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Preventing Winter Fish Kill with Aeration
Most winter fish loss is an oxygen problem, not a cold problem. Here’s how aeration keeps your fish alive under the ice.
When ice and snow seal a pond, sunlight is blocked, plants stop producing oxygen, and the bacteria breaking down bottom debris keep consuming it. With no surface exchange, dissolved oxygen can fall below what fish need to survive.
How aeration prevents it
Winter aeration keeps a section of the pond ice-free so oxygen can enter and harmful gases can escape. The aim is gentle circulation that maintains that opening, not blasting cold water through the whole pond.
- Keep an open hole in the ice with aeration.
- Remove organic debris in fall so less oxygen is used up over winter.
- Set the system up before freeze-up.
Plan ahead. Shop aeration or talk to our team.
Written by
Koenders Water Solutions Team
Aeration specialists
Aeration and water-quality know-how from the team that has been building pond aeration since 1988.
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