How to protect your fish

We have almost got used to mild winters in Central Europe, but a shallow garden pond can freeze over relatively quickly even with light frost. Once it is covered with ice, the leaves and sludge on the pond floor lead to undesirable fermentation processes and the formation of digester gas. Both of these negatively affect the plants, Animals and microorganisms in the ornamental pond, as oxygen is now scarce.

Ice preventer for the light frost

With the ice preventer available on the market, it is possible, at least in the case of moderate frosts, that the pond does not completely freeze over. The floating bodies made of thick styrofoam are anchored over the deepest point on the ground and provide a ice-free zone, which is only as large as the inner diameter of such devices, which should be at least 60 cm.

In the case of larger pond systems, several

Ice preventer can be used in different places, in case of strong permafrost in combination with air vents, which are approx. 30 cm depth ensure a slight movement of the water.

Ice-free with pond heaters

The electrically operated devices, which work on the principle of an immersion heater, prevent complete freezing. The size of the ice-free section on the pond depends on the current water temperature and the electrical output of the stainless steel heating rods, which are approx. They protrude 25 cm into the pond water and are fixed to a styrofoam float. Some technical device features:

• Power range between 100 and 3000 watts;
• integrated frost guard function;
• many different designs (water heater, pond balls, heating tapes) possible;
• Remote control via smartphone app;

Important for the absence of ice in the pond

Start using ice preventer as early as late autumn if possible, but at the latest when the ground freezes and before the bank area freezes over. A garden pond can also be prevented from freezing over with a simple bubble wrap if it is laid out on the surface of the water with the air-filled knobs facing down.