my Zen Water Garden and Koi Pond

[kien]

Originally Posted by BlueTang<3

So you successfully winter your kip in the pond, how deep is it? Do u keep a heater or just water circulation? How often are you doing water changes through out the summer? After reading through your and Dez pond thread has me itching to build one.

Ya I've over wintered the fish outside for as long as I've had the pond. So far so good. I won't lie though, it is unnerving knowing your fish are out back when it's minus thirty outside!

I have no heater, just a circulating pump and de-icer (keeps a hole in the ice for gas to escape). In the summer I'll do weekly water changes cuz they eat a lot more (equals more poop). As well, there tends to be more algae. Outside of august I will do a water change every two to three weeks. It is addictive, especially once you start adding water plants!

All-in-all it is fairly easy to maintain. Water chnages are quick and simple!

[hillegom]

Any problems with raccoons?

[kien]

Originally Posted by hillegom

Any problems with raccoons?

I've actually never seen a raccoon in the wild here. I'm sure we have them but I've never seen them. Maybe the coyotes, wolves and foxes keep them away? The porcupines are more adventurous. I had one of those living under my deck.

What I do have concerns with are heron! Every year I find one or two in my back yard. I live near lakes and a river so my back yard is on their way to feeding grounds :-/

I lost a couple if fish to heron one year. Other years if see them in the back yard during (my) breakfast and chase them away. I put a decoy heron in my back yard that helps I think. Heron are territorial apparently, so they won't land if they see a heron on the ground already.

[hillegom]

We have a lot of raccoons here. My neighbour lost his fish last year, so I am reluctant to build a pond. So I just enjoy pictures of everyone else's.
I have seen herons here as well.

[Reef Pilot]

I never change my water either. Usually get enough turn over with all the rain we get here, esp in the winter. I turn on my UV to keep the water clear from algae in the summer.

We have racoons and herons here. But have a little electric fence wire that I have a timer on overnight, and keeps the racoons out. Actually, don't even turn it on most of the time now (not at all in the winter), as I think the racoons know what that wire is, and stay away.

The heron has come and landed a few times, but probably doesn't like that wire around the pond rim, either, and has never tried to get into the pond.

So I have never lost any fish yet to predators,... or that I know of. And of course here in Vancouver don't have to worry about freezing.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

My "pond" is a 180g Tuff tote and even with a cedar and chicken wire cover, I've gone outside in the morning to find a whole family of raccoons bouncing on top of the cover trying to get at the fish. They succeeded a few times in the past but now I have all sorts of ugly netting over top.

So you're lucky you don't have coons.

My parents had a big cube tank outside under their porch cover and woke up one day to a Blue Heron sitting on the edge gobbling up all their koi. That was in SE Vancouver, under an aluminum awning.

Anthony

[MarkoD]

I'm gonna be putting in a pond this year. But gonna use a preformed pond. So too small for koi. I wish one day to have one as nice as yours

[kien]

Originally Posted by MarkoD

I'm gonna be putting in a pond this year. But gonna use a preformed pond. So too small for koi. I wish one day to have one as nice as yours

Thanks MD! Curious though, why are you using a preformed ? Do you have space restrictions ? The plastic liner (sheets) are actually much cheaper, and you can design to your hearts content. My next door neighbour's pond is one of the larger pre-formed plastic molds and they keep goldfish (comets) outside all winter. That thing is like 18" deep.

[kien]

Oh and my pond is 24" deep at it's deepest. There's a ledge that's shallower at 12" deep where I keep my water plants. There are bylaw store consider when digging water features, specifically, you if you have one deeper than 24" it must be enclosed by a 6' locked fence (excluding your property fence).