Winter EXTREME BLUES!!!

[Seefdro Tvneik]

OK, hello Koi people.......As a few of you know I live in Metro-Detoit (a little north of Detroit)....During the winter my koi deal with VERY COLD temperatures......This is not how I want it but it is my only currrent option....Perhaps one day I will be able to afford a heating system for the coldest months here...

SO, this is what I have learned over a long period of time.....When I began koi keeping at my parents house many years ago the koi were in a water garden and I presumed they could handle the cold water/air with no problem...WITH maybe good luck most of them did .....So the early years of koi keeping and winter care began there for the first few years....Learned a few thigs about winter and koi there....Eventually once I moved out to my own house I graduated to a really nice water garden.....Then in 04 I built the real koi pond all by myself..Shovel to wheel barrel then to truck in which I dumped the dirt in there.....I removed 30 yrds of dirt and ruined my spine in the process....Not a top of the line koi pond but as I see it, there is an efficient koi pond running with several filter options in my backyard....Don't know of the exact gallons because I am not anal about those things but I will say the pond is bigger than most...At least 5,000 gallons and is just about as big as I can make it....The pond at it's deepest point is 8'......It is also a liner pond and has been very effiecient over the past few years.....

OK, so here is my QUESTION??????

Those of you who have to deal with the WINTER KOI BLUES what has been your most challenging moments and what has suprised during the winter extremes regarding your koi pond?????? How have you adapted to your cold environment as a koi keeper????

Please don't mention you built a heated greenhouse and solved that problem as I wish I could do that (perhaps one day I will)......BUT I would like this question to involve the COLD AIR CHALLENGE of keeping a koi pond....I have a few stories which were winter learning experiences and would like to share them if there is some interest.....Remember please add COLD AIR LEARNING STORIES and not POND BUILDING ADVICE here.

Please include the more difficult, challenging and painfull or embarrasing WINTER BLUES stories.......(They don't even have to be your stories, perhaps you just heard it happened)

To start off could you add the coldest temp in which your koi/pond endured please let us know...:ee k:.

[CarolinaGirl]

Winter blues? How about when you stupidly add some new fish to the pond in November, and then discover in January you have an outbreak of flukes so bad the fish are dying. And the water is 45° and you have to come up with a safe, effective treatment and then because of inexperience you over medicate and burn bunches of them and kill others?? Now THAT is winter blues.....2 winters ago.

[Seefdro Tvneik]

OUCH......GREAT way to start off the thread....THAT IS THE WINTER KOI BLUES!!!

[BobWinkler]

back a few years ago, when we lived in Monument, Coolrado, and before the heated pond(s)....

1st winter in monument, 1994, 5 deep pond, 18' by 24'...january.....~12" thick ice, we lost 8 out 9 koisicles.....temp at 5' was 32.5F

2nd winter, still not heated.... Built a 2 by 6" supported cover, with a pitch to it...sorry.,.. greenhouse corrugated fiberglass cover, with plastic sides....temp never went below 41F and even in 4 foot snows, which we had 2 of that winter...no koi fatalities....after that I am disqualified cause i have always heated since then...

[Seefdro Tvneik]

Were suppose to go down below ZERO DEGREES on Sunday....Pushing the limits!!!!...AND I DON'T HAVE A HEATED POND....I have a koi which is very sensitive to the cold and I have a feeling I'm in trouble, and not just with her....... SH*T!!!! Can't do this another year......This year a budget will be made for a real heater......Anyone know of a heating unit which I can install for a 5,000 gallon pond for a $1,000.

[The Pond Digger]

Just thinking about what you are going thru makes me want to put a stake in my heart! I'm sure we could find a volunteer around here to help me! I love sunny Southern California! My local tree frogs are talking up a storm since the last rains, my new Koi Grow Out Pond is hitting 60 degrees each day and my new TOSAI are already chasing me down for food each day.

The extreme differences we experience as nationwide enthusiasts here are crazy. I can't even imagine for a moment what you are going thru! I'll probably wear shorts tomorrow.

The Pond Digger Grow Out Stats

Respectfully,

The Pond Digger

[Brutuscz]

I have 2 stories. The first was about 6 years ago. I had a floating heater to keep a space in the ice open. Well, one snowy day, I noticed the pond was frozen over plus a foot of snow. I knew this was not good. I had a hot water hose outside. I melted the heater wire out to take a look...and the wire was chewed through. Most likely from mice. I do not know how long the pond was frozen over....but when it thawed, it was devastating. All my koi had died. Including the 6 show winners I had.
This year I had an early winter mishap. The basic problem was I still had salt in the pond and didn't realize it. Several koi were laying on their sides. I measured the bottom temps and it was 35deg. I thought it was super cooling from my airstones, so i adjusted them. No change. Then I read the article by REC on winterizing. I measured the salt level and it was .25%. I did some huge water changes and all is well now. The bottom is 39-40deg...as it should be. The ones laying over were brought inside and re-warmed over a 3 day period. Ice was added to slow down the re-warming. I did lose two koi in the process...including my favorite ginrin sanke. Definitely gave me the winter-blues!!!

[Russell Peters]

We are spoiled in Northern California as well. I have no frozen Koi stories, with the exception of some Koi we sent to Fargo one year.

[PapaBear]

Quote: Originally Posted by Seefdro Tvneik Were suppose to go down below ZERO DEGREES on Sunday....Pushing the limits!!!!...AND I DON'T HAVE A HEATED POND....I have a koi which is very sensitive to the cold and I have a feeling I'm in trouble, and not just with her....... SH*T!!!! Can't do this another year......This year a budget will be made for a real heater......Anyone know of a heating unit which I can install for a 5,000 gallon pond for a $1,000.

We have used a stock tank heater (less than $50) to keep the edge off. In our case we placed it in the filter box and kept the water running through it with the return tented to prevent chilling. It worked great for us, and by running it primarily on the skimmer circuit it kept the surface pretty well de-iced all winter...
Our first winter we got by running a submersible pump that just circulated water around the bottom of the pond. The pump motor put off enough heat to prevent supercooling.

[Eugeneg]

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Please include the more difficult, challenging and painfull or embarrasing WINTER BLUES stories.......(They don't even have to be your stories, perhaps you just heard it happened)

My first pond being a mud pond I overwintered in it with some major dissasters;

First was a mink that wintered in the pond it must have got trapped as I found it under the ice but lost most of the fish .

Then came a sudden mild spell in Feb and there was a foot of water on top of the ice . Through a large crack in the ice the koi swam out to the warmer water on top but that night there was a sudden cold snap all the ones on top of the ice died as they got chilled .

Every year I allowed my son to play hockey on the ice but getting advice from koi experts I stopped that as expert advice said that the noise would bother the fish . No hockey meant that there was 2ft of snow as a lot drifted in . Result lack of daylight and most alge died and then rotted . Result dead fish .

Then I moved in to better fish from Isawa but all 4 never made it as not hardy enough

Conclusian anyone that lets ice form on his pond is a fool as sooner or later dissaster will come .

Solution build a tent type structure over the pond . Or if I had to build a pond in colder climates I would have steep insulated sides with the edge of pond protected with a sheet of insulation all the way around under stone work I would have a trellace over the pond the top would be covered . During the winter I would just wrap polly around sides .
Regards
Eugene