Tim,
It sounds like your winters are more severe than the ones that go through
here in NC Oklahoma, but I leave my pump running all the time. I usually
decrease the volume of flow so it is not pushing the entire 4,300 gph, but I
add a valve in the Fall so I can decrease the flow. I had to go out and get
my pond ready because we are suppose to have some really cold days coming
up, but as long as the water is flowing the fish do fine.
The big thing you have to think about is that the falling water has a
tendency to move directly to the bottom of the pond. I have diffusers on my
cascades so the water is pushed laterally instead of falling directly to the
bottom. In a waterfall situation this can be accomplished by water fall in
to a large lilly basket sitting on some bricks or on to a built up flat
rock.
I would tend to think that how you describe your stream and the amount of
flow you have you should not have any problems, only thing is if you have
multiple days of extremely below zero temps you may have a freeze up, but
this depends on a lot of factors.
Another thing to remember is that as some of the water freezes the water
level in you pond decreases, so you may need to keep and eye on this also.
I would remove the filter pads from the filter. Right now my filter has
only the bio-balls in it.
HTH
Keep and eye on things.
Tom L.L.
"tg" wrote in message
...
I have about a 75 foot stream in my yard that is about 3 feet wide and 6-12
inches deep at the center. I am using a Sequence 5800gph pump in
combination with a Savio skimmer. I want to try to keep it running as long
as possible this winter. We have already had temps below 10 degrees (in
Kentucky) and it has skimmed over in ice with the water running well
underneath. It starts in a waterfall and I too has iced on the edges, but
the flow is enough to keep it open. I want to know if I should remove the
filter pad from the skimmer or leave it in and if it would be advantageous
to add a stock tank heater in the skimmer box near the pump intake? Any
ideas?
Thanks,
Tim
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