I live in Northern Manitoba, Canada and I have a pond approx. 150 feet long x 100 feet wide. In the deep end which comprises approx. half of the pond the water depth is normally 10 feet deep the shallow end is approx 4 to 5 feet deep. My property is all sand and gravel and it has been a real dry year and at present the pond is 7 to 8 feet deep at the deepest spot and 4 to 5 feet deep in middle. The pond is 3 years old .
.I have approx 300 rainbow trout that I stocked in early April this year they are approx. 1 lb now.
I have a home built aeration system at the edge of the pond with 2 air stations with 2 - 9 " rubber membrane diffusers mounted on each .The compressor is mounted in a vented enclosure.
Since it normally gets very cold here in the winter , some times -40 Celsius plus , I am concerned with my current water depth that without aeration the fish could die through the winter. I have the following questions that would be much appreciated .
- what is the best diffuser location for winter aeration and depth?
- should I run both air stations or only 1 ?
- how long should I be running the aeration system for during winter 24/ 7 ?
- is it necessary to add check valves at the air diffuser when using EDI -" Flex air diffusers" or is the internal check valve enough?
- I have 1/2" poly line to run to diffusers , is this sufficient for winter use?
- what is the best way to set this up so the lines don't freeze during the winter ?
any info would be much appreciated
