Are you turning the aerator off on your BD's during winter?

[koikeepr]

Just curious if y'all turn the aerators off on your BD's through winter so as not to mix up the stratified water too much?

Water temps hit 56 degrees here at 12 noon, and I can see the fish starting to hunker down. My plan was to turn off my waterfall in the next few weeks, and shift that water to flow from my TPR's only instead. Though I guess that would disturb the lower water layer as well.

[Peppy]

I think it might have been Carolinagirl who told me that 4 feet or less no stratification that mattered. At least that's what I got out of what she said. Wait. I'll see if I can find it. Nah, I can't find it. I had posted about keeping the diffuser up off the bottom so as not to mix the warm and cold water.

[Carolinagirl]

Yep...as long as the filters are running, and the fish are moving, water isn't going to stratify anyway. If there is an airstone anywhere in the pond, it's creating currents. So no....no need to turn off any air. Turning off waterfalls is probably a good thing to do though, because the thin layer of water that crosses it will cool as it does so. I keep mine running and cover them with heavy black plastic to keep the water from cooling too much.

[Kntry]

I don't turn the aerators off, ever. I do turn off the waterfalls and sprayers if the weather cools down below 50°

[Coach]

while I can see the focus from the comments above, couple of other things come to mind that probably should be brought up for the understanding of all.

Waterfalls subject to the cooling temperatures of an outdoor pond could best be discribed as cooling towers. They expose the water to ambient temperatures. As the water cools down the need for oxygenation is decreasing as the lower the water temps the higher the O2 saturation. (readers digest version: shut it off!)

Depending upon the design of your pond (bowl shaped are perfect example) Bottom drains in addition to
creating air also cause a sweeping motion to clean the bottom and pull waste into your collection facility.
While the air isn't needed for the same reason as the waterfall, fish sitting the winter with the heaviest waste (including urine) on the bottom is counter to good husbantry. (readers digest version: let it run)


Decades ago we used to think that the time we quit feeding was the time that filter bacteria quit doing their job. Advanced learning has now taught us that bacteria forms (some not all) work as low as 41 F.
Another reason to keep the filter running, and BD's operating with air.

[WeWilly]

My air runs all year. The only thing I do is devert the water from waterfall to pond and cover the pond.

[chris]

the water temp has been 45 to 50 here i still have my skippy runing
i think around thanksgiveing i will close the water fal down and put in the deicer and air stones the fish are still eating i think gold fish like the cooler water i have no koi

[Peppy]

My pond was 46 last I checked and the koi didn't come over for food. I used to keep the falls running in the old AS pond and it was only 2 feet deep but it was the only filtration I had and they told me keep it running. YIKES!

[Squidhead]

I have posted it and some one else more recently. Bacteria slows reproduction percentage wise but is still alive and reproduces down towards the 40F mark. It will die at or below freezing, other then that... the stuff woiks