fall and winter prep

[crazyforponds]

I keep an eye on the weather and shut down my pumps when it's consistently cold - usually Nov. one year made it into Dec. I keep my pumps in my skimmer, just not running.

I discard all but my lilies, but have been giving thought to trying to keep parrots feather under light.....but just as easy to start fresh next spring.

I run an aerator and de -icer. Last year I placed my air stones about mid way into the water and my pond is between 33.5 -4 ft in the very deepest section.

I also clean my pond of debris and net it. I'm currently researching nets, as I've a cedar tree over my pond that drops fine debris. I'm considering a fine mesh net, but am wondering if that presents problems with sunlight not penetrating into the pond.

I live in Cincinnati, Ohio...think I'm in a similar zone as you.....might be a 6 though. hard to keep track as they've changed the zones and I'm always on the border of a zone.

Glad you had a great summer with your pond!

Thanks so much for the info. Question: if the pump is in the skimmer I would imagine the water in that area freezes. Does that hurt the pump?

 

[Tula]

Thanks so much for the info. Question: if the pump is in the skimmer I would imagine the water in that area freezes. Does that hurt the pump?

Nope, they've been in there for years. I think if you take your pumps out, they actually need to be stored in a bucket of water to keep the seals intact.

 

[CometKeith]

I used to keep an airstone running. Now I keep a pump running all winter over my waterfall and that works pretty good. It's not much of a waterfall when it gets really cold but there is enough water movement to keep things good. The key is you want to avoid anaerobic bacteria and water movement helps keep that down. Much of the bad bacteria comes from decaying organic materials. If your pond smells bad in the spring then you have too much decaying organic material and not enough oxygen. The winter is the easy time for fish to get through. It's the spring that is the killer because their resistance is low and the bad bacteria that builds up can affect them. I have found for me it's best not to do too much to the pond until it cycles in the spring. About the only thing I do is net the bottom to eliminate organic material and feed very sparingly.

 

[Dave 54]

I live in the south, zone 8. It gets cold [sometimes] but never freezes here. I leave my main pump going [but I turn off anything attached to a spitter]. I started using an aerator in the pond last summer, and normally the air stones sit on the bottom. But as it gets colder, I use zip-ties and pieces of pool noodle to float the air stones where they are just a few inches under the water surface. That way you have air movement at the surface which is where the oxygenation will come from, but you don't have the stratification of the deeper, warmer water being moved & mixed with the colder, surface water.

I can't say what kind of aerator is best, or where the best place is in the pond to place the air stones [for winter]. Just be aware that aerators are not weather-friendly, so they have to be covered [or under cover] and protected from the elements

Maggie even though both our pond air pumps are in the filter housing and therefore are undercover weve found it is prudent to cover both our Airtec 40e's with a large upturned plastic container.
This helps in a number of ways it protects them against any spillage during the cleaning of our filters it stops any dust falling on them and thus keep's the filters cleaner but it also protects against the moisture building up due to temperature varient's .
Another thing we do is weve found replacing the filter media the makers use with a green scourering pad gives them a prolonged life and are cheap to replace

Dave

 

[Jeff Kraemer]

Not sure what zone i am in...lol, but i can tell you we have pretty cold winters in Philadelphia. If you get a lot of freezing temperatures during your winter i recommend shutting of the waterfalls. If you decide to keep your filter running just run it directly to the pond. The water will freeze on the waterfall and your pond water level will be really low leaving the fish less area below the ice. I usually leave an aerator running so a hole is left in the ice, and then shut down the pump and take it inside for the winter. If the winter is really really cold like the one i had last year, you may have to sit a pot of boiling water over where the hole was, a few times over the course of the winter.I have left the pump in the water all winter after shutting it down, when the spring came it either didn't work at all or after running for a half an hour it stopped... i forget which one lol.
Either way...if you shut down for the winter, pull the pump. If not...run a direct line from the filter to the pond. That's my take on it.

 

[morewater]

Don't do a complete water change in the Spring, you'll regret it. 25-30% max, and don't forget to dechlorinate the replacement water.

As stated above, shut down the waterfall, leave the pumps in, if you have filters then empty them of water and cover them. If you have a skimmer, lower the pond water level to just below the intake and empty the skimmer box itself. Stick an airstone in the pond, put the air pump in a weatherproof container (on a brick, so that if moisture does somehow make it into the container, the intake won't be immersed in moisture). Put a check valve on the air line to prevent water creep in the event of a power failure. Keep on top of removing as many leaves as you can from the water surface prior to freeze-up, shut down of a skimmer unit.

