| I now have a similar issue and I am also in Zone 6. I bought a house with an existing pond with what I suspect are goldfish. The owner said they were 8-9 years old. She had used a pump but had never filtered and the pump was broken. (the water was pea green!) I bought a new pump, a UV and bio filter and water test kit. I have been testing water and keeping ph in the correct range. I have had issues with ammonia, but had been changing the water and doing what was necessary to control that. i have also fished leaves and other debris out ofthe pond along with adding salt when necessary. The fish pond is a molded pond about 3 feet deep and around 100 gallons. There are 9 fish with the biggest about 6-8 inches long and the smallest about 4-5 inches long (1 fan tail, white, others white speckled and some orange/gold).
Everything seemed to be going fine until we hit a cold snap this week. I had kept the filter and pump going to keep the pond from freezing over completely. We lost 2+ fish yesterday and I read up on the internet to see what I am doing wrong. Some sites mentioned turning off the pump/waterfall because it causes the water to cool too quickly. In the night, the pond froze completely over and when I tried thawing it with water, it appears i have lost 2+ fish again. I admit I am new at this and am having difficulty figuring out who's dead and who's not! (I'm figuring the floaters are dead).
I am completely devastated since the older owner had had them so long and never added salt, never filtered, and always took the pump out in the Fall until Spring, and I have really been trying to create the proper enivronment. Any suggestions? My 4 major questions:
1) How can I tell if the ones on the bottom are dead?
2) If fish get frozen are they dead?
3) What have I done wrong?
4) Should I turn the pump back on?
Any help/suggestions would be apreciated.
Cathy |
