and to stop altogether when waters reach 50 degrees for 10+ days.

1.Should the water temperatures be measured by day or night?

2.What type of thermometer should I look into?

3. I currently run an aerator and also a pump 2-3 feet below the surface of a pond reaching to the max depth of 4 feet. What do I put into storage and what do I keep running all winter?

4. The previous owner left me behind a pair of deicers. Any suggestions where to place them?

All other tips and suggestions are helpful guys! I wouldn't have had a chance to enjoy my ponds this summer if it weren't for your great advice. Keep it coming.

 

[sissy]

you can just get a cheap swimming pool one if you want .I know i have one of them from lowes and it was less than 10 dollars .You should also have spring and fall food because it has wheat germ in it and helps with digestion .I use blackwater koi pellets now because they have garlic in them and garlic is good for fish .But there are other foods with garlic also .Remember to make sure with the deicers that they work ,put them in a bowl of ice .Make sure they do not touch the sides of your pond .I have seen people here who did that .I have a pipe across my pond and deicer cord is wired to it and a small pump under it .Aerators need to be protected from freezing temps.

 

[lynntran]

How does an aerator get protected? Does this mean that I will keep it running all winter?

 

[sissy]

even in rain it needs protected and in winter more because the insides will freeze .It needs to be put inside a protected area .

 

[Dave 54]

Make sure that your pond is prepared for winter remove any dead leaves and detritus from the ponds bottom and also make sure your filter has been given a good clean prior to late fall .
Make sure that the areator is kept off the bottom of the pond by a few inches or so .
If it is possible to cover your pond do so if not use a heater to keep a hole in the ice alowing the pond to be able to gass off .
We use policarbonate roofing sheets to cover our own pond , the net result of which our pond doesnt freeze over and we get a near constant temperature of 10c
Stop feeding after 10c - 50f and only start again in the spring when your pond gets above the 10c mark for at least two weeks
You wont get this in the US but this is the type of pond/pool remote thermometer that we use on our own pond :-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/TFA-30-3053...fkmr0&keywords=Malibu+remote+pool+thermometer

It may also be an idea to buy a weather station to monitor the outside air temperatiure in conjunction with your remotepool/pond thermometer giving you an overall picture of whats going on outside .

Dave

 

[addy1]

How does an aerator get protected? Does this mean that I will keep it running all winter?

I put mine in the house, don't run them in the winter. The one time I ran it in the winter I had the aerator under a tub with some air holes drilled in the tub.
I have converted to using pond breathers in the winter. Less electricity use, and they work well.

 

[Dave 54]

I just remembered I recently did an article about prepping your pond for the winter ahead :-

https://www.gardenpondforum.com/articles/prepping-your-pond-for-the-winter.29/

I hope this helps you keep your fish safe throughout the winter months and for many more winters to come .

Dave

 

[MitchM]

Hello everyone! It's been a heck of a busy summer but I managed to survive my first warm season with 2 ponds in a new home. The small pond is going away for the better but I'm keeping my koi pond. Sooooo...

The days are getting cooler. 70s in the highs and 50s-60s in the lows. I wanted to see if anyone could give me a few pointers in knowing what and when to prepare my pond koi for the deep sleep.

I've read to slow down feeding your koi when it gets cooler and to stop altogether when waters reach 50 degrees for 10+ days.

1.Should the water temperatures be measured by day or night?

2.What type of thermometer should I look into?

3. I currently run an aerator and also a pump 2-3 feet below the surface of a pond reaching to the max depth of 4 feet. What do I put into storage and what do I keep running all winter?

4. The previous owner left me behind a pair of deicers. Any suggestions where to place them?

All other tips and suggestions are helpful guys! I wouldn't have had a chance to enjoy my ponds this summer if it weren't for your great advice. Keep it coming.

How cold does it get during your winter?
How long do your cold periods last?

 

[Tula]

I run an aerator all winter, but it's less powerful than the one I run in the summer. I run thick PVC poles across my pond to support my leaf net and I wrap my aerator tubes around them, to suspend them about a foot into the pond. I also loop my de-icer there and position it over the aerators. The actual air pump, sits inside a small shed I have.

My submersible pumps remain in the skimmer, but don't run. I'll pull my pressurized filters and bring inside, so they don't freeze. This year I have a new Savio UV and I'm planning on pulling it and bringing it inside for the winter....it slides into my skimmer.

I'm also giving consideration to purchasing a small pump to suspend from the PVC pole and shoot it towards the water's surface.

I too switch to a cool weather food in autumn and stop feeding by the time the water is 55 degrees.

You did a great job with your pond this year!!!

 

[lynntran]

The previous owner left me those trough deicers but to believe those are the 1200+ watt ones which I don't really want to run since we are getting used to our utility bills moving into our house. I did find a 40 watt on Amazon that has a neat water feature. Has anyone here used it?

API 8PB Pond Breather Heated Aerator, 40 Watts

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000HHM9U0/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_3GwcwbC4FC8GC

 

[Lisak1]

I think both @MitchM and @addy1 can tell you about pond breathers.

 

[lynntran]

How cold does it get during your winter?
How long do your cold periods last?

I live near the suburb philadelphia area, our winters usually go from December to February and it gets as cold as 10 degrees and with wind chills it can go single digits but that's more around January-February

 

[Tula]

Yes, both @addy1 and @MitchM use Pond Breathers. I purchased one last year from Drs. Foster and Smith , at a better price, but perhaps it was a sale. They had good customer care, when mine cracked.

 

[MitchM]

Yes, we all had a good discussion about the breather last year:
https://www.gardenpondforum.com/threads/pond-breather.15976/

 

[lynntran]

I see it for around $70 right now on the site. I was wondering with a pond breather would it be enough for my pond in the winter and if I need to keep my aerator on or can I just put it away. This seems like a great alternative to saving electricity with a 40 watt device.