Messages

1

Pond Chat / Re: Mother Nature does not understand that this is SPRING!

« on: March 27, 2009, 08:34:28 AM »

UGH, that is some serious snow!  I hope it passes you over with not much problem.  Seems all regions and zones are having a hard winter/spring.  Today there is not a cloud in the sky and it is 42F, warmest day so far, I am going to peel back the pond cover so the fish can see some sunshine and hopefully it will inspire them to hang in there.  I lost my first koi last week, it was one of my smaller ones at 10" but it was still a hard loss to swallow  :'(

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Pond Chat / Re: Mother Nature does not understand that this is SPRING!

« on: March 26, 2009, 10:57:17 PM »

Well to make you all feel better....I still have 16" of ice on the pond and over 2 feet of snow in my yard and not much for temperatures above 20F and the pond temp is at 38F.  You should all feel a little better about your situations now 

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Pond Chat / Re: What is the temperature of your pond water?

« on: March 26, 2009, 06:50:37 PM »

Here is the info for the one I have, remember this is in USD funds and I paid Canadian exchange so my final cost was considerably more around $500.00 including shipping to MikeW's place. It costs about $15.00 per month to run in the winter because it is always running, come summer I turn it off. It is an expense I am willing to pay as I have some of the rarest tropical waterlilies in the world in my pond and treating them as annuals is not an option. PS, MikeW brought it to me on the plane as it did not arrive while I was visiting in time. He has a story about customs and the ordeal he went through to get this to me. Oh I almost forgot the additional duty he had to pay to get it through.

QSUBTY18: Q-SUB 1500 WATT Submersible pond/tank heater


304 titanium. 20 foot power cord, controller 1800w 120vExcellent for Pond Applications. Just lay it in the bottom of the pond or tank
Includes Flexi Float low liquid shut-off.
Includes liner-friendly neoprene bumper.
Specifically designed for Aquaculture.
Polypropylene Mesh Guard prevents fish from contacting heating surface.
20 ft (6.0 m) watertight cable and 8 ft(2.4 m) control cord to wall are provided.
Heater is hard wired for easier installation.
1000 and 1500 Watt heaters, also available in 240 Volt. Comes with wall plug and matching receptacle; add -2 to model number.
Example: QSUBDTY15-2. Add $50
Clip-on weight now standard. Replacement weights available.
International orders receive pigtail on control cord.
Retail Price:   $ 375

OMG I AM SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GETTING ONE OF THOSE!  I never knew that thing exsisted.  Thanks so much for the info.  I am going to look into it right away.  Elaine

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Pond Chat / Re: What is the temperature of your pond water?

« on: March 26, 2009, 06:48:23 PM »

Mine is holding steady at 38F.  Had 8 inches of snow the other day and still have 16 inches of ice on the pond.  I really think Spring is not coming to the north this year!

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Pond Chat / Re: Dead Fish

« on: March 08, 2009, 06:45:13 PM »

I really feel for you Esther.  maybe it just has something to do with this being a longer and colder winter.  Seems there is an aweful lot of fish loss this year in every zone.  Maybe I don't have problems as I don't have any fluctuations in my weather and just maybe that is easier on the fish and the pond.  I know alot of people whos ponds warm up enough to feed and I imagine the warm and then cold again could really affect a fish.  I guess with shallower ponds it is worse.  Mine is all 5 feet deep and we never warm up during the winter, .  The water has been clear and the chemistry has not changed.  Maybe it is just dumb luck     Whatever the cause of a fish loss..............it is always very sad and most of the time there was nothing we could have done better for them and if there was, then we surely learn from it and are better ponders for it.  I think I remember some dumb person who put their fishy babies out in a deck pond last April and killed all but 2.........oh wait that was ME.............lesson learned 

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Pond Chat / Re: Zone2 Ponding

« on: March 08, 2009, 06:31:48 PM »

actually that is where I pile my ice I take out of the pond.  My little string of lights are clear, they are just there so I know my aerator is still running.  If the lights are on then the aerator is running. 

