Should I make a hole in the Ice?

[Chris Plumb]

With the freeze up what is the survivability of fish under ice for prolonged periods? My garden pond is around 20inches deep - depth is uniform - and about 15m2. It holds tench, rudd, sticklebacks and newts. Should I be considering making an air hole for the fish?

 

 

C.

[Elton]

Mine hasn't frozen over, but we always used to pop a couple of tennis balls in ours when I was a kid to create air holes. I would certainly look to make some holes if your pond were mine.

[Chris Plumb]

Mine hasn't frozen over, but we always used to pop a couple of tennis balls in ours when I was a kid to create air holes. I would certainly look to make some holes if your pond were mine.

 

Yeah our tennis balls just froze into the ice - to then be covered by 10inches of snow! Bit milder here today might try an make a hole or two!

 

 

C.

[Steve Walker]

If I were going to make a hole, I would do it by resting a pan of hot water on the ice. I think your fish will probably be fine without it, though. There is no gas exchange through the ice, but your fish will have very slow metabolisms in the cold.

[Chris Plumb]

Hole now made via some boiling water - ice was an impressive 4 inches thick. Been pumping air under the ice with a bicycyle pump - don't suppose it will have made a lot of difference but at least I can feel like I did my bit!

 

 

C.

[Elton]

A timely news release:

 

http://www.anglersnet.co.uk/News/frozen-la...-fish-care.html

[Steve Walker]

"Most vulnerable are shallow lakes and pools which support large populations of fish and have deep layers of silt or other organic matter on the bed."

 

I wonder what sort of fishery is a heavily stocked muddy puddle?

[Dales]

If I were going to make a hole, I would do it by resting a pan of hot water on the ice. I think your fish will probably be fine without it, though. There is no gas exchange through the ice, but your fish will have very slow metabolisms in the cold.

 

Yep that's the method I use. Oddly the Koi still seem very active even in this cold weather and are darting around the pond and coming to the surface. The goldfish seem to have gone to bed for the winter and are moaching around on the bottom.

 

The Koi are still taking wheat germ pellets and munching on pond weed, if only the Carp were so obliging when I go fishing.

[arbocop]

The Koi are still taking wheat germ pellets and munching on pond weed, if only the Carp were so obliging when I go fishing.

 

 

Try wheatgerm and pondweed boilies!

[Dales]

Try wheatgerm and pondweed boilies!

 

You may be on to some thing