Thanks for the post, Dave! So your house is shaded all winter long
too?! I am definitely going to look into tenting my pond. It is on
the north side of the house and gets no sun from October/November
until March. I thought the shade would make a hoop house a non-
issue. The poor koi all huddled together on the bottom may be in
for a shocker. It will be spring before I get anything done... just
planning will be a morale booster for me. Thanks again.

Nedra in Missouri
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pines/4836
http://community.webshots.com/user/nedra118

"DavidEberbach" wrote in message
...
I gave up that battle after last winter, going out and trying to reopen my
frozen bubbler hole, and still losing my fish. This year I put up a hoop
house
(just 6 mil plastic over pvc) and it has worked like a charm. I've stuck
my
head under the plastic a few times and it is all clear of ice. I
convinced
that this is way to go. I'm in Iowa, zone 5, and my pond is actually
shadowed
by the neighbors house, so I'm not getting the full greenhouse benefit,
yet it
is working great. This is a lot less cost and worry than a heater.

Dave