Check ice thickness as you go. It can vary greatly. A buddy called me over to his house to drill some holes in the ice for him. He had shoulder surgery so he couldn't do it himself. He had checked the ice with a spud bar the day or 2 before I got there. He said it was 6" or so thick. He and I were standing together when I started drilling with my Laser auger. I only made 4 revolutions with the handle before it broke thru the ice. We scattered like a covey of quail taking flight, as we were in 8' of water. Thinking about it, the ice was probably 2" or less thick in that spot.....
He didn't have an aeration system in his pond, and the only thing that we can think of is that the water flowing in and out of his pond thinned the ice.
