If you live in a climate that experiences freezing temperatures in the winter, you may be wondering if you can have a koi pond. The answer is yes, you can. However, you will need to take certain steps to keep your koi safe through the coldest months of winter. Since koi cannot survive in a frozen pond, you need to have an understanding of your area’s freeze potential and under what conditions your koi ponds can stay unfrozen.
The first thing to know is that just because the ambient air temperature is below 32 degrees, doesn’t mean your koi ponds will immediately freeze over. Water actually conserves heat longer than you might expect and the ground under the koi ponds will also help to keep the water a bit warmer than the surrounding air. What that means is that one or two nights below freezing generally won’t be a problem. In fact, even if some ice starts to form on the surface, it can actually work as an insulator to keep the water temperature comfortable. Koi will enter into a hibernation mode when the water temperature gets lower and will only end up in trouble if the pond freezes solid.
The trick then is to avoid your koi pond freezing solid. One way is to ensure this is to have a deeper pond as shallow ones are more likely to freeze. You can also keep water circulating as long as it isn’t so cold that the pump would freeze and become damaged. If you do fear that your koi ponds will freeze solid, the best thing to do is plan an alternative location for your koi during the coldest months.
If you would like to know more about koi ponds or would like to discuss having an 11’ x 16’, 8’ x 11’ or custom size koi pond installed on your Raleigh, North Carolina area property, give us a call at Just Pondering. We offer a variety of pond and water feature installation, repair, and maintenance services that will give you the relaxing and enjoyable connection to water that you may be craving. Contact us today to learn more.