Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Ice question

Is it bad for the fish if I turn off my windmill so my pond freezes. I want to be able to take the kids ice fishing. Its only 3/4 acre with 8' of water.

Z, do you have plant life in the pond? If you keep the ice cleared of snow in strips and have plants, you have far less risk of a winter-kill. If you use dye and the pond doesn't have much plant life at all, I would suggest moving your diffuser to a depth of about 3 feet and leave the windmill running all winter to keep at least a small section of open water.

Also, if your pond is fairly young, under 3 years old, you have a lower risk of a winter kill.

Yea I have no plant life. This is the 2nd year with fish. Ive never lost one yet. It still needs to come up another 4' at least. Its been 2 years of no rain. Its crazy. Here is a video of a perch it caught.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fl7pXueARq8

A new pond in OH out of the Lk Erie snow belt usually does not need winter aeration. Just try to keep about 15%-30% of the snow off the pond so it does not lie on the ice for longer than 2-3 wks. Winter wind often exposes enough bare ice (10%-50%) to allow sunlight penetration and phytoplankton to create adequate DO for fish survival under the ice. Blue dye in winter ponds slows the natural oxygenation process by reducing sunlight penetration.
Very often fish die, sink to the bottom and are never seen on top. It is very hard on catch n' release fish to let them lie on the ice and handle them with gloves. Slime coat is a fish's immune system. That perch you released will have significant slime layer removed and will likely fungus up and eventually die before spring spawning season. Fish don't eat a lot in winter and slime replacement is very slow. Always handle winter catch n' release fish delicately. I prefer to lip lift with wet bare thumb and forefinger all catch and release YP when ice fishing to keep survival rates high. Otherwise invite the YP to dinner to reduce wasting a valuable resource.

Thanks for the tip. Im hoping the pond fills up this year.