Koi Pond Heater Or Koi Pond
De Icer…Which Should You Use?
What should you do when the weather gets colder? Use a koi pond heater or a koi pond de icer? The answer is “it depends”.
As long as your pond is deep enough you can keep your koi outdoors through the winter.
Their metabolism will slow down and you’ll need to switch them to a lower protein food in the fall and then stop feeding them altogether once the temperatures drop below 50 degrees fahrenheit.
At that time they will become very sluggish and hang around at the bottom of tthe pond where the water is warmer.
The reason some people like using a
koi pond heater is because they like to feed their koi through the winter. When the fish are not taking in nutrients and are sluggish their immune systems slow down as well.
Then in the spring when they “come back to life”, other things, like bacteria are coming back to life as well. With their suppressed immune systems your koi are more susceptible to bacterial infections.
Many people prefer being able to feed through the winter to having to treat their fish for a bacterial infection.
If your pond freezes over in winter you will need to make sure to keep an opening in the ice for gases to escape. If gases get trapped beneath the ice you will end up with a pond full of dead koi in the spring!
A de icer will keep a small area open on the surface of your pond, allowing it to “breathe”. You should NEVER open a hole in the ice by breaking it with a hammer or other implement as this will send shock waves through the water that can kill your fish.
If you live in a colder climate you need to decide if you prefer to use a koi pond de icer or a koi pond heater.
Alan Deacon
