Topic: preparing for Autumn/Winter

[jenni]

Hi, I am new here and would welcome some advice.  I built my first pond this year by utilising a raised bed.  The capacitiy is only 72 gallons. I have no filtration but plenty of plantlife and it has remained clear all summer (since April).  The parameters are good.
My plants are suspended at different depths in baskets apart from oxygenators which are submerged, again mostly in baskets.  I only have two goldfish in my pond (the original reason I built it was to house these two after they were outgrowing their indoor tank) and a few frogs which have found their way in.
I have now started to thin out and tidy up the plants as they have been growing so well but am wondering what I will do with them in the winter?  If I bring the marginals into an unheated greenhouse will they survive?
What about the submerged oxygenators some of which have leaves on the surface.  My pond is 2'3" deep so I am hoping the fish will survive the winter but as it is a raised bed, about two thirds of this is above ground. Is there anything else I can do to get them through the cold weather (when it comes!)

[Roy Bham UK]

Hi Jenni and welcome aboard ;) I don't personally think the little gold fish would survive a freezing winter in only 72 gallons of still water :o as I feel it would freeze and may even do severe damage to the structure of the pond, as I am imagining it has got vertical walls, ??? whereabouts do you live and what are you minimum winter temperatures? ???

Maybe bring them in for the worst of the winter? I’ll bet in less than 12 months you will have made a new bigger pond once you have got the bug, :D I’m on my 8th change of pond at the moment. ;)


Roy. ;D

[Margaret]

Hello Jenni.i agree with Roy that it would be better to play safe and bring the fish in.Hhad the pond been in the ground you could possibly have been ok,but not  a small surface pond above ground,as it is not so much the depth but the position,and the fact that without a pump,still water will quickly freeze.

Exactly what plants do you have? The oxygenators should be ok,as all plants die down in winter and expect to be in cold temperatures.You may also trim them to below water level as ice will destroy the leaves anyway.They will not do well out of the pond anywhere,so you may want to take the risk and replace next year if need be.

[jenni]

If I can work out how to post a photograph I will do so.  The walls are quite thick so I am not worried about frost damage.  Perhaps someone could advise me about the photo. Thanks Jenni

[Roy Bham UK]

The simplest way I found of showing photos is to have yourself a free Host like Webshots.com, place your images on there and put a link on here to direct us to your web space. I'm still scratching my head on how to upload directly on here. ???

Roy ;D

[Doris_Pinks]

Roy, upload your photo's into Photobucket, copy the url under your photo and paste into your message here. Hope that helps! DP

[tedd]

Hi Jeni,

Having read the whole of this thread so far I would like to throw in a new idea. If you can reach the pond with mains electricity then you could put a floating heater into the pond. This is a small element in a tube that floats near the surface and keeps a 3 foot hole open in the ice. Cost about £5 and 60 watts.

In the past I have used these on much shallower ponds with no fish loss. Polystyrene blocks against the walls will give some insulation if they are thin.

Goldfish seem to enjoy the winter rest. They just go into a semi sleep until the spring and can be seen under the ice quite still. DO NOT FEED BELOW 10 degrees C

Regarding the plants. Again only disturb them if you know they are not hardy. 72 gallons is a lot better than a fish tank so I would prefer to stay put than be moved into a tank.

I have a 5 X 6m pond that is 1.5 m deep and I leave the pump running all winter so it does not all freeze. The birds can also drink and bath in the stream when the snow is on the ground.

We switch the pump off if we are away from home for safety.

Hi, I am new here and would welcome some advice.  I built my first pond this year by utilising a raised bed.  The capacitiy is only 72 gallons. I have no filtration but plenty of plantlife and it has remained clear all summer (since April).  The parameters are good.
My plants are suspended at different depths in baskets apart from oxygenators which are submerged, again mostly in baskets.  I only have two goldfish in my pond (the original reason I built it was to house these two after they were outgrowing their indoor tank) and a few frogs which have found their way in.
I have now started to thin out and tidy up the plants as they have been growing so well but am wondering what I will do with them in the winter?  If I bring the marginals into an unheated greenhouse will they survive?
What about the submerged oxygenators some of which have leaves on the surface.  My pond is 2'3" deep so I am hoping the fish will survive the winter but as it is a raised bed, about two thirds of this is above ground. Is there anything else I can do to get them through the cold weather (when it comes!)

[jenni]

Thanks for your help. Still having trouble trying to post a photo so looks like I'm going to have to give up on that one.  My pond is roughly triangular in shape.  The walls are about 10 inches thick so I don't think there is too much risk of damage.  One side of the pond is built into terraced steps, and another into a wall so it only leaves a third side open to the elements. Bringing my fish in is not really an option as I do not have a tank large enough to house them properly.  Getting electrics to the pond would also be difficult.  Guess I'm just going to have to hope for the best.  One thing is for sure - since moving my two goldies out into a pond they have had a really happy summer and have thrived, which has been good for them and good for me.  Can't wish for anything better. Jenni

[jenni]

Ok - Think I may have managed it. Fingers crossed!

http://community.webshots.com/scripts/controlPanel.fcgi

[Roy Bham UK]

Nope! not working for me, even tried with a small p in controlpanel :'(

[jenni]

Oops sorry I just checked back with Community Webshots and apparently after posting my picture with them it has to go through a 'photo approval process' so although I can see it it may not be visable to anyone else for 24 hours or so. Ain't life complicated????