7

Pond Chat / Re: Dead Fish

« on: March 08, 2009, 10:17:12 AM »

I am hoping maybe I can help with the problem of losing your fish in the winter.  As I posted in the pond chat section, I have been succesfully ponding in zone 2 for three years.  I have never lost a goldfish or a koi.  My temps range from -45F to -20F and stay there for about 4-5 months.  My fish go without food for 7-8 months of the year depending on the fall and spring temps.  My fish range in size from 24" down to little tiny babies 1".  They all make it fine.  The biggest thing I can say is you have to have aeration in there, and very good aeration at that.  I keep a hole in the ice with two deicers and an axe and I have to be dilligent and go out there twice a day to keep that hole open.  I run a big aerator and keep it 18 inches off the bottom.  I cover my pond so when I am working out there it is a wind break for me.  As far as I am concerned there is no temp too cold for a fish to handle.  I don't do any water changes during these 8 months and I don't do any filtration etc.  I just keep that hole open and keep the aerator running.  If the fish get poor water quality they will rise up off the bottom in search of better water and air and can risk getting trapped in the ice.  I also believe koi are just as hardy as goldfish, I even have a scaleless koi that is just as hardy as the rest.  That being said, that is under optimal conditions, goldfish will survive poor conditions that a koi will not.  I hate to see ponders losing fish in the winter, it is so sad, expecially to lose an older fish and a big koi  :'(  Please everyone put a good aerator in your pond for your fish, it will make all the difference in the world.  Oh I just reread this and it makes me sound awefully oppinionated and I don't mean to come off that way at all!  I just really know what works in the winter and would like to help 

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Pond Chat / Re: Zone2 Ponding

« on: March 08, 2009, 08:54:17 AM »

Hi Emm, I do not grow any plants as of yet.  I tried last year with no success at all.  I do bring up some plants (weeds, ) from the clay pond and plant them in my filter and they do well.  I will try again this year.  I tore the pond apart in the fall as I am going to redo it with a way larger stream with an upper pond.  I am also going to build a pond for just the goldfish as well.  My pond is only 2400 gallons and there are 7 koi in there and I have 2 more in an aqurium in the basement that will be going out this summer too so the pond will be at capacity without the goldfish.  I do not like to over crowd even with good filtration.  I do have to cover the pond in the summer.  Since the pond was just built last summer I just used one of those picnic shelter type things.  This year after the pond is re built I am going to build a pergola (well not me personally) for the shade.  The pond is in 100% sunlight and in the summer we have daylight for 21 hours a day and boy can that grow algae  I also use liquid peat to help as well.  I will see what else I have for pictures that I can post.

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Pond Chat / Re: Zone2 Ponding

« on: March 07, 2009, 10:19:19 AM »

Oh and just so you believe me, , heres a picture of my thermometer!   :'(

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Pond Chat / Re: Zone2 Ponding

« on: March 07, 2009, 10:04:56 AM »

I am finally getting around to pictures!  The first one is of the tent, then pond is inside of that for the winter.  The second one is of the pond with its other cover on it.  The third picture is the pond without the cover.  The ice is still about 16 inches thick right now.  The fourth picture is of the koi after I clear the ice, you can see a few of them in the open hole.  The big orange guy is 24 inches and 8 lbs and is almost 3 years old.  The fifth picture is of the pond in the summer and the sixth picture is of my clay pond where I grew out the koi and that is how they got so big so fast, , it holds about 500,000 gallons at capacity but drops rapidly in the summer.  I can post more pictures of it with the fish if anyone is interested,

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Pond Chat / Zone2 Ponding

« on: February 20, 2009, 09:38:44 AM »

Hi All, I am new here and just wondering if anyone else out there ponds in a zone 2?  I have been successfully doing it for 3 years now.  Winter is a real challenge but I have never lost a fish (knocking on wood).  I have 7 koi and about 30 goldfish.  My biggest koi is almost 3 years old and 24" and 8 lbs. The pond is open from May to October.  I usually stop feeding mid october and don't resume until may.  My only thought about how my fish get so big so fast is the 21 hours of daylight I have in the summer months.  As of this morning, the ice on the pond is currently 18" thick still   :'(