Sunday November 16, 2003
Ice Fun

Ice Nurbs
Ice Rams

Guess who hasn't unplugged the pond?

The bottom photo looks like Zracgar the radiated crustacean battling Bob the bumpy buffalo.

It's tempting to leave it running all winter just to see what it produces. I love waterfalls in the winter I'm just not sure if it's a good idea or not. I ran across a website advertising propane powered pond warmers, guaranteed to keep your fish at a toasty 50° all winter long. Only three thousand dollars!

Instead I should drill a big 'ol hole a couple hundred feet down. Setup a closed loop system of water being pumped down and back up, warming it to the 40 degrees or so of the earth's subsurface temperature.


Shelley • 2003-11-18 09:25pm

What do you do with the fish in the winter?
jerry • 2003-11-19 05:35am

Well...

The plan is to leave them in the pond all winter. Now that the pond is over three feet deep it shouldn't freeze and I'll be watching it.

When it got below a certain temperature they quit eating. They have slowed way down and "sleep" more often.

It is pretty strange though. There are fish all over New England hibernating like this, I just worry about mine.

Previous winters they spend inside in an ever growing collection of fish tanks. Last year it was a forty gallon and that was pretty cramp for them (the Koi is probably a foot long).


Shelley • 2003-11-20 12:24am

Wow!

I am going to be curious how they do, but I bet you do a fair bit of hovering.