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Winterizing your pond in New England
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Closing your pond before the first frost is important for the longevity of your water feature. It is also a good time to check
your hardware for potential issues and breakdowns.
Timing
We usually start closing ponds when the temperature drops below 50 degrees on a consistent basis.
Prodedures
On a winterizing we:
- Remove plants except for airators which we weigh down and sink.
- Remove all in-water hardware (pumps, floating skimmers, etc).
- Remove all external hardware (filters, UV lights, etc.).
- Install a recirculating pump or airation pump to keep the water moving and airated for fish.
- Drain the water to 1/4 depth.
- Remove rocks from the bottom of the pond to provide additional depth.
- Vacuum the bottom completely.
- Fill the pond back up and treat with pond-start chemicals (dechlorinator, stress coat, ammonia lock, PH buffer).
- Flush any water pools to prevent ice expansion.
Hardware
While we have the hardware out of the pond. We check it over for clogs, dirt, leaks, etc. For pumps, we'll turn them on
and run them dry for a second or two just to make sure the impellers do not rattle or sound like they run at fluctuating speeds.
In your filters, we remove any sludge (this is actually beneficial but we'll start over next year). We then bag your hardware
in plastic bags with the contents written on the outside and tie it up for storage.
Movement and Airation
Whether you have fish or not, it is important to keep some water moving all year (see step 4 above). To do this, we just place a
small pump in the lowest portion of your pond that you can find. Do not attach hoses to it, just let the water recirculate. This
will provide movement in the water to help control the thickness of the ice and helps to provide some oxygen for fish. It also
keeps the water moving after the thaw next year so that insects can not get an early start.
Fish
If your pond is greater than 18" deep, you should be just fine to leave your fish in the pond. If it is less, you may want to
consider pulling them out into an aquarium for the winter. We can store the fish for you in our greenhouses if you'd like or
you can drop them into any standard aquarium indoors as long as it has a filter and moving water.
Costs
To have us winterize your pond for you, the cost breakdown is as follows:
- Drain pond, add chemicals, remove plants and hardware, install YOUR recirculating pump: $200
- Complete cleaning and vacuuming: $20
- Clean, inspect and order replacement parts for hardware: $15 + parts
- Store fish for the winter: $10 per fish *
* Although we take lots of precautions, we can not absolutely guarantee that fish will survive at our facility. We will replace
any fish that die with the same type at no cost. Some large or fancy Koi may be more expensive to store.
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Please call for an appointment.
Ponds and Waterfalls
5-A Janet St. Rochester, NH 03867
ph. 603-509-2852 fax. 603-994-0003
e-mail
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