Winter - what to do with fish

On Fri, 26 Aug 2005 21:03:43 -0500, Phyllis and Jim Hurley
wrote:

Stunning amount of ice! Does the bubbler increase the depth of ice by
moving 32 degree water to the surface to melt the forming ice?

Our MS ice sometimes gets 1" thick here in the Jackson area.

No, remember that water is most dense at 39 F so that is the
temperature at the bottom. Then the heat from the earth is
transferred to the water so that full freezing does not occur. In a
normal year, our frost line is 3 feet down or more for bare earth but
since water can move the ice does not get that deep.

The ice around the bubbler hole is much thinner than the rest of the
pond. I attribute that to the movement of the warmer water from below
by the bubbler.

Not everyone has a compressor situation like mine, separate from the
house, etc. This year I will add a tee to the air line so I can also
use the compressor for other things while the bubbler is running.

John



John Bachman wrote:
On Fri, 26 Aug 2005 18:44:13 GMT, CanadianCowboy©
wrote:


I would leave them in the pond with no cover so you can easily see what
is happening from a distance. Let any pumps you have run but disconnect
any hoses and just let the water circulate underneath.
This will generate enough heat to open up a hole.

I did this last winter and didn't lose a fish and believe me it gets
cold here in Canada !



Here is what I do, it may be helpful and then maybe not. I am in New
Hampshire, not as cold as Canada but still cold.

I operate a bubbler to keep an opening in the ice. My pond is 40
inches deep and the ice gets to be 18 - 20 inches thick. The first
year I ran the bubbler from an aquarium pump but found that when it
gets really cold the pump cannot produce enough pressure so I switched
to my compressor.

Last year I set it up to run from the compressor (in my detached
garage so the noise is not an issue) all winter. That worked great,
no problems and no lost fish. Too bad because I have too many fish.

Good luck.

John