Pond Boss Forums POND CONSTRUCTION Creating habitat how deep to prevent winterkill

I believe the rule of thumb (for fish in general) is allow at least 6 feet of depth after you subtract out your ice thickness (looks like you should allow a foot for that) and whatever depth you stand to lose in a drought (where I live, they tell me that's 2 feet). This depth over 1/3 to 1/2 of the pond should be enough deep water.

You should be OK without aeration during the Winter as long as you can clear the snow off some of the ice to let sunlight in (within a day or so of snowfall - does that mean everyday on Colorado?), enabling a little photosynthesis for O2 production. I think clearing 10-20% of the surface is considered sufficient.

Wood (lives next door to Santa's workshop) is the expert for keeping trout alive under the ice; hopefully he will be able to chime in.