Water features such as ponds and swimming pools are some of the best ways to make the outdoors of your home more beautiful. Even so, maintaining them in areas that experience winter every year, such as Oakland County, MI, can be hard. Even so, early preparation can make the work a lot easier for you.

Below, we discuss some simple yet highly effective tips for preparing your water bodies for winter.

Prepare the Aquatic Life

If you have aquatic animals such as fish, you must prepare them for the cold, freezing season. To do so, start by switching their food to wheat gem-based ones. These are a lot easier to digest, which is very crucial for the fish in winter.

During winter, fish stop eating completely or eat less when the temperatures drop below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. This is because the food they will have stored in the body during warmer periods will determine their survival during freezing. Even so, it would help if you do not overfeed them; offer them what they can eat within 5 minutes; it is enough.

Retain the Warmer Seasons Water

You should not change your pond’s water during winter; instead, you should do so in the fall. When doing so, remove all dirt as they decompose with time and produce Hydrogen Sulfide, a gas that is harmful to aquatic life.

If you have mudfish, you might need to leave some sediment for the fish to burrow into during winter.

Prepare the Aquatic Plants

Although aquatic plants can survive the extreme weather in Oakland County, MI, you still need to prepare them for winter for them to survive better. Where you need to rearrange the plants, do so during the warmer seasons, remove debris, and prune wilting or dead leaves.

In addition, you should ensure that all the aquatic plants are fully submerged in water to prevent them from freezing.

Cover the Pond with a Net

Another thing to do during fall is completely cover the pond with a net. It helps reduce the amount of debris in the pond by preventing leaves from getting inside. As such, you will have an easier time maintaining it.

Get a Floating De-Icer

If you do not already have one, then you need to consider getting a floating de-icer. It creates room for toxic gases to leave the pond into the air by creating gaps in between the ice. As such, your marine life gets to live in safe water.

Remove the Motor Pump

Another crucial thing to do is to remove the motor pump and put it in a cool, dry area. Having a running motor in the pond during winter further decreases its temperatures making the living conditions worse for the aquatic life.

Conclusion

Taking care of ponds and other water features during winter should not make you afraid of getting one. It is not very hard; as long as you prepare well and ahead of time, your fish and animals will live through the severe Oakland County, MI, winter seasons.

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