 

[addy1]

I use an external pump so always pull it, stuff my skimmer with bubble wrap (no pump in my skimmer). This year I am trying the pond breather Mitch up in Canada used. Someone down here, zone 6b, lost all their fish using an aerator, every single one died in February.

 

[Shdwdrgn]

You are almost directly East of me (I'm just North of Denver), so essentially the same zone, however you are at a lower altitude which means your weather will be more constant. I don't think it was specifically pointed out, but koi and goldfish are NOT tropical fish! In fact they can both tolerate water temps down to almost freezing. I've had some of my goldfish for 7 years, and koi for 5 years. They have always stayed outdoors all year long, and I always keep my pumps running all year. My pond is only 3' deep, and the stream is only about 8 inches deep.

Now for the caveats... While your Winter temperatures will be similar to mine, my location gets some weird warm spells. Your main concern is the ground temperature, and how deep the freeze line goes, and since your weather stays more constantly cold, plus you get the sweeping winds, Winter will have more affect on your pond than it does on mine.

We are in a sort of zone of uncertainty, and that allows us to get away with more than some folks. My suggestion would be to *try* keeping your pump running, but be prepared to get an aerator quickly if needed (or just go ahead and get it to have on hand). If you have a waterfall, you will see it freeze over, and you have to watch for the possibility of an ice dam causing water to run out over the edge of your pond. I generally break the ice back every day or two to keep the waterfall flowing without interference, and the falls provide good aeration for the fish. What I usually see happen is that as long as the water is flowing, the ice doesn't get too thick over the pond -- but if you stop the water movement, the ice will get thick very quickly and your pipes can freeze up. Keeping the pumps running through the Winter requires more work and constantly monitoring your pond, but in my case an aerator would not help my stream, it would only keep the larger pond habitable. Because I keep my pumps running and the sun is more intense here, my pond tends to only be frozen over for less than half the Winter. If you come to a point where you have to turn off your pumps, don't forget to drain the water out of the pipes!

Keep in mind that an ice layer over the pond is a *good* thing, because it traps in the ground heat. Just make sure you have some kind of aeration and a hole through the ice for the oxygen exchange, and your fish will be fine.

 

[Tula]

I use an external pump so always pull it, stuff my skimmer with bubble wrap (no pump in my skimmer). This year I am trying the pond breather Mitch up in Canada used. Someone down here, zone 6b, lost all their fish using an aerator, every single one died in February.

So sad for your friend who lost all his fish

I've read where some folks stuff their skimmers with newspaper or bubble wrap and am curious what it does? My skimmer door floats open, so can't prevent water from being in it.

 

[addy1]

I've read where some folks stuff their skimmers with newspaper or bubble wrap and am curious what it does? My skimmer door floats open, so can't prevent water from being in it.

When I turn off my pump for winter, water sits in the skimmer, I can't drain it without draining down the pond. I use the bubble wrap to displace xx amount of the water so it can't freeze solid and crack the skimmer. There is still water in it but it can't freeze up solid.

 

[morewater]

So sad for your friend who lost all his fish

I've read where some folks stuff their skimmers with newspaper or bubble wrap and am curious what it does? My skimmer door floats open, so can't prevent water from being in it.

Stick a piece of liner through the door opening and you should be able to drain the skimmer. Works in some applications, depending on the install.

 

[addy1]

Ours is a wide weir pool skimmer, the bubble wrap stuffing is the only way to displace the water, if we drained it would drain the pond down to the lower edge.

 

[Tula]

Besides not wanting to drain the water too low, my pumps are designed to remain submerged, which is why I leave them in the skimmer. I'm trying to remember if the skimmer ( Savio) instructions call for displacing water inside it for the winter...might check our their website to see.

 

[addy1]

I have stuffed it for the last 4 winters, so far no cracking of the skimmer, I put the bubble wrap in a plastic bag with a rock or two to give it weight ow it floats.

 

[mariobrothersleeve]

I don't use aerators because the algae builds up so bad on them (winter algae). I point a pump towards the surface which prevents freezing solid. Last year we had 7.5 ft of frost and the pond didn't freeze solid. I think they want you to pull pumps (manufacturer) is because they are plastic and become brittle.