Pond Boss Forums Thread Like Summary - Water Temp Question

Ok, so this is a dumb question that I couldn't find the answer to anywhere and unfortunately have to ask. What is the official way to take the water temperature of a pond/lake? Is there a standard depth that you use when you take a temperature reading, or can I just shoot a laser at the surface? There's a lot of articles out there that I'm reading that toss out temperatures but without any context, so that's leading me to believe there is some sort of standard way to take a measurement when talking about temperatures.

A question is never a dumb question especially when one cannot easily find the answer. The answer is really not a simple answer. Temperature of a water body regarding depth depends on numerous conditions and the reason why the water temperature is desired.

The water temperature of a pond or lake does usually change with depth and the conditions or time of year when the measurement is collected. Sometimes the temperature can sometimes vary by as much as 28F between top and bottom. When the water body is thermally destratified and being mixed by wind action (aka turnover), the temperature is mostly uniform (within 1-3 deg F) top to bottom. At other times during warm weather the water is usually warmest on top (6"-12") and within the upper 2 - 3 ft. Then at deeper depths the temperature decreases the deeper the temperature is collected. The amount of decrease depends on the type of water body, the depth and where the pond/lake is located. The amount of temperature decrease depends on the time of year, the exposure to wind action / height of vaves, the type of water body plus some other factors. All this is why you couldn't find a simple easy answer.

I used my infrared temperature gun today and compared it with a thermometer, it was within 2 degrees of the surface temperature.

Water temp is 54 degrees down to 5 feet. Didn't try to check any deeper. I figure my Tilapia are dying.