There’s one single defining factor about how to close a pond for winter with fish that I must mention, and I must mention it right away:
The defining factor is that you’re going to need to use a pond heater, because:
“Fish actually aren’t that bothered about the cold at all.”
In fact, a pond heater isn’t just useful for keeping your fish alive through winter, but it actually allows you to keep your pond running all through the winter as well.
The reason for that is because the pond heater stops the water from freezing over, and when the water freezes over, it traps toxic gases inside the water.
The fish can handle the cold easily, but they can’t handle the toxic gases that can build up in a frozen pond.
The other thing that happens when a pond freezes over is that it blocks out the light, which can cause your pond plants to die. The plants add oxygen to the water during the day, so that’s obviously going to be a problem.
The Best Pond Heater
The best one to get is a floating pond heater, or de-icer as they’re sometimes called. You see, a submersible pond heater can melt a hole in the ice for the toxic gases to escape, but the problem is that they’re not very durable, and the last thing you want is for your pond heater to pack in during the winter. You see, what I said about the fish not minding the cold at all, that only applies to the fish that are still alive, which won’t be the case if your pond heater fails.
Besides, a floating pond heater will give you the added bonus of being able to see the fish swimming about, which will be a bit of a treat since you won’t be able to see them through the murky water anymore.
The one that I linked to above is the one that I use myself, and it works a treat. It’s a bit big, but I quite like that, because it gives a nice effect. The pond heater in the picture makes it look like there’s a hot spring in my pond. It’s quite funny. It looks like the sort of thing that you’d find in a Japanese garden.
How to Close a Pond for Winter With a Pond Heater
It’s really simple. Just chuck it in the pond.
There’s a couple of ways you can do it. You can turn it on as soon as it starts getting cold, to prevent the pond from freezing over in the first place, or you can wait until the pond actually does start to freeze over, and then turn it on.
The reason I say that is because a pond heater will keep your whole pond at a constant temperature, rather than just heating up a small area around it. That’s why it’s completely safe for your fish, because it’s not going to be too hot in any part of the pond.
If you do decide to turn it on as soon as it starts getting cold, you only need to keep it on a low setting, because you don’t want to give your fish a temperature shock. It’s a good idea to keep it on a low setting overnight as well, because fish are particularly sensitive to temperature changes in the dark.
If you do decide to wait until your pond starts to freeze over before turning it on, then I’d recommend you leave it on all the time, because if you don’t, then you run the risk of it freezing over again if you turn it off during the day, and your fish will be trapped in a dangerous environment.
If you do it right, then you can keep your pond running all through the winter with no problems at all.
